Indiana Geri and the Treasures of the Bible
Ok. So I opened my bible randomly and found myself at Zephaniah. Zepha-who? Yes... yes... It is one of those books of the bible that I skip over all the time - something about its name.... =p I am guessing I am not the only one who reads the bible selectively though haha =D "Oooooh Ruth... Eew Leviticus... Yay Daniel.... Eew Haggai..." =p Right? Right? Grins.
I remember how Ian told me that the first time he flipped open the bible to the book of Matthew and he saw the genealogy of Jesus - the beget beget bit. He read that genealogy, went to sleep and that was it. He hardly touched the bible after that for years and years on end. So it is with great joy that I reveal that Ian has read all of NT and is now systematically, and slowly but surely, ploughing through OT - which is full of symbolisms and types.
OT is like Literature class all over again (but centred on Christ) - unless you understand the symbols and types, the grain offering is just another boring wordy ritual to read about, the numbers are just numbers... and so on. =)
About that boring genealogy beget beget bit... I 'fess up that I thought it was boring too until our Senior Pastor, Pastor Prince brought it to life. Ian and I see it with fresh eyes now.
Okay first read the extract from the genealogy, and take note of the bits I highlighted in bold. This is Matthew 1 from the NCV bible.
1This is the family history of Jesus Christ. He came from the family of David, and David came from the family of Abraham.
2 Abraham was the father[a] of Isaac.
Isaac was the father of Jacob.
Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers.
3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah.
(Their mother was Tamar.)
Perez was the father of Hezron.
Hezron was the father of Ram.
4 Ram was the father of Amminadab.
Amminadab was the father of Nahshon.
Nahshon was the father of Salmon.
5 Salmon was the father of Boaz.
(Boaz's mother was Rahab.)
Boaz was the father of Obed.
(Obed's mother was Ruth.)
Obed was the father of Jesse.
6 Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon.
(Solomon's mother had been Uriah's wife.)
7 Solomon was the father of Rehoboam.
Rehoboam was the father of Abijah.
Abijah was the father of Asa.[b]
(... etc etc etc till we get to JESUS =D Please read the Book of Matthew and the rest of the genealogy on your own k?)
Do you notice something about the women mentioned in the genealogy?
The Holy Spirit did not choose to mention Rachel or Sarah ... instead in the genealogy, the women whose names are specified are the following -
Tamar - She appeared in Genesis chapter 3 and was twice the daughter-in-law of Judah. She also disguised herself as a prostitute and slept with her father-in-law because he had dishonoured a promise made to her. Judah concedes that she was more righteous than he was.
Rahab - A prostitute that appeared in Joshua 2. She was not a Jew but believed in the God of Israel and helped the spies avoid being caught.
Ruth - A gentile that has her own book to star in. Ruth is a wonderful woman but she was a gentile. The Jews did not generally accept gentiles as being holy people in those days.
Uriah's wife aka Bathsheeba - the woman that David committed adultery with.
Why did the Holy Spirit highlight these women in the genealogy of Christ? Perhaps it is to show us how God can use us for His glory no matter how imperfect and how shameful our backgrounds are. He can still take us - regardless of our background - and transform us from glory to glory and honour us.
Ok so back to Zephaniah... a prophet by the way. I flipped through it (it only has 3 chapters! Woohoo!) and basically it starts with sorrow and ends with rejoicing. The rejoicing bit is so edifying
Sing, Jerusalem.
Israel, shout for joy!
Jerusalem, be happy
and rejoice with all your heart.
15 The Lord has stopped punishing you;
he has sent your enemies away.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is with you;
you will never again be afraid of being harmed.
16 On that day Jerusalem will be told,
"Don't be afraid, city of Jerusalem.
Don't give up.
17 The Lord your God is with you;
the mighty One will save you.
He will rejoice over you.
You will rest in his love;
he will sing and be joyful about you."
18 "I will take away the sadness planned for you,
which would have made you very ashamed.
19 At that time I will punish
all those who harmed you.
I will save my people who cannot walk
and gather my people who have been thrown out.
I will give them praise and honor
in every place where they were shamed.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bring you back home.
I will give you honor and praise
from people everywhere
when I make things go well again for you,
as you will see with your own eyes," says the Lord.
No matter who you are, what you have done and what your background is - God loves you. He will rejoice over you and rescue and honour you. All you have to do is to take His hand and take that first baby step to trust and believe that His love is that incomprehensibly huge. =)
I also want you to encourage to read the Word of God. I mean really READ not just flip through and glance over.
The Word of God is alive... it is the very present Word. Since I was a child, I've been reading the bible and there are some books of the bibles that I have read and re-read more than others - and these books keep giving me something new to take away with each reading. It doesn't stay stagnant. Even those books that bring on the yawns just to think of them? Well, they intrigue me these days.
