tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50038738507573266412024-03-12T22:06:05.366-05:00PoC Devotions BlogWith every season there is a point of change.Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.comBlogger1097125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-33990694218615323022020-06-15T02:00:00.000-05:002020-06-15T02:00:06.147-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to Revelation 16-22<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: Revelation 16</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tuesday: Revelation 17</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wednesday: Revelation 18</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thursday: Revelation 19</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Friday: Revelation 20</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Saturday: Revelation 21</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to Revelation 16-22</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 16 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then see the seven bowls of God’s wrath which are poured onto Earth. <br /><br />First Bowl: <br /><br />A "foul and malignant sore" afflicts the followers of the Beast. <br /><br />Second Bowl: <br /><br />The sea turns to blood and everything within it dies. <br /><br />Third Bowl: <br /><br />All fresh water turns to blood. <br /><br />Fourth Bowl: <br /><br />The Sun scorches the Earth with intense heat and even burns some people with fire. <br /><br />Fifth Bowl: <br /><br />There is total darkness and great pain in the Beast's kingdom. <br /><br />Sixth Bowl: <br /><br />The Great River Euphrates is dried up and preparations are made for the kings of the East and the final battle at Armageddon between the forces of good and evil. <br /><br />Seventh Bowl: <br /><br />A great earthquake and a heavy hailstorm occur, and "every island fled away and the mountains were not found." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then reach the aftermath seen in a vision of John given by "an angel who had the seven bowls." <br /><br />We see the great Harlot who sits on a scarlet Beast (with seven heads and ten horns and names of blasphemy all over its body) and by many waters… aka Babylon the Great. The angel showing John the vision of the Harlot and the scarlet Beast reveals their identities and fates. Babylon is destroyed. A poem of lament has been inserted here which closely resembles eye-witness accounts of the destruction of Pompeii. The people of the Earth (the kings, merchants, sailors, etc.) mourn Babylon's destruction. The permanence of Babylon's destruction is confirmed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 19-20 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then come to the vision of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and a great multitude praises God. <br /><br />We then come to the Judgment of the two Beasts, the Dragon, and the Dead. The Beast and the False Prophet are cast into the Lake of Fire. The Dragon is imprisoned in the Bottomless Pit for a thousand years. The resurrected martyrs live and reign with Christ for a thousand years. After the Thousand Years, the Dragon is released and goes out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the Earth—Gog and Magog—and gathers them for battle at the holy city. The Dragon makes war against the people of God but is defeated. The Dragon is cast into the Lake of Fire with the Beast and the False Prophet. <br /><br />We then come to The Last Judgment where the wicked, along with Death and Hades, are cast into the Lake of Fire, which is described as the second death.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 21-22 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then see the vision of the New Heaven and Earth, and the New Jerusalem. A new Heaven and a new Earth are established. There is no more suffering or death. God comes to dwell with humanity in the New Jerusalem. The description of the New Jerusalem sounds a lot like Ezekiel's vision. The River of Life and the Tree of Life appear for the healing of the nations and peoples. The curse of sin is ended. <br /><br />We then come to the conclusion of the book where Jesus reassures us that his coming is imminent, saying, “I Jesus have sent my angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. And the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come’. And let him that hears say, ‘Come’. And let those that are thirsty come. And whoever will, let them take the water of life freely.” <br /><br />And John ends the book by saying, “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I come quickly’. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-89141053089421943832020-06-08T02:00:00.000-05:002020-06-08T02:00:00.644-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to Revelation 9-15<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: Revelation 9<br />Tuesday: Revelation 10<br />Wednesday: Revelation 11<br />Thursday: Revelation 12<br />Friday: Revelation 13<br />Saturday: Revelation 14<br />Sunday: Revelation 15</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to Revelation 9-15</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 9-11 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fifth </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Trumpet (which introduces the First Woe): </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />A "star" falls from the sky. This "star" is given "the key to the bottomless pit." The "star" then opens the bottomless pit. When this happens, "smoke [rises] from [the Abyss] like smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky are darkened by the smoke from the Abyss." From out of the smoke emerge locusts who are "given power like that of scorpions of the earth" and are commanded not to harm anyone or anything except for people who were not given the "seal of God" on their foreheads. The "locusts" are described as having a human appearance (faces and hair) but with lion's teeth, and wearing "breastplates of iron"; the sound of their wings resembles "the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle." <br /><br />Sixth Trumpet/The Second Woe: <br /><br />The four angels bound to the great river Euphrates are released to prepare two hundred million horsemen. These armies kill a third of mankind by plagues of fire, smoke, and brimstone. <br /><br />Interlude: The little scroll <br /><br />An angel appears, with one foot on the sea and one foot on the land, having an opened little scroll in his hand. Upon the cry of the angel, seven thunders utter mysteries and secrets that are not to be written down by John. John is instructed to eat the little scroll that happens to be sweet in his mouth, but bitter in his stomach, and to prophesy. John is given a measuring rod to measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. Outside the temple, at the court of the holy city, it is trod by the nations for forty-two months (3 1/2 years). And two witnesses prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth until they are killed by the beast and raised to life by God three days later for the whole world to see. <br /><br />Seventh Trumpet/The Third Woe (which introduces the seven bowls): <br /><br />The temple of God opens in heaven, where the ark of His covenant can be seen. There is lightning, loud noises, thunder, an earthquake, and large hail. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 12 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Before coming to the seven bowls of wrath, the text introduces us to seven spiritual figures. <br /><br />The Woman and Child: <br /><br />She is "clothed with a white robe, with the sun at her back, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars." She is in labor with a male child. <br /><br />The Dragon and Michael: <br /><br />He has seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns on his heads, and he drags a third of the stars of Heaven with his tail, and throws them to the Earth. The Dragon waits for the birth of the child so he can devour it. However, sometime after the child is born, he is caught up to God's throne while the Woman flees into the wilderness into her place prepared of God that they should feed her there for 1,260 days (3½ years). War breaks out in heaven between Michael and the Dragon, identified as that old Serpent, the Devil, or Satan. After a great fight, the Dragon and his angels are cast out of Heaven for good, followed by praises of victory for God's kingdom. The Dragon engages to persecute the Woman, but she is given aid to evade him. Her evasiveness enrages the Dragon, prompting him to wage war against the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 13-15 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Sea Beast: <br /><br />He has seven heads, ten horns, and ten crowns on his horns and on his heads names of blasphemy. He emerges from the sea, having one mortally wounded head that is then healed. The people of the world are filled with wonder and follow the Beast. The Dragon grants him power and authority for forty-two months. The Beast of the Sea blasphemes God's name (along with God's tabernacle and His kingdom and all who dwell in Heaven), wages war against the Saints, and overcomes them. <br /><br />The Earth Beast: <br /><br />Then, a Beast emerges from the Earth having two horns, a head like a lamb, a body as a sheep, a tail like a wolf, feet like a goat, and a speaking voice like a dragon. He directs people to make an image of the Beast of the Sea who was wounded yet lives, breathing life into it, and forcing all people to bear "the mark of the Beast", "666". <br /><br />The Lamb/Son of Man (who introduce the events leading into the Third Woe): <br /><br />The Lamb stands on Mount Zion with the 144,000 "first fruits" who are redeemed from Earth and victorious over the Beast and his mark and image. We then hear the proclamations of three angels, who say: <br /><br />“Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” <br /><br />“‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great,’ which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.” <br /><br />“If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.” <br /><br />Then “one like the Son of Man” reaps the earth. Another angel reaps "the vine of the Earth" and throws it into "the great winepress of the wrath of God... and blood came out of the winepress... up to one thousand six hundred stadia." <br /><br />The temple of the tabernacle, in Heaven, is opened, beginning the "Seven Bowls" revelation. Seven angels are given a golden bowl, from the Four Living Creatures, that contains the seven last plagues bearing the wrath of God.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span></div>
Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-44337390778235080662020-06-01T02:00:00.000-05:002020-06-01T02:00:00.151-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to Revelation 2-8<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: Revelation 2<br />Tuesday: Revelation 3<br />Wednesday: Revelation 4<br />Thursday: Revelation 5<br />Friday: Revelation 6<br />Saturday: Revelation 7</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to Revelation 2-8</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 2 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The next section of the book contains Jesus’ letters to the seven churches of Asia Minor. John directs the record of his visions to the seven churches in the province of Asia, which incorporated approximately the western third of Asia Minor. His words to the churches contain evidences that he was familiar with the local conditions and traditions of these churches, which may have been personally known to him from his association with that area. His reason for selecting these seven churches, as well as the order in which the churches are listed, probably has to do with geography and communications: The cities in which the churches are located are all centers of communications, and a messenger bearing Revelation to the cities would arrive in Ephesus from Patmos, travel by a secondary road north to Smyrna and Pergamum, and then go east on the Roman road to Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Ephesus </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">John begins with Jesus’s letter to the Church in Ephesus. Ephesus was the center of commerce in first-century Asia Minor. It was home to the Apostle Paul, his disciple, Timothy, and later, the Apostle John. According to church tradition, John was accompanied to Ephesus by Mary, the mother of Jesus. It is believed that she lived here for several years, and that she died here and was buried near what was later named Mary’s Church. This church was the location of the First (431) and Second (449) Ecumenical Councils. <br /><br />Ephesus was the major sea port on the coast of Asia Minor, constructed with beautiful white marble and architecture that rivaled that of Rome. The Arcadian Way (the way of the sea) went directly from the port of Ephesus to the great amphitheater that we read about in Acts 19:23-41, where the crowd rioted because the spread of Christianity was impacting the sales of idols. <br /><br />During the first century, there were two primary deities worshiped in Ephesus – Artemis (Diana) and Caesar (actually, multiple Caesars, beginning with Augustus, later Nero, Domitian and, finally, Trajan). Additionally, there are indications that the cult of Mithras also had a foothold in the Roman legions housed in Ephesus. Each of these false gods has a part to play in the Apocalypse of John. <br /><br />The mystery religion of Mithraism likely began in the first century BC or early in the first century AD, as an attempt to explain a great crisis in astronomy. Greek astronomers discovered ancient writings that claimed the sky was in Taurus during the vernal equinox instead of the normal Aeries, indicating that someone had at some point “killed” Taurus. They believed that whoever had the power to kill Taurus also had power over “the seven stars” of “the heavens” – those being the sun, the moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. They didn’t know that the earth’s “wobble” would take it through each of the signs of the Zodiac, changing every 2160 years. That “something” had to be bigger than the heavens, and it controlled the seven stars – which would lead departed souls from earth to the heavens. For adherents of this ‘mystery religion‘, Mithras was identified as the “something” controlling the universe. He had a miraculous birth in a shepherd’s cave, he was visited by Magi, and he died and was resurrected, along with many other similarities to Jesus and Christianity. At the time John was in Ephesus, Mithraism was competing with Christianity, and by the time of Constantine in the early fourth century, it was the primary religion competing with Christianity. And so it is that John identifies Jesus as: “Him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lamp stands.” This is in direct opposition to Mithras, who was believed to hold the “seven stars” – the path from earth to the heavens – in his hands. <br /><br />In Ephesus, there were two incredibly large Agora, places of buying and selling. In order to buy and sell in the marketplace, everyone had to burn incense and declare that Caesar was lord. If you needed food, or water, or clothing, or goods, you could not get into the Agora without worshiping Caesar. By the time Domitian came to power, you could be put to death if you did not declare him lord and have his mark on you or your goods. The Nicolaitans were Christians who believed that since Caesar was not God, they could still burn incense to him for the sake of convenience. If they needed fire, they could go to the Temple of Hestia (goddess of hearth and home) and burn incense to her in order to get fire, because they ‘knew’ she was not God. If they needed food, they could go to the altar of Caesar, burn incense in his name (while ‘knowing’ he was not God), and receive freshly-sacrificed meat. It appears, though, that this practice was not condoned by the Ephesian church: “But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.” <br /><br />Ephesus was the center of worship of the goddesses Artemis and Cybele, housing the Temple of Artemis – one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In this Temple, criminals could come to seek sanctuary, and as long as they didn’t leave the grounds, they couldn’t be prosecuted. Additionally, it was believed that Artemis would protect women who were in childbirth, with some records indicating that 250,000 women each year came to the temple for such protection. In the center of the Temple of Artemis was a large enclosed garden, called the ‘Paradise of Artemis’. In the center of this paradise were two intertwined linden trees. This tree was called by the Artemis worshipers, ‘The Tree of Life’. Jesus promises that “to him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” – not the paradise of Artemis. In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (Septuagint), there are two words for ‘tree’ – dendron and xulon. Dendron is used almost exclusively for all living trees. However, xulon, which is used to denote dead wood, is used less often, but is the same word used for Jesus being hung on a tree. When John describes the tree of life in the paradise of God, the tree (xulon) of life is the cross! <br /><br />While we know a lot about Ephesus and the Ephesian church, we do not really know what problems they are dealing with in Revelation. They seem to have resisted the blatant worship of other gods that was constantly going on in the city, yet it appears they were guilty of another form of idolatry – one of the heart. Jesus says to them that they have forgotten their first love, but what does this mean? It is possible that while the Ephesians had done a great job in following all the rules regarding not worshiping other gods, they had perhaps forgotten to love their own God. And how is it that we love God? By loving others. