Tag: bible

Beginnings and Endings

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Pastor Tim's Ponderings2 Comments
Forest Sunset, by James Naughton

I’ve always thought it strange that we have New Year’s celebrations on January 1 at midnight when the year begins. The year hasn’t even happened yet, and we’re celebrating it. I understand celebrating a live birth and all the possibilities of a new baby in a family; but having worldwide blowouts about an upcoming New Year just strikes me as weird.

For some reason, we don’t celebrate the year we’ve just lived. We “take a look back” at the significant events and happenings. But there’s certainly no party around it. I suppose it’s because a lot of terrible things happen in a year. Yet, a lot of good things happen, too, that we could center some joy around.

What I’m getting at, in a round about way, is that we humans don’t do well with endings. And then we quickly become discouraged with our new beginnings – likely because we put little to no thought and preparation into how important and necessary our endings really are.

This is yet another roundabout way of saying that I (and we together) are experiencing something of an ending. For the past 1,750 days, I have provided a daily reflection upon a text from Holy Scripture. And those reflections haven’t been just a few sentences of devotional drivel, nor a measly daily crumb. I’ve written thousand-word-posts which I believe have been thoughtful and truly reflective on the text and our human condition.

However, all things must end. And this is my last post – at least for a while. I won’t be posting every day, as I’ve done for nearly 5 years! Yet, in order for me to have a proper new beginning of my own (one that I neither wanted nor asked for) I must let go of my daily blog posts.

Although I have been blogging for the past 15 years, I started doing the daily reflections at the beginning of COVID, as a way of remaining connected with my then church congregation, and with others. My thought was to give up doing it every day, once things got back to some sort of normalcy – whatever the heck that is.

Yet, when the masks initially came off and we all began seeing one another again, I found that the daily routine of writing biblical reflections had gotten into my spiritual bones. I was no longer simply writing for others; I was writing for myself. It buoyed my own faith to rise early in the morning and put some intentional focus upon crafting some scriptural thoughts on the Bible.

But that is no longer possible. My life can no longer sustain the practice. I intend to keep up the occasional post of maybe once a week. I might not even be able to do that. It might be once or twice a month. I don’t yet know.

Yet, what I do know is that I want to take the opportunity to celebrate the reality that I spent 1,750 straight days writing and posting impactful blog posts! Many of you were gracious to send me private notes of appreciation and encouragement. I especially treasure the ways some of you explained your story of how your own relationship with God has been helped.

When you boil down life to its essence, all any of us really have is our stories. Behind every event, each encounter, and all of the numbers which get crunched and the stuff that gets done and achieved, there is a story.

Stories bring just as much healing to us as modern medicine and surgeries. And they encourage, inspire, and change us in ways we cannot imagine.

The Bible, at its core, is a collection of stories. It seems God has created us as story-driven people, and so, in order to reveal something of God’s personhood and nature, we were given a grand and unfolding story of redemption.

I love reading and meditating on Holy Scripture, mainly because I love the Holy God of whom I belong and gladly serve.

I’ll continue writing the occasional post, but I will miss the daily meetings I’ve had with the Lord and with you in these past few years. Thank you for your faith, and for listening to God’s Word. What’s more, you can always avail yourselves of the nearly 2,700 blog posts on the website.

I pray that we all may learn to end things well, so that we might begin new things with some needed wisdom, humility, and grace.

May you live this day compassionate of heart, gentle in word, gracious in awareness, courageous in thought, and generous in the love of God through Jesus Christ our Lord and in the strength of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

You Have Inherent Worth (Genesis 2:4b-7)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Elohim Creating Adam, by William Blake, 1795

In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no vegetation of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground, but a stream would rise from the earth and water the whole face of the ground—then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (New Revised Standard Version)

The word “Genesis” comes from the Septuagint, an ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament, and means “origin.” The first book of the Bible does indeed have to do with origins. And in the early chapters, Genesis addresses the origins of the earth and all it’s life and systems, including humans.

Genesis 1 is a poetic account of those origins. Genesis 2-3 provide a complementary narrative account of creation and the beginning of the world. These three chapters together affirm the inherent goodness of all creation, as well as how complex it all truly is.

God is the Creator of the earth and humanity. The original man, Adam, is a name transliterated from the Hebrew adamah, which means ‘ground’ or ‘dirt/dust.’ This relationship between Adam and the literal dirt of the planet is the basis for humanity’s special relationship with the land and taking good care of it as a proper steward of the earth. In the beginning, working the actual ground was set up as a blessing.

We are living creatures, having been given breath (Hebrew nephesh). Along with all the living breathing animals on this earth, we share a basic creaturehood and are thus connected with each other. In addition, only people are formed in God’s likeness and enjoy a special relationship with the Lord in being God’s image-bearers. (Genesis 1:27)

God created you and me as good. The Lord has made provision for us to glorify God, and to be successful in doing the Lord’s will. People who are ineffective in living out their spiritual lives are persons who do not know the truth about themselves. 

Both truth and error are powerful. If people are misguided about who they are, then they become like empty wells with no water to draw from. Many of our problems, failures, and shortcomings are largely due to a misunderstanding of our basic personhood. 

A profound result of this misunderstanding is a lack of self-worth. Whenever we are in error about who we really are, we have automatically limited ourselves to what we can do in our lives. Comparing ourselves to others is not helpful; nor is trying to simply gin-up good feelings about ourselves. 