Like Leviticus 2... Jesus is ALL over Leviticus. Beyond the boring rituals, is an amazing prophecy of His sacrifice on the Cross. To understand Leviticus 2 there are a few things you need to know
Sin offering - Symbolises how Christ was made sin for us.
Oil - symbol of holy spirit in anointing
Oven - symbol of fiery trials or judgement
Burnt offering - voluntary. free will offering
Fire - symbolised burning judgement of God, purifying, testing
Frankincense - prayer and intercession
Fine Flour - Flour represents the crushed and broken body of Christ. Fine Flour is ground flour that has been crushed really fine and is only available for Royalty and for temple sacrifices.
Grind - Symbol of servitude
Unleaven - purity, sinlessness, represents Christ
Leaven - false doctrines, evil life teaching and practices
Honey - natural sweetness. good BUT not of God's altar
Salt - symbol of incorruptibility, covenant that endures
I mean doesn't this excite you? Okay maybe it is because I can be a bit of a Literature geek and a dork for Christ =D But knowing what those otherwise meaningless terms mean unlocks a whole wealth of meaning to Leviticus 2 which is about the Sin Offering. Read Leviticus 2 now and tell me if you once were blind but now you see!
Read the Word and see it come alive and perhaps you can do what I did. I started keeping a note book that I have tagged named "My Shield of Faith". In it, I write down scriptural quotations and edifying Christian quotes by grace-filled Christian authors - I also label what the quotations are about (eg. Faith, Discernment, No Fear, Speak Life... etc)... It is amazing finding all those promises of blessings God has for you and recording it down yourself is meaningful - it makes the Word personal to you and you can read back again when you feel you need a boost for the day. I know there are quotation books out there and I have some of them too - but nothing beats finding and seeking actively on your own during your quiet time. Also, I read across the various bible translations - NCV, AMP, NIV, KJV, NKJV, NLT, NASB, MSG and so on... it is essentially the same thing, but sometimes a quotation phrased differently might help you understand it better.
I am a Literature Geek and a Dork for Christ... and it brings me great joy to just spend time playing seek and go find with the Word of God - the outcome is always super rewarding!
If you find the bible overwhelming, take it a bite at a time, a chapter at a time. Before you know it, you'll find your way through it. Just start and stop procrastinating already. =D
I haven't read the whole bible myself, but I am on my way... =) I feel like Indiana Jones and the bible contains a trove of hidden treasures. Excuse me whilst I go treasure hunting! =D
I remember how Ian told me that the first time he flipped open the bible to the book of Matthew and he saw the genealogy of Jesus - the beget beget bit. He read that genealogy, went to sleep and that was it. He hardly touched the bible after that for years and years on end. So it is with great joy that I reveal that Ian has read all of NT and is now systematically, and slowly but surely, ploughing through OT - which is full of symbolisms and types.
OT is like Literature class all over again (but centred on Christ) - unless you understand the symbols and types, the grain offering is just another boring wordy ritual to read about, the numbers are just numbers... and so on. =)
About that boring genealogy beget beget bit... I 'fess up that I thought it was boring too until our Senior Pastor, Pastor Prince brought it to life. Ian and I see it with fresh eyes now.
Okay first read the extract from the genealogy, and take note of the bits I highlighted in bold. This is Matthew 1 from the NCV bible.
1This is the family history of Jesus Christ. He came from the family of David, and David came from the family of Abraham.
2 Abraham was the father[a] of Isaac.
Isaac was the father of Jacob.
Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers.
3 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah.
(Their mother was Tamar.)
Perez was the father of Hezron.
Hezron was the father of Ram.
4 Ram was the father of Amminadab.
Amminadab was the father of Nahshon.
Nahshon was the father of Salmon.
5 Salmon was the father of Boaz.
(Boaz's mother was Rahab.)
Boaz was the father of Obed.
(Obed's mother was Ruth.)
Obed was the father of Jesse.
6 Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon.
(Solomon's mother had been Uriah's wife.)
7 Solomon was the father of Rehoboam.
Rehoboam was the father of Abijah.
Abijah was the father of Asa.[b]
(... etc etc etc till we get to JESUS =D Please read the Book of Matthew and the rest of the genealogy on your own k?)
Do you notice something about the women mentioned in the genealogy?
The Holy Spirit did not choose to mention Rachel or Sarah ... instead in the genealogy, the women whose names are specified are the following -
Tamar - She appeared in Genesis chapter 3 and was twice the daughter-in-law of Judah. She also disguised herself as a prostitute and slept with her father-in-law because he had dishonoured a promise made to her. Judah concedes that she was more righteous than he was.
Rahab - A prostitute that appeared in Joshua 2. She was not a Jew but believed in the God of Israel and helped the spies avoid being caught.
Ruth - A gentile that has her own book to star in. Ruth is a wonderful woman but she was a gentile. The Jews did not generally accept gentiles as being holy people in those days.