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Smyrna </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Next, John records Jesus’s letter to the Church in Smyrna. The city of Smyrna sits on the modern-day location of the city of Izmir. Smyrna was founded as a port city in the region of Anatolia (which means "land of the rising sun") on the Aegean sea. Smyrna is situated on the Hermus valley which was known for its fertility, and its location was important to the romans as a transportation hub for shipping of Roman soldiers during the time of the Second Temple in Judean history as well as during the timeframe of the Early Church. The Romans used the surrounding cliffs and mountains as naturally occurring battlements. These mountain walls were known as the crown of Smyrna and were kept lit by watch-fires at night. <br /><br />Smyrna was home to one of the ancient world’s largest marketplaces, the agora. It also had a significant Jewish population from the diaspora, which was a key part of the spreading of the gospel here… and also a major source of some of the early church’s major conflicts. <br /><br />The church in Smyrna is the only church of the seven John addresses in the book of revelation that does not receive a scolding for its behavior. Based on archaeological records as well as clues from John’s letter, the church in Smyrna was very likely made up of the poor of the city… who stood in contrast to many of the Jews of Smyrna who were more well-off. Apparently, The Jews of Smyrna in particular were one of the main groups who were out to persecute the church because of their religious difference. This might be what John is referring to when he says: "I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan."<br /><br />Towards the end of the first century and the beginning of the 2nd century, the leader of the church at Smyrna was a man named Polycarp. Polycarp was one of John’s disciples, and he as well as several other believers in Smyrna were some of the first Christian martyrs. Polycarp actually narrowly escaped martyrdom on several occasions before he was finally killed at the age of 87. He was a widely respected leader in the church at Smyrna by then. Orders from Caesar had placed the Christians in Asia Minor under extreme pressure to convert to the cult of the emperor. When the local authorities came to arrest Polycarp, they gave him the opportunity to declare that Caesar was god, and go free. But Polycarp politely refused to this. This may provide some context for the words John writes to the church: “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” When John speaks of a crown, he is not talking about the kind that a king wears, but rather the wreath that would be given to the winner of a race. His point is that if the church in Smyrna was persecuted, they would in fact be rewarded for their perseverance of faith. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Pergamum </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Pergamum was the seat of political power in Asia Minor, and it was also home to the frumentaria, a Roman garrison that protected food shipments through the major trade route from the Aegean into Asia Minor. <br /><br />When we read John’s letter to the church in Pergamum, we must wonder why John twice refers to this city as a place where Satan rules. <br /><br />It’s possible that these people might have been some of the early ones to declare their rulers as gods after they died… turning their tombs into shrines of heroes. It’s likely that the Caesars were in part inspired by the practices at Pergamum and adopted them as well, starting with the Caesars of the outlying provinces and eventually leading to the Caesars at Rome being deified upon death, and ultimately with Domitian declaring himself to be a god while still living. <br /><br />The Acropolis at Pergamum contains the ruins of Trajan’s temple. He ruled Rome from AD 98 – 117. This place may be what John is referring to when he says “Satan’s throne” due to the horrors committed against early believers there who refused to worship Caesar. <br /><br />An alternative option rests in the agora (or marketplace) also located on the Acropolis. This is where the rule of burning incense to Caesar in order to be able to purchase and trade in the marketplace may have initially started. <br /><br />This tradition eventually made its way to Ephesus and was so widespread that nobody could purchase or trade, or even get food, water or fire, or acquire meat without declaring Caesar was god, with death as possible punishment. <br /><br />This is most likely what John is talking about when he refers to the “beast” (probably Nero or Domitian): “He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.” (Revelation 13:16-17) <br /><br />Another option might be the Theater of Pergamum, which held a lot of influence over the public. It sat on the Acropolis and seated about 10,000 people, and was the biggest of many others here. It was dedicated (like every Hellenistic theater) to Dionysus, the god of wine and orgy. It was adjacent to his temple, and immediately before the shows, the public would get drunk off the free wine offered there and then go watch the show, which was typically sexual in nature. After the show, a lot of them would drink some more and gorge themselves on raw meat which led to a lot of frenzied “visions” and vomiting, followed by rendezvous with the temple prostitutes. <br /><br />John mentions the character of Balaam in his letter to them, the sorcerer from the book of Numbers that the Moabites hired to curse Israel. God would not let him curse but only bless them… so he came up with another plan to lead them astray through prostitution and idol worship. He is saying that the same temptations that Israel had in ancient times were still around in the present. <br /><br />People from all over Rome would show up at the Asklepion to be healed. Some would stay and wait for years. Those who were healed would record how Asclepius had healed them on a large white stone and sign their name to it. This is probably why John writes: “To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.” His point is that the local church has no need of what the pagans rely on, whether it be from a frumetaria or Asclepius. He says that if they overcome then they will get their own white stones from Jesus. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Thyatira </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Thyatira is located on the Lycus River, roughly forty miles to the east of Pergamum. It was a city founded on trade, manufacturing its own wool and purple cloth. Historical accounts relate that Thyatira was the location of many influential trade guilds, all of which paid allegiance to one or more of the patron gods of the city: Tyrimnos and the Roman Caesar – both of whom were recognized as sons of Zeus. <br /><br />This is the only one of the seven letters to refer to Jesus by His title “Son of God”, probably in contrasting response to the worship traditions there. Affiliation with of one of the trade guilds coincided with partaking in the guild feasts. At the feasts, all the food and wine would be sacrificed to Tyrimnos or whichever god associated with that guild. Everyone there was required to partake in the sacrifice as well as various public sexual acts. This would have been an obvious problem for Christians living there. <br /><br />The ‘Jezebel’ that John refers to is likely a figurative person in the city and not an actual person. Jewish Christians in Thyatira would have identified “Jezebel” as the name of one of the most loathed figures in their history. The Jezebel of the Hebrew Bible led Israel into worshiping Baal. John is contrasting her with the systems of the current day that were attempting to get Christians to fall in line and worship the contemptible gods of the culture. This figure is condemned by John for leading others into sin more so than anything else. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Sardis </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sardis was an important Roman city in the Hermus valley, and was located at the center of the mail route that included the Seven Churches in Revelation. Mount Tmolus overshadows the city, and the ruins of a defensive stronghold can still be seen on top of it. Sardis became rich and influential as a consequence of gold being found in the river that went through it, the Hermus River. It’s likely that Sardis is one of the areas that many Jews settled during the diaspora. Sardis is home to the largest known synagogue of the time period, decorated with marble and detailed mosaics. It sat in front of the Roman gymnasium. The remains of early churches in Sardis were discovered near the Temple of Artemis, and a fourth-century chapel was constructed into the rear of the temple’s ruins. Sardis also had a wealthy textile industry. Sardis was destroyed by an earthquake in AD 17 and was only partially rebuilt. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Emperor worship was common in Sardis. Caesar is ‘King of King and Lord of Lords’ was carved in doorways and arches all over the city. Caesar Domitian even demanded that his wife refer to him by this title. John is very clear about who he thinks is the true King and Lord in his letter. <br /><br />Sardis was an epicenter of worship for the Greek goddesses Cybele and Artemis. According to myth, Agdistis was initially born from the ground where Zeus’ semen fell as a hermaphroditic demon. The other gods were fearful of Agdistis and castrated its male sex organ, which then fell to the ground and became an almond tree. After this, Agdistis turned into the goddess Cybele. Later, Cybele fell in love with her son/grandson, Attis, and took him in as a lover. One day, in a fit of jealousy, she drove him insane and he castrated himself and died, but was then resurrected as a pine tree. In response to these myths, the people of Sardis worshiped Cybele and regarded almond and pine trees in reverence. Additionally, they held fertility festivals in honor of Attis’ re-birth, where everyone would parade down the main street in Sardis in white robes while cutting themselves. When they got to the shrine, a few people would be castrated and would offer their parts to Cybele. Those who left with blood on their robes were thought to have received Cybele’s blessing. This type of practice appears to have ended after the second century. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Philadelphia </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Philadelphia lies halfway between Laodicea and Sardis on the Roman mail route through Asia Minor. Not much is left of the city which makes archaeology difficult. Nevertheless, many written records exist form this time period from neighboring cities, including from early church leaders like Polycarp, showing that Christians were often persecuted by Jews. <br /><br />Domitian reigned from AD 81-96 and heavily persecuted Christians as well, however, it appears to be that most of the Christians in Philadelphia escaped this persecution. This may be what John is referring to when he writes, “Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.” <br /><br />The city was also heavily impacted by the same earthquake that destroyed Sardis in AD 17. It was located near the fault line and had many aftershocks for over two decades afterwards. The people were constantly afraid and fled to the hills often. <br /><br />The city was founded by the kingdom of Pergamum during the second century B.C. and was renamed several times eventually becoming “Philadelphia”, the name given to the city by Eumenes II in honor of Attalus II, a brother he loved dearly. <br /><br />In 17 AD, Tiberius paid to rebuild the city, and its name was changed to Neo-Cesarca, much to the chagrin of its citizens. This theme of renaming is also seen in John’s letter when he writes to them Jesus’ words: “I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Church in Laodicea </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Laodicea is situated in the Lycus River Valley in southwest Turkey, in a location that used to be the Roman territory of Phrygia. It was on the Roman mail route with the other six cities addressed by Jesus through John in his Revelation. <br /><br />One of the answers to figuring out the context of the letter to Laodicea may be in understanding its water supply. Colossae was about twelve miles east of Laodicea and was was well-known for its cold refreshing water, which originated from the melting snow atop Mount Cadmus. Hierapolis was about seven miles north of Laodicea and was known for being a large Roman city with centers devoted to the worship of Apollo and, later, Caesar – Domitian, in particular. <br /><br />Perhaps its most well-known attraction was its hot baths, sourced by hot springs, which were used to treat illnesses. Laodicea was between Colossae and Hierapolis. This is the place where the western cold streams and the eastern hot streams converged. This mixing of mineral-rich hot water with cold water caused the drinking water of the area to taste terrible and be lukewarm. The water flowed via aqueduct into clay pipes in the town that would frequently become clogged due to the high mineral concentration in the water. The water helps provide some context to John’s letter where he reports that Jesus is about to spew them out of his mouth like lukewarm water since they are neither hot nor cold, neither healing nor refreshing. <br /><br />Laodicea was also destroyed by an earthquake in AD 60. When Nero offered them aid in rebuilding their city, they wrote back to him, saying that they were rich and could rebuild it themselves. So it makes since that John calls them out on their pride. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 4-5 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the next section of the book, John sees a vision of the Throne of God. The Throne of God appears, surrounded by twenty-four thrones with twenty-four elders seated in them. The four living creatures are introduced. A scroll, with seven seals, is presented and it is declared that the Lion of the tribe of Judah, from the "Root of David", is the only one worthy to open this scroll. When the "Lamb having seven horns and seven eyes" takes the scroll, the creatures of heaven fall down before the Lamb to give him praise, joined by myriads of angels and the creatures of the earth. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapters 6-7 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the next section seven seals are opened. <br /><br />First Seal: <br /><br />A white horse appears, whose crowned rider has a bow with which to conquer. <br /><br />Second Seal: <br /><br />A red horse appears, whose rider is granted a "great sword" to take peace from the earth. <br /><br />Third Seal: <br /><br />A black horse appears, whose rider has "a pair of balances in his hand", where a voice then says, "A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and do not damage the oil and the wine." <br /><br />Fourth Seal: <br /><br />A pale horse appears, whose rider is Death, and Hades follows him. Death is granted a fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and with the beasts of the earth. <br /><br />Fifth Seal: <br /><br />"Under the altar", appears the souls of martyrs for the "word of God", who cry out for vengeance. They are given white robes and told to rest until the martyrdom of their brothers is completed. <br /><br />Sixth Seal: <br /><br />There occurs a great earthquake where "the sun becomes black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon like blood." The stars of heaven fall to the earth and the sky recedes like a scroll being rolled up. Every mountain and island is moved out of place. The people of earth retreat to caves in the mountains. The survivors call upon the mountains and the rocks to fall on them, so as to hide them from the "wrath of the Lamb". <br /><br />Interlude: <br /><br />The text then comes to an interlude where the 144,000 Hebrews are sealed. 144,000 from the Twelve Tribes of Israel are sealed as servants of God on their foreheads (note that Dan is missing). A great multitude stands before the Throne of God, who came out of the Great Tribulation, clothed with robes made "white in the blood of the Lamb" and having palm branches in their hands. <br /><br />Seventh Seal (which introduces the seven trumpets): <br /><br />There is "silence in heaven for about half an hour." Seven angels are each given trumpets. An eighth angel takes a "golden censer", filled with fire from the heavenly altar, and throws it to the earth. What follows are "peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake." After the eighth angel has devastated the earth, the seven angels prepare to sound their trumpets.