Uriah's wife aka Bathsheeba - the woman that David committed adultery with.
Why did the Holy Spirit highlight these women in the genealogy of Christ? Perhaps it is to show us how God can use us for His glory no matter how imperfect and how shameful our backgrounds are. He can still take us - regardless of our background - and transform us from glory to glory and honour us.
Ok so back to Zephaniah... a prophet by the way. I flipped through it (it only has 3 chapters! Woohoo!) and basically it starts with sorrow and ends with rejoicing. The rejoicing bit is so edifying
Sing, Jerusalem.
Israel, shout for joy!
Jerusalem, be happy
and rejoice with all your heart.
15 The Lord has stopped punishing you;
he has sent your enemies away.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is with you;
you will never again be afraid of being harmed.
16 On that day Jerusalem will be told,
"Don't be afraid, city of Jerusalem.
Don't give up.
17 The Lord your God is with you;
the mighty One will save you.
He will rejoice over you.
You will rest in his love;
he will sing and be joyful about you."
18 "I will take away the sadness planned for you,
which would have made you very ashamed.
19 At that time I will punish
all those who harmed you.
I will save my people who cannot walk
and gather my people who have been thrown out.
I will give them praise and honor
in every place where they were shamed.
20 At that time I will gather you;
at that time I will bring you back home.
I will give you honor and praise
from people everywhere
when I make things go well again for you,
as you will see with your own eyes," says the Lord.
As a "shameful woman" (I am sure the self-righteous bunch see me that way) - a woman who regretfully engaged in premarital sex and had a kid out of wedlock and who was once a lost sheep.... I can attest to the last stanza.
He has given me back my honour and He has made things go well for me and I DO see it with my own eyes. If you know me, you can see God's beautiful and loving hand prints all over my life too!No matter who you are, what you have done and what your background is - God loves you. He will rejoice over you and rescue and honour you. All you have to do is to take His hand and take that first baby step to trust and believe that His love is that incomprehensibly huge. =)
I also want you to encourage to read the Word of God. I mean really READ not just flip through and glance over.
The Word of God is alive... it is the very present Word. Since I was a child, I've been reading the bible and there are some books of the bibles that I have read and re-read more than others - and these books keep giving me something new to take away with each reading. It doesn't stay stagnant. Even those books that bring on the yawns just to think of them? Well, they intrigue me these days.
Like Leviticus 2... Jesus is ALL over Leviticus. Beyond the boring rituals, is an amazing prophecy of His sacrifice on the Cross. To understand Leviticus 2 there are a few things you need to know
Sin offering - Symbolises how Christ was made sin for us.
Oil - symbol of holy spirit in anointing
Oven - symbol of fiery trials or judgement
Burnt offering - voluntary. free will offering
Fire - symbolised burning judgement of God, purifying, testing
Frankincense - prayer and intercession
Fine Flour - Flour represents the crushed and broken body of Christ. Fine Flour is ground flour that has been crushed really fine and is only available for Royalty and for temple sacrifices.
Grind - Symbol of servitude
Unleaven - purity, sinlessness, represents Christ
Leaven - false doctrines, evil life teaching and practices
Honey - natural sweetness. good BUT not of God's altar
Salt - symbol of incorruptibility, covenant that endures
I mean doesn't this excite you? Okay maybe it is because I can be a bit of a Literature geek and a dork for Christ =D But knowing what those otherwise meaningless terms mean unlocks a whole wealth of meaning to Leviticus 2 which is about the Sin Offering. Read Leviticus 2 now and tell me if you once were blind but now you see!
Read the Word and see it come alive and perhaps you can do what I did. I started keeping a note book that I have tagged named "My Shield of Faith". In it, I write down scriptural quotations and edifying Christian quotes by grace-filled Christian authors - I also label what the quotations are about (eg. Faith, Discernment, No Fear, Speak Life... etc)... It is amazing finding all those promises of blessings God has for you and recording it down yourself is meaningful - it makes the Word personal to you and you can read back again when you feel you need a boost for the day. I know there are quotation books out there and I have some of them too - but nothing beats finding and seeking actively on your own during your quiet time. Also, I read across the various bible translations - NCV, AMP, NIV, KJV, NKJV, NLT, NASB, MSG and so on... it is essentially the same thing, but sometimes a quotation phrased differently might help you understand it better.
I am a Literature Geek and a Dork for Christ... and it brings me great joy to just spend time playing seek and go find with the Word of God - the outcome is always super rewarding!
If you find the bible overwhelming, take it a bite at a time, a chapter at a time. Before you know it, you'll find your way through it. Just start and stop procrastinating already. =D
I haven't read the whole bible myself, but I am on my way... =) I feel like Indiana Jones and the bible contains a trove of hidden treasures. Excuse me whilst I go treasure hunting! =D
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