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 8 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In the next section, the seven trumpets are sounded. <br /><br />First Trumpet: <br /><br />Hail and fire, mingled with blood, are thrown to the earth burning up a third of the trees and green grass. <br /><br />Second Trumpet: <br /><br />Something that resembles a great mountain, burning with fire, falls from the sky and lands in the ocean. It kills a third of the sea creatures and destroys a third of the ships at sea. <br /><br />Third Trumpet: <br /><br />A great star, named Wormwood, falls from heaven and poisons a third of the rivers and springs of water. <br /><br />Fourth Trumpet: <br /><br />A third of the sun, the moon, and the stars are darkened creating complete darkness for a third of the day and the night.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-31632630441036819142020-05-31T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-31T02:00:01.244-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to Revelation 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghik6Dl10leYaShSk2UQsaxYc0LtCQ7FqPHq2zdzC9IwHaxQBVXH-h6IYUVKLhgICQMe1S5pCf9DBYwryVsENQiQ6TuhHtI6dwb6KSCNjdRuSsGNFtZvO_CxPW_bvkEMmfRYF9VoiBU_8/s1600/revelation+01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="898" data-original-width="1600" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghik6Dl10leYaShSk2UQsaxYc0LtCQ7FqPHq2zdzC9IwHaxQBVXH-h6IYUVKLhgICQMe1S5pCf9DBYwryVsENQiQ6TuhHtI6dwb6KSCNjdRuSsGNFtZvO_CxPW_bvkEMmfRYF9VoiBU_8/s400/revelation+01.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to Revelation 1</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Context of Revelation </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Author:</b> John of Patmos </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Was he John the Apostle? John the Presbyter (the “Elder”)? Some other John?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“If the author of Revelation was indeed one of the apostles, it would seem implausible that he would list the names of the apostles as a group distinct from himself. The Greek of the Gospel of John is simple, but grammatical. The Greek found in Revelation, however, is described by Raymond Brown as ‘the poorest in the [New Testament] to the point of being ungrammatical, which probably reflects one whose native language was Aramaic or Hebrew.’ Though inconclusive, these hints serve to show that the authorship of Revelation cannot be known with certainty. There is no way to verify whether John the Apostle, John the Presbyter, or some other unknown John was actually the author. The name "John" was, evidently, a common name among the early Christians. Therefore, possibilities abound.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Date:</b> About A.D. 95. <br /><br />“The earliest external evidence for the date of Revelation is the statement from Irenaeus (c. A.D. 130-c.200) that the book was seen at the end of the reign of Domitian. Domitian was emperor from A.D. 81 to 96, so this account would suggest a date of authorship around A.D. 95-96. After the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in A.D. 70 by Titus, ‘Babylon’ had become a symbolic name for Rome in Jewish literature. This symbolic association is used by the author of the epistle of First Peter as well. The designation originated, in part, due to it having been Babylon that had destroyed the first Jewish temple and Rome which had destroyed the second. The designation also associated the Rome of that day with the decadence, wealth, and great power of the Babylon of 600 B.C. This type of symbolic language implies that Revelation was written after the destruction of the Temple by Titus. A date after the Temple's destruction would also fit the description of the Temple in 11:2 where John writes that the temple's outer court has been ‘handed over to gentiles - they will trample on the holy city for forty-two months.’” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Place of composition:</b> Western Asia Minor </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Audience:</b> Seven churches of Asia Minor </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Themes of Revelation </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Revelation affirms Christianity’s original hope for an immediate transformation of the world and assures the faithful that God’s prearranged plan, including the destruction of evil and the advent of Christ’s universal reign, is soon to be accomplished. The book presents an apokalypsis (unveiling) of unseen realities, both in heaven as it is now and on earth as it will be in the future. Placing governmental tyranny and Christian suffering in cosmic perspective, Revelation conveys its message of hope for believers in the cryptic language of metaphor and symbol.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Methods of Interpretation</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">(1) The preterist approach believes that “Revelation is simply a sketch of the conditions of the empire in the first century.” Although one cannot divorce the interpretation of this book from its occasion this view cannot adequately handle all the data of Revelation, for the author makes plain that this work is a work describing the future. <br /><br />(2) The historicist view (or continuous-historicist view) “contends that Revelation is a symbolic presentation of the entire course of the history of the church from the close of the first century to the end of time.” <br /><br />(3) The futurist approach usually argues that “all of the visions from Revelation 4:1 to the end of the book are yet to be fulfilled in the period immediately preceding and following the second advent of Christ.” “The more literal an interpretation that one adopts, the more strongly will he be construed to be a futurist.” <br /><br />(4) In the idealist approach, “the Revelation represents the eternal conflict of good and evil which persists in every age, although here it may have particular application to the period of the church.” But like the preterist view, this approach does not do justice to the predictive elements in the book. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>John’s Numerical Symbols: The Mystical Number of the Beast</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“Whoever this figure is, the author is certain that the first century recipients of his letter would be able to decipher his meaning. This would seem to go against current trends in popular theology, where it is asserted that the beast is an unknown future figure. The word ‘anti-christ’ nowhere appears in Revelation. In most surviving texts the number given is 666, but in both Greek and Hebrew manuscripts the number 616 appears instead. This variant was known to Irenaeus as early as the late second century. Many theories have been advanced, but it appears most probable that this number symbolizes the name of Nero. Before the use of Arab numerals, the letters of the Hebrew and Greek alphabets were also used as numbers, the value corresponding to the place in the alphabet. An example from English would be the letter A equaling the number 1, and so on. In this practice, by adding up the values of component letters that total the number of a person's name ‘the number of a human being’ is obtained. In Hebrew, the letters of ‘Neron Caesar’ add up to 666.” <br /><br />“This is not the most common spelling of Caesar Nero's name, however, which can also be spelled without the final ‘n.’ In such a case, where the final ‘n’ is dropped, the name adds up to 616. Hence a possible explanation for the alternative rendering in the manuscript evidence. The evidence of the 616 number in the manuscript record at the very least allows for the possibility that in the understanding of some early Christian scribes, Nero was the implied figure.” <br /><br />“Two other possibilities exist, for the Greek spelling of ‘Caesar God’ adds up to 616, as does the Latin spelling of ‘Caesar Nero.’ None of these interpretations necessarily exclude the others.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“In Revelation, the Nero legend is associated with the beast from the abyss and with the ‘eighth’ king who is at the same time ‘one of the seven’ emperors. The question immediately arises as to why Nero's name is being used if Domitian is the ruling emperor at the time of John's writing. The revived Nero legends all appear after the fall of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 C.E., giving further indication as to the time of Revelation's composition, and again, excluding Nero as the ruling emperor. Just as ‘Babylon’ was used by the early Christians as a pseudonym for Rome, it appears that ‘Nero’ was being used for Domitian. The historical Babylon had destroyed the first temple, just as Nero was the first emperor to brutally persecute the Christians. As the recipients of John's letter began to see themselves as the recipients of imperial persecution, it would have appeared to them that Nero had in fact been revived, if not physically, at least in spirit. This is not just an idea of the Christians, for both Juvenal and Pliny the Younger, both writing just after Domitian's reign, regarded Domitian as the second Nero. This explains how John could refer to the current emperor as the eighth, and yet at the same time as one of the previous seven: Domitian was Nero returned.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book begins with a prologue, starting with the author’s self-identification and the basis for his authority – divine revelation. The text is identified as a “revelation” of what “must soon take place.” The revelation was sent from God to Jesus to the angel to John to the churches. <br /><br />The next part contains greetings and a doxology. The letter is addressed to the seven churches in the province of Asia. A blessing of grace and peace is given to the reader from “the one who was, and is, and is to come.” The “seven spirits before the throne” and Jesus Christ also send their blessings. <br /><br />Jesus is identified as… <br /><br />The faithful witness <br />The firstborn from the dead <br />The ruler of the kings of the earth <br />Our lover <br />Our liberator from sin <br />The one who made us a kingdom of priests <br />Worthy of praise <br /><br />We then come to the doxology: <br /><br />“Look, he is coming with the clouds, <br /> and ‘every eye will see him, <br />even those who pierced him’; <br /> and all peoples on earth ‘will mourn because of him.’ <br />So shall it be! Amen.” <br /><br />The next part of the book is John’s vision of Christ. Here, the writer identifies himself as John, and says that he, like others, has endured suffering for Jesus, and that he is on the island of Patmos because of the testimony of Jesus. He says that he was “in the Spirit” on “The Lord’s Day” when he heard a trumpet-like voice behind him telling him to write down what he saw and to send it to the seven churches. He then turned to see seven gold lamp stands, and a fiery man, bright as the sun, holding seven stars in his hand, and with a sword coming out of his mouth. John then faints and the man touches him and tells him not to be afraid. The man identifies himself, saying, “I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.” The man then says that the seven stars represent seven “messengers” and the seven lamps represent the seven churches.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-7073375176947212102020-05-30T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-30T02:00:26.783-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 3rd John<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4fneaou3CljUhnspPDrV6gOoRG3CxOjHPIl0QaukUkILkQLZEUiGhHf6jOBPMpV26sWibt5IJghHo8RT5ePjCHQC7aNVZG9-4e6YYRMDZn-cnv8U6b5E8DmkSsXxtT3xf3d0RdeYFgA/s1600/3-john-sermon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="479" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4fneaou3CljUhnspPDrV6gOoRG3CxOjHPIl0QaukUkILkQLZEUiGhHf6jOBPMpV26sWibt5IJghHo8RT5ePjCHQC7aNVZG9-4e6YYRMDZn-cnv8U6b5E8DmkSsXxtT3xf3d0RdeYFgA/s400/3-john-sermon.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 3rd John </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Context </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Third Epistle of John is attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the author of the Gospel of John and the other two epistles of John. The Third Epistle of John is a private letter composed to a man named Gaius, recommending to him a group of Christians led by Demetrius, which had come to preach the gospel in the area where Gaius lived. The purpose of the letter is to encourage and strengthen Gaius, and to warn him against Diotrephes, who refuses to cooperate with the author of the letter. <br /><br /> Early church literature contains no mention of the epistle, with the first reference to it appearing in the middle of the third century. This lack of documentation, though likely due to the extreme brevity of the epistle, caused early church writers to doubt its authenticity until the early 5th century, when it was accepted into the canon along with the other two epistles of John. The language of 3rd John echoes that of the Gospel of John, which is conventionally dated to around AD 90, so the epistle was likely written near the end of the first century. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The letter begins with a salutation where “the elder” greets his “dear friend” Gaius, whom he “loves in the truth.” He says, “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” <br /><br />He then commends Gaius for his faithfulness, saying, “It gave me great joy when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” <br /><br />He then commends Gaius for his hospitality, saying, “Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church about your love. Please send them on their way in a manner that honors God. It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. We ought therefore to show hospitality to such people so that we may work together for the truth.” <br /><br />He then condemns Diotrephes, saying, “I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not welcome us. So when I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, spreading malicious nonsense about us. Not satisfied with that, he even refuses to welcome other believers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.” <br /><br />He then recommends Demetrius, saying, “Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. Demetrius is well spoken of by everyone—and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true.” <br /><br />He then gives his final greetings, saying, “I have much to write you, but I do not want to do so with pen and ink. I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face. Peace to you. The friends here send their greetings. Greet the friends there by name.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-56739239281870880272020-05-29T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-29T02:00:03.868-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd John<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 2nd John</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The doctrines of Doceticm and Gnosticism had made inroads among the followers of Jesus in the latter half of the First Century. Some said that Jesus never assumed human flesh, but only had the appearance of flesh, because they were scandalized that Divinity would soil itself by associating so closely with matter. Others said that Christ was raised as a spirit only, and did not experience a bodily resurrection. In this epistle John condemns such doctrines in no uncertain terms with the statement that such persons were antichrist.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The letter begins with a salutation. “The elder” greets “the lady chosen by God” and her children. And he offers a blessing, saying, “All who know the truth love them because of the truth, which lives in them and will be with them forever. Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love.” <br /><br />He then discusses the issue of maintaining the truth in love. First, he discusses practicing the truth, saying, “It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. Dear lady, I am not writing you a new command. From the beginning, he said to love one another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands.” <br /><br />Second, he discusses protecting the truth. He says to guard against doubt and defeat. He says, “I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. They are the antichrist. Watch out that you do not lose what we have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully.” <br /><br />He also says to guard against defection and defectors, saying, “Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God. Whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work.” <br /><br />He then offers his final Greetings, saying, “I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete. The children of your sister, who is chosen by God, send their greetings.” </span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-20796195159604426742020-05-25T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-25T02:00:02.620-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st John 2-5<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 1st John 2<br />Tuesday: 1st John 3<br />Wednesday: 1st John 4<br />Thursday: 1st John 5<br />Friday: 2nd John 1<br />Saturday: 3rd John 1<br />Sunday: Revelation 1</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 1st John 2-5</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 2 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">John continues to discuss to the topic of fellowship and how its provision is through the death of Christ. He says, “My dear children, I write this so that you won’t sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for the sins of us and the whole world.” <br /><br />He then discusses the imperatives of fellowship such as obeying God’s commands, saying, “We can be sure that we know him if we keep his commands. The truth is not in those who say ‘I know him’ but ignore his commands. But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.” <br /><br />And he adds: <br /><br />“Dear friends, this new command is really the old one that you’ve always known from the beginning. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining. Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still walking blindly and stumbling in the darkness. Anyone who loves their brother and sister lives in the light.” <br /><br />He then presents a poem on the prerequisites of fellowship or the status of the believers: <br /><br />I am writing to you, dear children, <br />because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. <br />I am writing to you, fathers, <br />because you know him who is from the beginning. <br />I am writing to you, young men, <br />because you have overcome the evil one. <br />I write to you, dear children, <br />because you know the Father. <br />I write to you, fathers, <br />because you know him who is from the beginning. <br />I write to you, young men, <br />because you are strong, <br />and the word of God lives in you, <br />and you have overcome the evil one. <br /><br />He then discusses the impulses against fellowship or loving the world, saying, “Do not love the world or anything in the world – for those who love the lusts and prides of the world don’t have the Father’s love in them. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” <br /><br />He then moves on to the topic of false teachers and how to recognize their deception. The first proof is their abandonment. He says, “Dear children, this is the last hour. You’ve heard the antichrist is coming, but many antichrists have already come. We know it’s the last hour because all these antichrists emerged from within us… but they didn’t really belong to us. They’re exit proves that they didn’t truly belong to us.” <br /><br />The second proof is their denial that Jesus is the Christ. He says, “But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth – that’s why I’m writing to you. Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.” <br /><br />The third proof is the anointing of the Spirit on the believers. He says, “As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you so that you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us—eternal life. I’m writing this because of those who are trying to lead you astray and not because you needed to be taught. You have kept his real anointing which teaches you about all things - and it taught you to remain in him.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then moves on to the topic of eschatological hope which is motivation for holy living in the present. Hope produces holiness. He says: <br /><br />And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed. If you know that he is righteous, then you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world doesn’t know us is because it didn’t know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.” <br /><br />He then offers a proleptic view of sanctification, saying: <br /><br />“Everyone who sins is a law-breaker. But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins – because there’s no sin in him. If you live in Jesus, you no longer live in sin. If you continue living in sin, then you don’t really see or know him. Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them. They cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. This is how to tell the difference between the children of God and the devil: Those who don’t do right and who don’t love their brothers and sisters are not God’s children.” <br /><br />He then goes on to discuss love as the basis for assurance. And he offers some examples, starting with the negative example of Cain from the Hebrew Bible, saying, “You heard from the beginning that we should love one another. Don’t be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous.” <br /><br />He adds, “Don’t be surprised if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him.” <br /><br />He then points to the positive example of Christ, saying, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” <br /><br />He adds, “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” <br /><br />He continues to discuss assurance and addresses the issue of discernment through the witness of the Spirit. He brings up the topic of the condemned heart, saying, “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know it’s because God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.” <br /><br />He then discusses the confidence we can have before God, saying: <br /><br />“Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 4 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then talks some more about false teachers as well discernment of false spirits. And he provides an objective test regarding doctrine, saying, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God and is the spirit of the antichrist, which you’ve heard is coming but is already in the world.” <br /><br />He also offers a subjective test by the witness of the Spirit, saying, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them instead of to us. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.” <br /><br />He then talks about how love is essential to sanctification. First, he reminds them of the exemplary love displayed in the death of Christ, saying: <br /><br />“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God, but God lives in us and his love is made complete in us if we love one another.” <br /><br />He also points to the witness of the Sprit to the death of Christ, saying, “This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.” <br /><br />He then talks about how love removes fear, saying, “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear. The one who fears is not made perfect in love, because fear has to do with punishment.” <br /><br />He then talks about how divine love prompts brotherly and sisterly love, saying, “We love because he first loved us. Liars claim to love God while hating a brother or sister. Those who don’t love their visible brothers and sisters cannot love an invisible God. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then talks about faith, and how it is assurance in our hearts, saying, “All who believe that Jesus is Messiah are born of God. Everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands… which are not burdensome. This birth and faith is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who overcomes the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.” <br /><br />He also talks about faith and assurance brought by the witness of the Spirit, saying: <br /><br />“Jesus is the one who came by water and blood… and the Spirit of truth testifies it. For there are three that testify in agreement: the Spirit, the water and the blood. We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because he gave it about his son. Whoever believes in the Son of God (those who don’t are calling God a liar) accepts this testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. If you have the Son, you have life; if you don’t, you don’t.” <br /><br />He then discusses the advocacy of Christ which is the basis for our present confidence before God. He says: <br /><br />“I write to believers in the Son’s name so that you may know you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us… and if he hears us we have it—whatever we ask. If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I’m not talking about those sins that lead to death. But know that every wrong action is sin… and not every sin leads to death.” <br /><br />He then summarizes his points on assurance, saying: <br /><br />“Anyone born of God does not continue to sin because the One who was born of God keeps them safe so the evil one cannot harm them. We are children of God, and the whole world is under the control of the evil one. The Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ, who is the true God and eternal life.” <br /><br />And the letter ends abruptly with the command, “Dear children, keep yourselves from idols…”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-87723076150663194022020-05-24T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-24T02:00:04.119-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st John 1<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 1st John 1</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The First Epistle of John is the first of the Johannine epistles of the New Testament, and the fourth of the catholic epistles. It is attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the author of the Gospel of John and the other two Johannine epistles. This epistle was probably written in Ephesus in AD 95–110. The work was written to counter docetism, which is the belief that Jesus did not come "in the flesh", but only as a spirit. It also defined how Christians are to discern true teachers: by their ethics, their proclamation of Jesus in the flesh, and by their love. It appears that John might have also been rebuking a proto-Gnostic named Cerinthus, who also denied the true humanity of Christ. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The epistle begins with a prologue much like the Gospel of John describing the reality of the incarnation. He writes, “We proclaim this about the Word of Life - which was from the beginning, and which we have heard, seen, and touched. We proclaim that we saw the life appear - the eternal life, which was with the Father - so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our joy complete.” <br /><br />He then goes on to discuss the topic of fellowship and how it is motivated by God’s dealings in the past. First, he discusses the principles of fellowship, or walking in the light, saying: <br /><br />“We declare the message we heard from him to you: God is light. We are liars if we say we have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another. The blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim we’ve never sinned, we’re fooling ourselves. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive and purify us. If we claim we’ve not sinned, we’re calling him a liar and his word isn’t in us.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-87542763911523371292020-05-18T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-18T02:00:03.138-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 31-36<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 2nd Chronicles 31<br />Tuesday: 2nd Chronicles 32<br />Wednesday: 2nd Chronicles 33<br />Thursday: 2nd Chronicles 34<br />Friday: 2nd Chronicles 35<br />Saturday: 2nd Chronicles 36<br />Sunday: 1st John 1</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 31-36</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 31 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hezekiah assigned the priests and Levites to their duties. The Israelites gave a tithe. Conaniah was in charge of the offerings. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 32</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sennacherib of Assyria besieged Judah. Hezekiah and Isaiah cried out to the LORD and the Assyrians were struck dead. Hezekiah had great riches. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 33</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Manasseh became king. He did much evil and was captured by the Assyrians. Then he sought the LORD. Amon became king and did evil. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 34</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Josiah became king. He repaired the temple and had the law read out. Huldah said, "The LORD says: You will be buried in peace." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 35</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Josiah celebrated the Passover. He appointed priests to their duties and provided offerings. Then he attacked Pharaoh Neco and was killed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 36 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin and Zedekiah ruled. Then Nebuchadnezzar burned the temple and took Judah captive for seventy years.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-69598095263856031312020-05-11T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-11T02:00:03.757-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 24-30<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 24<br />Tuesday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 25<br />Wednesday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 26<br />Thursday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 27<br />Friday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 28<br />Saturday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 29</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sunday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2nd Chronicles</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> 30</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 24-30</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 24</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Joash ruled and did right while Jehoiada lived. The priests collected money to repair the temple. Joash was killed by his servants. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 25 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Amaziah ruled in Jerusalem. After he slaughtered the Edomites he bowed down to their gods. He challenged Jehoash and was defeated. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 26 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The people made Uzziah king. He did right and became powerful. But he went to burn incense on the altar and was struck with leprosy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 27</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jotham became king and did right in the sight of the LORD. He built fortresses in the hills and conquered the Ammonites. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 28 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ahaz became king. He made idols, so the LORD gave him to Aram and Israel. He shut the LORD's temple and sacrificed to other gods. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 29 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hezekiah became king and did right. He told the Levites to cleanse the temple. He assembled the officials and they made offerings. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 30 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Hezekiah sent couriers throughout Judah and Israel saying, "Return to the LORD." Many gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-11323685688730292742020-05-04T02:00:00.000-05:002020-05-04T02:00:04.577-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 17-23<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Readings for this week</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 2nd Chronicles 17<br />Tuesday: 2nd Chronicles 18<br />Wednesday: 2nd Chronicles 19<br />Thursday: 2nd Chronicles 20<br />Friday: 2nd Chronicles 21<br />Saturday: 2nd Chronicles 22</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sunday: 2nd Chronicles 23</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh41iqBnF8qUrOlolkiP8UbXt0Aa4VYEmf4WIbVYYjwCmm2mPyLiKzG6TBi8QS5QzPjOUfHn7TS7nADPpJG-OylvGsJdsSwUYCOzdAru_w8c6S0gC2yNFAcbUV4XavbSbmgXcIyQsDHeA/s1600/joas+02.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="898" data-original-width="1600" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh41iqBnF8qUrOlolkiP8UbXt0Aa4VYEmf4WIbVYYjwCmm2mPyLiKzG6TBi8QS5QzPjOUfHn7TS7nADPpJG-OylvGsJdsSwUYCOzdAru_w8c6S0gC2yNFAcbUV4XavbSbmgXcIyQsDHeA/s400/joas+02.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 17-23</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 17 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jehoshaphat became king and was devoted to the LORD. He sent his officials to teach the law. He grew greater and built fortresses. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 18</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ahab and Jehoshaphat planned for war. Micaiah said, "I saw Israel scattered. Your prophets are lying." Ahab was killed in battle. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 19 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jehoshaphat returned to Jerusalem. He appointed judges and said to them, "Judge carefully, for with the LORD there is no injustice." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 20 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">An army came against Jehoshaphat so he sought the LORD. Jahaziel said, "The battle is not yours but God's." The LORD set ambushes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 21 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jehoram ruled and did evil. Elijah wrote saying, "The LORD will send a plague." The LORD struck Jehoram with a disease and he died. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 22 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The people made Ahaziah king. He did evil and was killed by Jehu. Athaliah destroyed the royal family but Jehoshabeath hid Joash. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 23 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jehoiada gathered the Levites and anointed the king's son as king. Athaliah was killed. The people tore down the temple of Baal.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-59694878713854911852020-04-27T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-27T02:00:04.686-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 10-16<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Readings for this week</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 2nd Chronicles 10<br />Tuesday: 2nd Chronicles 11<br />Wednesday: 2nd Chronicles 12<br />Thursday: 2nd Chronicles 13<br />Friday: 2nd Chronicles 14<br />Saturday: 2nd Chronicles 15</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sunday: 2nd Chronicles 16</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVGgmWMCFYBf152GWDJ6jwL8-dhji-NibRPumHCoITHzIQ5O2LN01NdikEbw_lLX0ny4BYJOaczoVF5ujGW_uzSUqvyEOdkQ6QCBXLUGUqApTZl6-uEofnlQjm6tZ3C2n66F8OkwDfIgA/s1600/split.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="898" data-original-width="1600" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVGgmWMCFYBf152GWDJ6jwL8-dhji-NibRPumHCoITHzIQ5O2LN01NdikEbw_lLX0ny4BYJOaczoVF5ujGW_uzSUqvyEOdkQ6QCBXLUGUqApTZl6-uEofnlQjm6tZ3C2n66F8OkwDfIgA/s400/split.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 10-16</b></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 10 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jeroboam and all Israel asked Rehoboam to reduce the labor demands. He refused. Rehoboam still ruled Judah but Israel rebelled. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 11 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The LORD told Rehoboam not to attack Jeroboam. All the Levites came to Judah because Jeroboam set up idols. Rehoboam had sons. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 12 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rehoboam was unfaithful to the LORD so Shishak attacked Jerusalem. Rehoboam humbled himself and the anger of the LORD turned away. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 13 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Abijah became king of Judah. He drew up battle lines against Jeroboam and said, "The LORD is our God". The LORD routed Jeroboam. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 14 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Asa became king. He did right in the sight of the LORD. Zerah the Ethiopian brought an army against Judah but the LORD routed them. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 15 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Azariah said to Asa, "The LORD is with you when you are with Him. Do not give up." The people made a covenant to seek the LORD. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Chapter 16 </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Baasha fortified Ramah so Asa made a treaty with Ben-hadad. Hanani said, "You relied on Aram not the LORD." Asa became ill and died.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-76868047820780967792020-04-20T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-20T02:00:00.323-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 3-9<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 2nd Chronicles 3<br />Tuesday: 2nd Chronicles 4<br />Wednesday: 2nd Chronicles 5<br />Thursday: 2nd Chronicles 6<br />Friday: 2nd Chronicles 7<br />Saturday: 2nd Chronicles 8</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sunday: 2nd Chronicles 9</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8H88uWz26Y_6on41qiX3yFTfgIz72HfvEPbczTP-gD-ji3_IEiXDtL2KIgpBzUlbOpWIjE0Tb0uH3GQzDZqlFX9B6WVqFw4YNtxajT5c7D86BnqzcnzPYP04s7VCmLXoa_F-ZS2OtXKM/s1600/temple+01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="915" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8H88uWz26Y_6on41qiX3yFTfgIz72HfvEPbczTP-gD-ji3_IEiXDtL2KIgpBzUlbOpWIjE0Tb0uH3GQzDZqlFX9B6WVqFw4YNtxajT5c7D86BnqzcnzPYP04s7VCmLXoa_F-ZS2OtXKM/s400/temple+01.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 3-9</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon started work on the temple. He built the portico,
the main hall, the Most Holy Place, two cherubim, the veil and two pillars.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 4</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon made an altar, the Sea, ten lavers, ten lampstands,
ten tables and the courts for the temple. Huram made the furnishings.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 5</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The priests brought the ark into the Most Holy Place. The
singers praised the LORD and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 6</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon said, "The LORD has kept his promise." He
prayed, "O LORD, if anyone prays toward this place then hear from heaven
and act."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 7</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Fire came from heaven and the Israelites worshipped. The
LORD said to Solomon, "If you walk in my ways I will establish your
throne."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 8</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon built cities. He did not make slaves of the
Israelites. He appointed the divisions of priests and Levites to their duties.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 9</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The queen of Sheba came to test Solomon and gave him gold and spices. Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth. Then he died.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-38739616153972485762020-04-18T02:00:00.002-05:002020-04-18T02:00:00.151-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 1-2<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfNw9pPrpgVdJ0_oUqpE5uSqxgmRTWkiunYL6JsLGJy4KXILcNX9w_0zjIMjTmlwF5NH3Zab3yxabIX1AIRaK8GcBn7ZiCeeulgfY0vF0EsOgb_Y3DSykEBnOWU6LhiUg23FuGNOKkjis/s1600/2+chron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="352" data-original-width="700" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfNw9pPrpgVdJ0_oUqpE5uSqxgmRTWkiunYL6JsLGJy4KXILcNX9w_0zjIMjTmlwF5NH3Zab3yxabIX1AIRaK8GcBn7ZiCeeulgfY0vF0EsOgb_Y3DSykEBnOWU6LhiUg23FuGNOKkjis/s400/2+chron.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 2nd Chronicles 1-2</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Originally a single work, Chronicles was divided into two in the Septuagint, a Greek translation produced in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. It has three broad divisions: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The genealogies (1 Chronicles 1-9) <br />The reigns of David and Solomon (1 Chronicles 10 – 2 Chronicles 9) <br />The story of the divided kingdom (2 Chronicles 10-36) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Chronicles narrative begins with Adam and the story is then carried forward, almost entirely by genealogical lists, down to the founding of the first Kingdom of Israel (1 Chronicles 1–9). The bulk of the remainder of 1 Chronicles, after a brief account of Saul, is concerned with the reign of David (1 Chronicles 11–29). The next long section concerns David's son Solomon (2 Chronicles 1–9), and the final part is concerned with the Kingdom of Judah with occasional references to the second kingdom of Israel (2 Chronicles 10–36). In the last chapter Judah is destroyed and the people taken into exile in Babylon, and in the final verses the Persian king Cyrus the Great conquers the Neo-Babylonian Empire, and authorizes the restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem, and the return of the exiles. <br /><br />Within this broad structure there are signs that the author has used various other devices to structure his work, notably through drawing parallels between David and Solomon (the first becomes king, establishes the worship of Israel's God in Jerusalem, and fights the wars that will enable the Temple to be built, then Solomon becomes king, builds and dedicates the Temple, and reaps the benefits of prosperity and peace). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon made offerings. God said, "What shall I give you?" Solomon said, "Wisdom to rule this people." So Solomon ruled over Israel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 2 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Solomon sent to King Hiram: "Send me cedars and a craftsman for the temple." Hiram replied, "The LORD has given David a wise son." </span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-12667658000986527802020-04-15T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-15T02:00:05.172-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 2nd Peter<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 2nd Peter</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Context of 2nd Peter </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The letter’s main intent – to reestablish the apostolic view of the Parousia – shows that the writer is addressing a group that lived long enough after the original apostles’ day to have given up on believing that Christ would return soon. The author’s opponents deny the Parousia doctrine because the promised Second Coming has not materialized even though the “fathers” have long since passed away. In addition, the writer makes use of Jude, itself an early second-century document, incorporating most of it into his work. The work also refers to Paul’s letters as Scripture, a status they did not achieve until well into the second century. Many leaders of the early church doubted 2 Peter’s apostolic origins, resulting in the epistle’s absence from numerous lists of “approved” books. Not only was 2 Peter one of the last works to gain entrance into the New Testament, but scholars believe that it was also the last canonical book written, sometime between AD 100-140. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The letter begins with a salutation and claims to be written by "Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ." It is written to "those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours." A blessing is given: "Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Peter first discusses the certainty of the believers’ salvation as it is the work of God. He begins by discussing what God has done in the past, saying, “It has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” And he talks about how God’s divine nature dwells in believers. He says, “We have his promises, by which we participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” <br /><br />He then talks about what believers should do in the present time. First, he discusses the use of God’s resources, saying, “Add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.” <br /><br />He then discusses the results of using God’s resources, saying, “If you have these, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of Jesus. If you don’t have them, you will be nearsighted and blind, forgetting that your sins are cleansed.” He then talks about what believers will receive in the future. First, he discusses temporal results such as the certainty of salvation, saying, “Try hard to confirm your calling and election so you won’t stumble.” He then discusses eternal results such as the inheritance of the kingdom, saying, “You will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of Jesus.” <br /><br />Peter sees his testimony as a constant reminder of salvation, saying, “I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them firmly.” And he points out that the necessity of the reminder is his own pending death, saying, “I’ll remind you as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as Jesus made clear to me.” And he offers his written record as the promise of the reminder, saying, “I’ll do my best to make sure you remember after I’m gone.” <br /><br />He then gives his defense of the truth of the message, starting with the apostolic eyewitnesses. He says, “We didn’t just repeat a clever story someone made up about Jesus coming in power. We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. We ourselves saw him on the sacred mountain and we heard the voice when He received honor and glory from God the Father who said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’” <br /><br />He then points to the prophets of the Hebrew Bible and their value, saying, saying, “We also have the reliable prophetic message, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” <br /><br />He also points to the source of Hebrew prophecy, saying, “No prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 2 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then discusses the deception of the false teachers’ message starting with their heresy of antinomianism along with the problem of the coming of the false teachers. He says, “Like the past, the future will also have false prophets who introduce heresies, denying the Lord who bought them to their own swift destruction. Many will follow them and give the way of truth a bad reputation, only to be exploited by their made-up stories.” <br /><br />He then talks about the sure condemnation of the false teachers, saying, “Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.” <br /><br />He then points to the precedent found in the Hebrew Bible, saying, “God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell (Greek: Tartarus), putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment.” <br /><br />In this case the word “hell” is translated from the word “Tartarus” – a place in Hellenistic mythology, recorded by Plato in 400BC, there the judged dead are imprisoned. This reference comes from The Book of Enoch, an ancient Jewish mythological work also quoted by Jude, and (as noted by Peter) it was a place for imprisoning fallen angels, not human souls. <br /><br />Peters says, “God destroyed the ancient world with a flood, but spared righteous Noah and seven others. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah with fire as an example of future judgment of the ungodly, but rescued righteous Lot.” <br /><br />He then discusses the coming Judgment, saying, “The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.” <br /><br />He the describes the characteristics of the false teachers, starting with their rejection of authority, saying, “They follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority. They are bold and arrogant. They are not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings; yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from the Lord. These people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.” <br /><br />And he describes their fleshly indulgence, saying, “They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning. They seduce the unstable. They are experts in greed—an accursed brood! They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam. Balaam loved the wages of wickedness, but he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey who restrained the prophet’s madness.” <br /><br />And he describes how they are slaves to sin, saying: <br /><br />“These people are springs without water. They are mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. They mouth empty, boastful words and they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for ‘people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.’ If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. Of them the proverbs are true: ‘A dog returns to its vomit,’ and, ‘A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.’”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then goes on to discuss their denial of the Lord’s return, saying, “This is now my second letter to you. Both letters are reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.” <br /><br />And he repudiates the false teachers’ denial, saying, saying: <br /><br />“In the last days scoffers will say, ‘Where is this “coming” he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” <br /><br />He then speaks about the revelation of the Day of the Lord, saying: <br /><br />“Don’t forget, with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.” <br /><br />And he concludes: <br /><br />“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.” <br /><br />And he adds an appeal, saying “Since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. Our Lord’s patience means salvation.” <br /><br />And he mentions the writing of Paul which apparently were already considered to be Scripture at the time this letter was written, saying, “Our dear brother Paul also wrote about this exact same thing to you with the wisdom that God gave him. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.” <br /><br />We then come the conclusion of the letter and he summarizes, saying, “Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.” <br /><br />And he finishes with a benediction: <br /><br />“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-22711233985435092082020-04-13T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-13T07:16:07.161-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Peter 4-5<div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Readings for this week</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 1st Peter 4<br />Tuesday: 1st Peter 5<br />Wednesday: 2nd Peter 1<br />Thursday: 2nd Peter 2<br />Friday: 2nd Peter 3<br />Saturday: 2nd Chronicles 1</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sunday: 2nd Chronicles 2</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 4 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then talks about living for the promise and the example of Christ, saying, “Christ suffered in his body. Be like Christ in your attitude toward suffering. If you can endure suffering for Christ then you can endure temptation. Christians who suffer for Christ don’t sin anymore.” <br /><br />And he talks about the former lifestyle and the future judgment, saying, “You used to live as pagans, sinning all the time in every way. Those who are still pagans are surprised by your holy lives and feel threatened by your holiness – that’s why they abuse you. But one day they will answer to the one who judges the living and the dead. The Gospel was even preached to those who have already died so that a just judgment would be given to all – so that all might live by the Spirit and not by flesh alone.” <br /><br />He then talks about how the key to Christian community in the end times is mutual love. He poses, “Why should you live holy lives of sobriety and prayer? …Because the end of all things is near.” And he says, “Love is greater than sin – so love each other! Don’t whine about having to give to others – give because you truly love them! God has given different gifts to everybody – so use what God gave you! Speakers should speak with the voice of God. Servants should serve with the strength of God. In this way, all things that we do will bring praise to God through Christ at work in us. All glory and power go to him forever! Amen!” <br /><br />With this letter is an unusual reference to Jesus’ descent into the Underworld. Only the Book of Acts describes Jesus’ postresurrection ascent into heaven (Acts 1:10-11), and only the Petrine epistles explicitly refer to a tradition about Jesus’ postmortem descent into the Underworld. According to a common interpretation, the “imprisoned spirits” are the “sons of God” (presumably angels) who “fell” from heaven when they trespassed divinely set boundaries by mating with the fair “daughters of men,” thus producing “the heroes of old, men of renown” (Gen:1-4). Although Genesis says nothing about the divine “sons” subsequent fate, extrabiblical tradition states that God had confined these rebels in a dark and fiery prison, where they awaited the final judgment (1 Enoch 6-10). The author of 2 Peter apparently adopts that tradition, declaring that “God did not spare the angels who sinned, but consigned them to the dark pit of hell” (2:4). The word here translated as “hell” is Tartarus, which in Greek myth is the subterranean dungeon housing fallen gods. In some views, 1 Peter’s cryptic allusion to preaching “the Gospel” to “the dead” (4:6) refers to Jesus’ “harrowing of hell,” when he descended into the Underworld to offer a message of redemption to persons who had perished before his death and resurrection had made salvation possible. <br /><br />After this, Peter discusses the responsibilities of a church and its elders in the midst of trials. First, he talks about suffering and glory, saying, “Don’t be surprised by the fiery trial surrounding you. Rejoice that you can suffer as Christ suffered and experience his glory more fully when he is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.” <br /><br />He then talks about suffering in general as a Christian, saying, “If you do suffer, it better not be because you are a criminal, or even an obnoxious person. And if you suffer as a Christian (a derogatory term back then), don’t be ashamed, because you are wearing the name of Christ. God is bringing judgment on his house, this world, and that judgment starts with us. If it’s hard for the righteous to be saved, then do you think it’s easy for sinners? God hasn’t given up, so don’t you give up.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 5 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Peter continues to discuss the responsibilities of a Church in the midst of trials. First, he addresses the elders. Here, the text refers directly to the Apostle Peter’s witnessing of Christ’s suffering, hinting that those in the church whose memories go farther back ought not to forget what they and the Apostles witnessed. The elders of the church are called to be “shepherds of the flock” just as Christ called Peter to “feed his sheep.” He says, “Take care of church because you love the church – not because you have to do it. When Christ, the Chief Shepherd, appears you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” <br /><br />He then addresses the rest of the Church, saying that younger people should also submit to the elders and be humble and trust God, saying, “Humble yourselves under God’s mighty hand, and he will lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” <br /><br />He then discusses the topic of warfare against the devil, saying, “Be on the alert! The devil is out to get you! He’s like a prowling lion waiting to eat you! You can resist him and stand firm in faith because you know that your brothers and sisters around the world are also suffering.” <br /><br />He then offers a closing Benediction: <br /><br />“And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.” <br /><br />He also makes some concluding remarks, explaining first the purpose of his letter, and noting that Silas helped write it. This letter was meant to encourage the believers. <br /><br />And he offers his final Greetings, saying, “She who is in Babylon (Rome), chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-2920403513310702042020-04-10T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-10T02:00:02.193-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Peter 1-3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 1st Peter 1-3</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">According to 1 Peter, at this time believers are being punished merely for bearing Christ’s name, a situation that does not seem to have characterized the time of Peter’s ministry under the Emperor Nero’s era but that does accord with the policies of his successors. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Letters exchanged between the emperor Trajan and Pliny the Younger, his appointed governor of Bithynia, one of the provinces of Asia Minor to which 1 Peter is addressed, seem to reflect the same conditions the epistle describes. For that reason, many scholars favor a date in the early second century for the epistle, though scholars do not yet fully agree. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A date after AD 70 is indicated by the author’s greetings from “her who dwells in Babylon.” “Her” refers to the writer’s church, and “Babylon” became the Christian code name for Rome after Titus destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70, thus duplicating the Babylonian Empire’s infamous desecration of the holy city (587 BC). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As an archetype of the of the ungodly nation, “Babylon” is also Revelation’s symbol of Rome. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Most critics assume that 1 Peter originated in the capital, the traditional site of Peter’s martyrdom. So while the letter itself may have not been written down by Peter himself, it did originate in the church that Peter led in Rome, who preserved his legacy in writing after Nero murdered him. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Themes of 1st Peter </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Ethics </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Whether or not Peter wrote this epistle, the early church recognized its ethical value by adopting it into its canon. <br /><br />The author’s purpose is to encourage believers to hold fast to their integrity (as Christians like Peter did in Nero’s time) and to promote Christian ethics. <br /><br />He urges the faithful to live so blamelessly that outsiders can never accuse them of anything illegal or morally reprehensible. If one endures legal prosecution, it should only be “as a Christian.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Baptism </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Often, 1 Peter has been described as a baptismal sermon, and indeed, the author structures his work to outline both the privileges and the dangers involved in adopting the Christian way of life – you will die in order to live. <br /><br />1 Peter specifically uses the story of Noah’s Flood as a symbol of baptism, as well as lesser known Christian narratives about Christ’s descent into Hades to bring people from death to life. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The opening of the sermon gives attribution to “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.” It is addressed to persecuted Christians who have been scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. The author states that these exiles were chosen by God the Father to be sanctified through God the Holy Spirit and to be obedient and cleansed by the blood of God the Son, Jesus Christ. He prays that they may they be blessed with abundant grace and peace. <br /><br />Peter then discusses the identity of the people of God and salvation as hope, joy, and privilege. <br /><br />He praises God for… <br /><br />His mercy <br />Our new birth <br />Our living hope <br />The resurrection of Christ <br />Our indestructible inheritance <br />Heaven <br />God’s shield of protection <br />The ultimate revelation of salvation in the end times <br /><br />And he says that their future eternal hope causes them to rejoice in their temporary suffering, and that trials prove the genuineness of their faith. <br /><br />Faith = gold <br />Trial = fire <br />Gold survives the fire <br /><br />He says that their faith despite trials will bring about glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. He says that even though they never saw Jesus, they love him, and even though they don’t see him now, they still believe in him and are filled with joy. And he says that the end result of their faith has already arrived – salvation! <br /><br />He says that the prophets of the past spoke about their salvation, and they longed to see the day of salvation made possible through the sufferings of the Messiah, Jesus. He says that these prophecies were written for them just as the apostles’ message to them was delivered by the Holy Spirit. And he adds that even angels long to look into these things. <br /><br />He then discusses the new way of life in holiness, reverence, and love. He tells them to be alert and sober as they wait in hope for Christ and the grace he will give them when he comes. He says to be like obedient children – not submitting to evil desires like they did when they were still ignorant. He says that God has called them to holiness because he himself is holy. <br /><br />He says that since they rely on a God who is fair to all people, they should be reverent, and live as though they were strangers in a strange land. He says they weren’t redeemed by gold that is destroyed but by the blood of the Lamb – Christ – who was chosen before the creation of the world but was revealed in these last times for their sake. Through him they believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so their faith and hope are in God. <br /><br />He says that now that they have been purified by the truth, they should love each other from the heart! He says, “You have been born again – a living seed, not a dead seed. People are like grass and flowers who die and decay, but the word of the Lord is forever. That same word was preached to you.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 2 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Peter then talks about the “chosen priesthood.” He tells them to give up on all forms of evil and be like innocent babies who drink only pure milk, so that they can grow up strong in the salvation of our good God. He says that we are the stones that form God’s temple, and Jesus is the chief cornerstone. And he says that according to the prophets, we who believe love the cornerstone of God’s Temple – Christ. But those who don’t believe only see it only as that rock they keep tripping over. And he says, “You used to not be a people, living under God’s judgment in darkness. Now you are a holy kingdom of priests living in the light of God’s mercy.” <br /><br />He then goes on to discuss the responsibilities of the people of God, and he summarizes the mission of God’s people in the world, saying, “Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” <br /><br />He then discusses the issue of respect and how it is the key to living in the world. He says that we should have respect for everyone, including respect for authorities, saying, “God wants you to submit to all human authorities who have been set in place to punish criminals and honor model citizens.” And he says that the result of this is the silencing of fools. He says, “God knows that your good deeds will make false accusations against you sound stupid.” <br /><br />He then discusses the posture of living as a free person, saying, “Live in freedom, but don’t use freedom as a front for doing evil. You are slaves to God.” <br /><br />And he summarizes by saying, “Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.” <br /><br />He then addresses those who are slaves and tells them to submit to their masters, saying, “Slaves who love God should submit to their masters whether they are kind or cruel. God sees you and doesn’t forget you when you suffer for him. God also sees you if you bring unnecessary suffering upon yourself through rebellion.” <br /><br />He points to the example of Christ by reciting a hymn, saying: <br /><br />“Christ suffered for you, so be like Christ <br />He never sinned <br />When Christ was abused, he never retaliated or made threats <br />He trusted in God <br />He died on the cross for us so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness <br />By his wounds you have been healed. <br />You used to be like lost sheep, but now you have returned to your Good Shepherd.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then addresses the relationship between wives and husbands. First, he addresses the wives, telling them to submit to your husbands, saying, “Christian wives should submit to their non-Christian husbands in the hope that their husbands will be won over to Christ. Rather than impressing your husbands with jewelry and fancy clothes, impress them with your gentleness.” And he offers Sarah as an example of how the holy women of the past lived in that she submitted to Abraham. <br /><br />Next, he addresses the husbands, telling them to honor their wives, saying, “Husbands should be considerate and respectful to their wives. Don’t treat them like men but treat them as equal heirs of God’s grace and life. Do this if you want God to listen to your prayers.” <br /><br />He then repeats his theme telling them to have respect for everyone, saying, “Love everybody. Don’t get revenge. Repay evil with blessing.” <br /><br />He then talks about suffering for doing good, saying, “Only crazy people will hurt you if you do good things to them… but even if that happens, don’t be afraid. Honor Christ in your hearts. Always be prepared to give an answer to those who ask you about this hope that you have. But when you tell people about Jesus, do it with respect. Don’t give them a reason to hate you.” <br /><br />He then talks about the vindication of Christ, saying: <br /><br />“Jesus knows what it’s like to suffer – he died for your sins after all. But he was also made alive by the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits—to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.” </span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-86157896512277874392020-04-09T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-09T02:00:07.534-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to Jude's Epistle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to Jude's Epistle</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Context </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jude was likely written between AD 100-125. The author refers to himself as Jude (Judas), a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James. Scholars believe that Jude is not the work of Jesus’ “brother” but rather is a pseudonymous work that entered the canon because of its presumed association with the Lord’s family. Jude shows no personal familiarity with Jesus and cites none of his characteristic teachings. He refers to Christianity as a fixed body of beliefs that the faithful already possess and to the apostles as prophets of a former age.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Themes </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Apocalyptic Judgment:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jude views the heretics’ misbehavior as fulfilling the apostles’ predictions about End time. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Exhortation to the Faithful:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Jude counsels the believers to pray and live in anticipation of Jesus’ return. He conceded that some involved with the heretics deserve pity and can be helped. Others are pitiable but corrupted by sensuality. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Use of Noncanonical Writings </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book of Jude interestingly quotes two books from the Pseudepigrapha. Jude 6 refers to an angelic fall, drawing from 1 Enoch 6-12 while Jude 14-15 quotes directly from 1 Enoch 1:9. Jude seems to regard Enoch’s prophecy as inspired by God, but it is unlikely Jude saw 1 Enoch as canonical Scripture. Jude also references another book, the Assumption of Moses, by discussing the dispute over the body of Moses between the devil and the archangel Michael (Jude 9). The actual text of the Assumption of Moses is lost. We only have secondary sources revealing the content of this book. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While most New Testament authors avoid material from the Pseudepigrapha due to its unreliable content, it is possible that some of its material is genuine. It is believed that Jude is able to draw out truth in the midst of falsehoods. We see Paul utilizing a similar technique when quoting pagan poets (Acts 17:28; 1 Cor 15:33; Titus 1:12). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The letter opens with a salutation, and claims to be written by Jude, “a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James.” It is written to “Those who have been called, who are loved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />A blessing is given: “Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.” <br /><br />The writer says that he really wanted to write about their common salvation, but he thought best to urge them to “contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people.” <br /><br />He then gives the reason why… because of the infiltration of ungodly “Antinomians.” He says that certain individuals “whose condemnation was written about long ago” have secretly slipped in among them. He says that they are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ. <br /><br />He then discusses the judgment of the ungodly, using the Hebrew Scriptures as precedent. <br /><br />His first example is of unbelieving Israel, and he gives a quick reminder that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. <br /><br />His next example is of fallen angels. He says that the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling have been “kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains” for judgment on the “great Day.” <br /><br />His next example is of Sodom and Gomorrah. He says that Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion and serve as an example of those who “suffer the punishment of eternal fire.” <br /><br />And he draws a parallel between the character of the present “ungodly” and those of the past. He first exposes their slanderous speech, “On the strength of their dreams they pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings. But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, ‘The Lord rebuke you!’” <br /><br />Jude is alluding to the Jewish Testament of Moses (written approximately the first century AD). <br /><br />He says, “They slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.” <br /><br />He then portrays their ungodly character, saying: <br /><br />“Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain. <br />They have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error. <br />They have been destroyed in Korah’s rebellion. <br />These people are blemishes at your love feasts, <br />eating with you without the slightest qualm. <br />They are shepherds who feed only themselves. <br />They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind. <br />They are autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted—twice dead. <br />They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame. <br />They are wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.” <br /><br />He then prophecies the destruction of the ungodly. And he refers to the prophecy of Enoch, saying, “Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: ‘See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’” <br /><br />This quote is from the Jewish First Book of Enoch (written approximately the first century BC). <br /><br />He says, “These people are grumblers and faultfinders. They follow their own evil desires. They boast about themselves. They flatter others for their own advantage.” <br /><br />He then refers to the prophecy of the Apostles, saying, “The Apostles foretold: ‘In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.’ These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.” <br /><br />He then calls the believers to persevere, saying, “But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.” <br /><br />He also calls on them to be merciful, saying, “Be merciful to those who doubt. Save others by snatching them from the fire. To others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” <br /><br />He then closes his letter with a doxology: <br /><br />“To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy— to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” <br /><br /> </span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-15660324293498805792020-04-06T02:00:00.000-05:002020-04-06T02:00:00.342-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Chronicles 27-29<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1st Chronicles 27</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Tuesday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1st Chronicles 27</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Wednesday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1st Chronicles 27</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Thursday: Jude 1<br />Friday: 1st Peter 1<br />Saturday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1st Peter 2</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br />Sunday: </span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1st Peter 3</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 1st Chronicles 27-29</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 27 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Within David's Kingdom, there were divisions of 24,000 men who were on duty month by month. There was a chief officer over each tribe. Joab was the commander of the army. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 28 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David assembled the leaders and said, "The LORD has chosen Solomon to build his house." He gave Solomon, David's son, the plans for the temple. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 29 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The leaders presented offerings to God. David prayed, "Yours is the kingdom, O LORD. We give back to what you have given to us." David died at an old age.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This takes us to the end of the first half of The Chronicles.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-54365044301707531572020-03-30T02:00:00.000-05:002020-03-30T02:00:01.012-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Chronicles 20-26<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 1st Chronicles 20<br />Tuesday: 1st Chronicles 21<br />Wednesday: 1st Chronicles 22<br />Thursday: 1st Chronicles 23<br />Friday: 1st Chronicles 24<br />Saturday: 1st Chronicles 25<br />Sunday: 1st Chronicles 26</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 1st Chronicles 20-26</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 20 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Joab besieged Rabbah and David took the plunder. War broke out with the Philistines and David and his men killed the giants. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 21 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Satan led David to count the Israelites. God sent a plague and a destroying angel. David bought Ornan's field and made offerings and the plague ended. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 22 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David told Solomon: "The LORD has said that you will build his temple. I have provided materials." He ordered the leaders to help. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 23 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David made Solomon king over Israel. He organized the Levites into the sons of Gershon, Kohath and Merari to serve in the temple. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 24 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The sons of Aaron were priests. David organised the sons of Eleazar and Ithamar by lot. The rest of the Levites also cast lots. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 25 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun prophesied with music. 288 were trained in singing to the LORD. They cast lots for duties. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 26 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The sons of Obed-edom, Meshelemiah and Hosah were gatekeepers. Ahijah, Zetham, Joel, Shubael and Shelomith oversaw the treasuries.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-48784669123780046182020-03-23T02:00:00.000-05:002020-03-23T02:00:05.198-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Chronicles 13-19<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 1st Chronicles 13<br />Tuesday: 1st Chronicles 14<br />Wednesday: 1st Chronicles 15<br />Thursday: 1st Chronicles 16<br />Friday: 1st Chronicles 17<br />Saturday: 1st Chronicles 18<br />Sunday: 1st Chronicles 19</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 1st Chronicles 13-19</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 13 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David said, "Let us bring the ark back." As they carried the ark Uzzah steadied it and was struck down by God. David was angry with God and he took the ark the home of Obed-Edom.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 14 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then hear that David had more children. Also, the Philistines attacked again and David inquired of God and when he heard the sound of marching in the trees he defeated them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 15 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David told the Levites to carry the ark. Heman, Asaph and Ethan were the musicians. The ark was brought into the city of David. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 16 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">They made offerings and David appointed singers. "Give thanks to the LORD; He is greatly to be praised!" Asaph ministered each day. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 17 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The LORD said to Nathan, "Tell David: I will establish your house; your son will build my house." David prayed, "Who am I, O LORD?" </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 18 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">David defeated the Philistines, the Moabites, King Hadadezer, the Arameans and the Edomites. He reigned over Israel with justice. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 19 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The King of Ammon humiliated David's servants and hired the Arameans for war. Joab defeated them and David defeated King Hadadezer.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-6352546572210123222020-03-16T02:00:00.000-05:002020-03-16T02:00:00.962-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Chronicles 6-12<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: 1st Chronicles 6<br />Tuesday: 1st Chronicles 7<br />Wednesday: 1st Chronicles 8<br />Thursday: 1st Chronicles 9<br />Friday: 1st Chronicles 10<br />Saturday: 1st Chronicles 11<br />Sunday: 1st Chronicles 12</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Introduction to 1st Chronicles 6-12 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 6 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book continues on with the genealogies, and we then get to Jacob’s third-born son, Levi. And we hear that Levi's sons were Gershon, Kohath and Merari. The famous musicians Heman and Asaph were also Levites. We hear how Aaron's sons made offerings, and that the Levites were given cities rather than broad swaths of land. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 7 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then move on to the tribe of Issachar's whose numbers were 87,000. <br /><br />We then move on to Benjamin, Jacob’s last son. Benjamin's sons were Bela, Beker and Jediael. <br /><br />We then move on to Naphtali and the other half of Manasseh’s split tribe, before going to Ephraim’s clans, and we hear again that Ephraim's line led to Joshua. <br /><br />We then move on to the tribe of Asher whose numbers were 26,000. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 8 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then jump back to Benjamin, where we narrow in on the records of Saul, Israel’s first king. We hear that Benjamin was the father of Bela, Ashbel, Aharah, Nohah and Rapha. We then get a list of the clans of Benjamin, and we learn that from Ner's line was Kish, the father of Saul, the father of Jonathan. From Jonathan’s line came the sons of Ulam were known as mighty warriors. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 9 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then learn that Jerusalem was resettled by Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim and Manasseh, and we are given a list of priests and Levite gatekeepers. <br /><br />We then jump back again to the genealogy of Saul, son of Kish. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 10 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The narrative section of Chronicles begins here with the death of Saul. We learn that the Philistines fought Israel and Saul fell on his sword. The Israelites fled, and Saul died for his unfaithfulness against the LORD. These events are also recorded in 1st Samuel. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 11 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The elders anointed David king, and David conquered Jerusalem. He made Joab his general. We then hear about David's mighty men who included the three who brought him water from Bethlehem. Joab’s brother Abishai became their commander and killed three hundred men in battle. Another man named Benaiah killed a giant Egyptian and fought a lion in a pit on a snowy day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 12 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then learn that the Benjaminites and Gadites went over to David at Ziklag, and David made them officers. And more and more people kept coming over to join David until there was a great army.</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-77496049808443341452020-03-11T02:00:00.000-05:002020-03-11T02:00:02.749-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Chronicles 1-5<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to 1st Chronicles 1-5</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Chronicles narrative begins with Adam and the story is then carried forward, almost entirely by genealogical lists, down to the founding of the first Kingdom of Israel (1 Chronicles 1–9). The bulk of the remainder of 1 Chronicles, after a brief account of Saul, is concerned with the reign of David (1 Chronicles 11–29). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Originally a single work, Chronicles was divided into two in the Septuagint, a Greek translation produced in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC. It has three broad divisions: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The genealogies (1 Chronicles 1-9) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The reigns of David and Solomon (1 Chronicles 10 – 2 Chronicles 9) <br />The story of the divided kingdom (2 Chronicles 10-36) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Within this broad structure there are signs that the author has used various other devices to structure his work, notably through drawing parallels between David and Solomon (the first becomes king, establishes the worship of Israel's God in Jerusalem, and fights the wars that will enable the Temple to be built, then Solomon becomes king, builds and dedicates the Temple, and reaps the benefits of prosperity and peace). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Origins </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The last events in Chronicles take place in the reign of Cyrus the Great, the Persian king who conquered Babylon in 539 BC; this sets the earliest possible date for the book. It was probably composed between 400–250 BC, with the period 350–300 BC the most likely. The latest person mentioned in Chronicles is Anani, an eighth-generation descendant of King Jehoiachin according to the Masoretic Text. Anani's birth would likely have been sometime between 425 and 400 BC. The Septuagint gives an additional five generations in the genealogy of Anani. For those scholars who side with the Septuagint's reading, Anani's likely date of birth is a century later. <br /><br />Chronicles appears to be largely the work of a single individual, with some later additions and editing. The writer was probably male, probably a Levite (temple priest), and probably from Jerusalem. He was well-read, a skilled editor, and a sophisticated theologian. His intention was to use Israel's past to convey religious messages to his peers, the literary and political elite of Jerusalem in the time of the Achaemenid Empire. <br /><br />Jewish and Christian tradition identified this author as the 5th century BC figure Ezra, who gives his name to the Book of Ezra; Ezra was also believed to be the author of both Chronicles and Ezra–Nehemiah, but later critical scholarship abandoned the identification with Ezra and called the anonymous author "the Chronicler". One of the most striking, although inconclusive, features of Chronicles is that its closing sentence is repeated as the opening of Ezra–Nehemiah. The latter half of the 20th century saw a radical reappraisal, and many now regard it as improbable that the author of Chronicles was also the author of the narrative portions of Ezra–Nehemiah. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The translators who created the Greek version of the Jewish Bible (the Septuagint) called this book "Things Left Out", indicating that they thought of it as a supplement to another work, probably Genesis-Kings, but the idea seems inappropriate, since much of Genesis-Kings has been copied almost without change. Some modern scholars proposed that Chronicles is a midrash, or traditional Jewish commentary, on Genesis-Kings, but again this is not entirely accurate since the author or authors do not comment on the older books so much as use them to create a new work. Recent suggestions have been that it was intended as a clarification of the history in Genesis-Kings, or a replacement or alternative for it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Themes </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The generally accepted message the author wished to give to his audience was this: <br /><br />God is active in history, and especially the history of Israel. The faithfulness or sins of individual kings are immediately rewarded or punished by God. (This is in contrast to the theology of the Books of Kings, where the faithlessness of kings was punished on later generations through the Babylonian exile). <br /><br />God calls Israel to a special relationship. The call begins with the genealogies (chapters 1–9 of 1 Chronicles), gradually narrowing the focus from all mankind to a single family, the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob. "True" Israel is those who continue to worship Yahweh at the Temple in Jerusalem, with the result that the history of the historical kingdom of Israel is almost completely ignored. <br /><br />God chose David and his dynasty as the agents of his will. According to the author of Chronicles, the three great events of David's reign were his bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, his founding of an eternal royal dynasty, and his preparations for the construction of the Temple. <br /><br />God chose the Temple in Jerusalem as the place where he should be worshiped. More time and space are spent on the construction of the Temple and its rituals of worship than on any other subject. By stressing the central role of the Temple in pre-exilic Judah, the author also stresses the importance of the newly-rebuilt Persian-era Second Temple to his own readers. <br /><br />God remains active in Israel. The past is used to legitimize the author's present: this is seen most clearly in the detailed attention he gives to the Temple built by Solomon, but also in the genealogy and lineages, which connect his own generation to the distant past and thus make the claim that the present is a continuation of that past. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 1 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book starts off with the genealogies, which start with the line from Noah, and the branches off with the descendants of Noah’s sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and founders of the nations. <br /><br />We then focus in on the family of Abraham, and the children he had through Hagar, Keturah, and Sarah. We then focus in on his son Isaac and Isaac's sons Edom (Esau) and Israel (Jacob). There is then a list of the Kings who ruled in Edom. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then go back to Jacob (Israel) and his sons, starting with his fourth son Judah. Judah's line led to Obed, Jesse and David. <br /><br />We also hear that Caleb was the son of Hezron (a descendant of Judah) whose firstborn son was Jerahmeel. And we learn that Caleb's line were the Kenites. Caleb’s relative Achar (or Achan) is also mentioned here as the one in the Book of Joshua who violated the devoted things and brought trouble on Israel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then jump back to King David whom we hear had six sons at Hebron, four by Bathshua (or Bathsheba) … and also nine others. <br /><br />David’s son Solomon's line led to Jeconiah (or Jehoiakim) at the time of the exile to Babylon, and then later to the sons of Elioenai, who were of the royal line after the exile. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">We then get more lists of the clans of Judah and were learn that Reaiah's sons were the Zorathites. <br /><br />We then briefly hear about how God blessed a man named Jabez when he prayed to be blessed. <br /><br />Also, we hear that Shelah's sons worked for the king. <br /><br />We then move on to the Jacob’s third-born son, Simeon, and his descendants, and we hear that Simeon's line moved away to Gedor to seek pasture. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book continues on with the genealogies, and we finally get to Jacob’s first-born son Reuben. We then hear about how Reuben lost his birthright, and how his sons lived in Gilead. <br /><br />We also hear that the sons of Gad and the sons of Manasseh lived in Bashan until the captivity.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-85297743650063592792020-03-09T02:00:00.000-05:002020-03-09T02:00:00.123-05:00READ IT! - Introduction to James 4-5<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Readings for this week</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Monday: James 4<br />Tuesday: James 5<br />Wednesday: 1st Chronicles 1<br />Thursday: 1st Chronicles 2<br />Friday: 1st Chronicles 3<br />Saturday: 1st Chronicles 4<br />Sunday: 1st Chronicles 5</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 4 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then summarizes his main theme – the reward of faith. He starts with the issue of the prayer of faith, saying, “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” <br /><br />He then discusses the issue of friendship with the world, saying, “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace.” <br /><br />And he quotes the Scriptures, saying: <br /><br />“God opposes the proud <br />but shows favor to the humble.” <br /><br />He then discusses the humility of faith, saying, “Submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” <br /><br />He then gets into some more specifics, starting with a call to avoid worldly influences. He starts by addressing the issue of slander in the community, saying, “Do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?” <br /><br />He then addresses the issue of boasting about tomorrow, saying, “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.” <br /><br />And he adds, “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 5 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then offers a warning to “wealthy oppressors”: <br /><br />“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.” <br /><br />He then talks about the patience of faith, saying, “Be patient until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. Don’t grumble against one another or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!” <br /><br />He then offers some biblical examples of patience in suffering, saying, “Take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.” <br /><br />And then he adds, “Above all, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ Otherwise you will be condemned.” <br /><br />He then discusses the prayer of faith, saying: <br /><br />“Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. <br /><br />He gives a biblical example: <br /><br />“Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.” <br /><br />And he concludes his letter by saying: <br /><br />“If one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” <br /><br /> <br /><br /> </span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5003873850757326641.post-61088461663019801612020-03-06T02:00:00.000-06:002020-03-06T02:00:00.596-06:00READ IT! - Introduction to James 1-3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Introduction to The Epistle of James </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Context of James </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The epistle is traditionally attributed to James (Hebrew: Jacob) the brother of Jesus, and the audience is generally considered to be Jewish Christians, who were dispersed outside Palestine. <br /><br />Within the New Testament canon, the Epistle of James is noteworthy because it makes no reference to the death, resurrection, or divine sonship of Jesus. It refers to Jesus twice, as "the Lord Jesus Christ" and as "our glorious Lord Jesus Christ" (James 1:1, 2:1). <br /><br />"The Letter of James also, according to the majority of scholars who have carefully worked through its text in the past two centuries, is among the earliest of New Testament compositions. It contains no reference to the events in Jesus' life, but it bears striking testimony to Jesus' words. Jesus' sayings are embedded in James' exhortations in a form that is clearly not dependent on the written Gospels." <br /><br />If written by James the brother of Jesus, it would have been written sometime before AD 69 (or AD 62), when he was martyred. Jerusalem would also be the place of writing. <br /><br />The earliest extant manuscripts of James usually date to the mid-to-late 3rd century. <br /><br />James is considered New Testament wisdom literature: "like Proverbs and Sirach, it consists largely of moral exhortations and precepts of a traditional and eclectic nature." </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Similarities between James and Acts </b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">James’ speech in Acts 15 contains many striking parallels in language with the epistle of James. For example, χαίρω is found in Jas. 1:1 and Acts 15:23 (and elsewhere in Acts only in 23:26); Acts 15:17 and Jas. 2:7 invoke God’s name in a special way; the exhortation for the brothers (ἀδελφοι) to hear is found both in Jas. 2:5 and Acts 15:13. Further, not-so-common individual words are found in both: ἐπισκέπτεσθε (Jas. 1:27;Acts 15:14); ἐπιστρέφειν (Jas. 5:19 and Acts 15:19); τηρεῖν (or διατηρεῖν) ἑαυτόν (Jas. 1:27; Acts 15:29); ἀγαπητός (Jas. 1:16, 19; 2:5; Acts 15:25). Though short of conclusive proof, this is nevertheless significant corroborative evidence the James on Acts is the same as the James here.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Similarities with the teaching of Jesus </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">“There are more parallels in this Epistle than in any other New Testament book to the teaching of our Lord in the Gospels.” The parallels to the Sermon on the Mount are especially acute: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The book opens with a salutation and claims to be written by “James (Hebrew: Jacob), a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”. It says it is written to “the twelve tribes scattered among the nations” <br /><br />The first section of the book is on enduring trials, with the main theme being the testing of faith. <br /><br />He first addresses faith in the context God’s sovereignty, perseverance, and gifts, saying, “Consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds. The testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” <br /><br />Then he addresses faith and doubt, saying, “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt. The one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.” <br /><br />He then gives more specifics, saying, “The person who doubts should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They are double-minded and unstable in all they do.” <br /><br />He then discusses faith and finances, saying, “Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.” <br /><br />He again addresses faith and perseverance, saying, “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” <br /><br />He then addresses faith and fatalism, saying, “When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. Don’t be deceived. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.” <br /><br />In the next section of the book, James addresses the application of faith within the Church. His main them here is the obedience of faith. <br /><br />First, he addresses anger versus obedience, saying, “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” <br /><br />Then, he addresses passivity versus obedience, saying, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. Whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.” <br /><br />He then addresses speech and obedience, saying, “Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.” <br /><br />He then addresses the impartiality of obedience, saying, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then discusses partiality versus obedience, saying, “Believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism.” He then offers a hypothetical situation: <br /><br />“Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, ‘Here’s a good seat for you,’ but say to the poor man, ‘You stand there’ or ‘Sit on the floor by my feet,’ have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” <br /><br />He then gives a rebuke for showing partiality: <br /><br />“Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?” <br /><br />He then offers the conditions of obedience: <br /><br />“If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘You shall not murder.’ If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.” <br /><br />He then comes to the principle of his topic: <br /><br />“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” <br /><br />He then discusses passivity versus obedience, posing the question, “What good is it if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them?” <br /><br />And he offers a hypothetical situation to make his point: <br /><br />“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” <br /><br />And he makes a rational argument, pointing to the passive faith of demons, saying, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?” <br /><br />He then makes a biblical argument, pointing to the active faith of Abraham and Rahab, saying, “Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,’ and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?” <br /><br />And he comes to the principle of his point, saying, “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Chapter 3 </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">He then discusses speech and obedience, saying that the tongue is a measure of maturity. He says, “Not many of you should become teachers because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.” <br /><br />He then makes some analogous arguments, first regarding the smallness of the tongue. <br /><br />Example One: When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. <br /><br />Example Two: Although ships are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. <br /><br />Example three: The tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. A great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. <br /><br />He then makes an analogous argument regarding the tamed tongue. <br /><br />Example: All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. <br /><br />He then makes some analogous arguments regarding the “forked” tongue. <br /><br />Example One: With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. This should not be. <br /><br />Example Two: Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? <br /><br />Example Three: Can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? <br /><br />He then discusses the wisdom of obedience, saying, “Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. If you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. Where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”</span></div>
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Daniel Sheetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02947865557836417760noreply@blogger.com0