God Creates Adam and Eve, by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (1794-1872)

Only by accepting who we truly and really are, can we actually be helped, and discover human fulfillment in this life. Let us consider that it is vitally important what the Holy Scriptures say about us; and also equally significant to respond in faith to the recognition of our great worth on this earth.

An important bedrock truth we must understand is that people been created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:16-17). We can only begin to understand ourselves if we begin with creation. Since God is a Person of infinite perfection and goodness, to be created in God’s image means we are persons of great potential and value.

To be a person means that we are self-conscious and can make decisions. We also have inherent rights to know, to be heard, to feel, to have an opinion, to be honored, to develop potential, to assume responsibility, and to enjoy life and all creation. In other words, God treats us as persons; therefore, we may not treat ourselves any less than that.

People were created to know God, to understand spiritual truth, and to perform spiritual functions. 

Because we are created by God, we are sacred individuals. We commit a profound shortcoming when we do not develop our potential and live as though life and fulfillment were graciously given by God for our good. 

Accepting erroneous thoughts about ourselves (and we all have) leads us to misinterpret our circumstances, relationships and opportunities. Without even realizing it, we bring confusion and failure into many, if not all, areas of our life.

One of the clearest evidences that we may not know, accept, and practice the biblical truth of our self-worth, is seen in our response to Holy Scripture. Too often we observe altruistic people and say, “I can’t be like that!” Or we read scriptural promises and commands and say, “I can’t do that!” Living with that kind of unbelief and error in our lives results in discouragement and/or criticism of others who seem to be successful in their spiritual lives.

Here is the truth about you:

You are loved by God (John 15:9; 17:23). This means that God recognizes us as persons, gives us our rightful place in the divine life, and will do right by us. God has our back. Therefore, let us accept this truth.

You are called to live in fellowship with God (1 Corinthians 1:9). No greater honor could be bestowed on us than the invitation to interact with the Living God. As we do, the door is open, so that God can minister to us and lead us into the knowledge and practice of the divine will.

You have been given divine revelation (Hebrews 1:1-3). Having the Bible available to us (in our own language!) is one of the greatest possessions we could ever receive. There is nothing more powerful than the truth about God and divine desires for our daily life. Therefore, let us pay attention to divine revelation and obey it, since God has so graciously given it to us.

You are the object of divine redemption (Romans 5:8-9). The great evidence of our human worth is the reality that Jesus Christ has secured our redemption from guilt, shame to himself. Jesus, the Son of God, loved us and gave himself for us. (Galatians 2:20)

You are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). The actual physical temple of the Old Testament was filled with the glory of God. Today, through Christ’s redeeming love on the cross, every believer in Jesus is God’s temple. Therefore, God wants to work in us and through us for the Lord’s glory and honor.

The conclusion to the matter is that the way to know our true self-worth is to accept what Holy Scripture says about us; and then respond by faith and love to its loving and redeeming message. 

According to the book of Genesis, you are no accident. You are a person of infinite worth to God. So live into this wonderful truth.

Soli Deo Gloria

To Believe, or Not (Mark 16:9-18)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
The risen Jesus appears to his disciples, by Unknown Italian artist, 1476

[Note: The earliest manuscripts and some other ancient witnesses do not have verses 9–20.]

When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.

Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.

Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.

He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” (New International Version)

The Great Commission, by He Qi

So, how do you view the Bible? Some view it as a direct communication from God to human authors, as if the Lord actually wrote it all, akin to how Moses received the Ten Commandments. Others see the Bible as a thoroughly human invention of literature about God. And then there are those who are somewhere in-between the two views.

Textual criticism is a branch of study that examines a literary work, and aims to establish the original text. This is important and needed, especially since we have all sorts of ancient pieces of literature. We rely upon learned scholars who are fluent in the original languages, and in the examination of texts, so that we can have reliable translations of those texts.

Therefore, textual criticism of the Bible means thinking critically about manuscripts and variations in the biblical texts found in those manuscripts, in order to identify the original reading of the Bible. Keep in mind that, prior to the invention of the printing press, copies of everything had to be hand written. Scribes were trained scholars who meticulously copied manuscripts; and human error was always a part of the process.

The New Testament was copied by thousands of people in thousands of places in dozens of languages. Though that reality can make textual criticism rather complicated, this diversity is also a blessing; it speaks to the high probability that we have a very close and reliable authentic original Bible – namely because so many people were involved in copying scriptural texts.

Today’s lectionary reading is an entire chunk at the end of Mark’s Gospel that is very difficult to ascertain whether it was original to his writing, or not. If you are of the ilk that the Bible is a God-authored book, you will likely want to resolve this tension. And if you’re not, you just might be rolling your eyes at this point, as if this is all silly stuff that doesn’t matter.

I’m suggesting it is neither as silly nor as serious as some want to make it. It just is. And sometimes we must accept what is, without always having to explain it in objective Enlightenment terms; or relegate it to the realm of the ethereal and mystical.

Instead, we can deal with the text we have in front of us without any wringing of the hands, or ignoring it altogether. And what we have, it seems to me, is this: a text of Scripture that is consistent with the rest of Mark’s Gospel in showing us the nature of both belief and unbelief.

An ancient papyrus fragment of Mark’s Gospel

To believe, or not to believe? That is the question.

Throughout the Gospel of Mark, we are confronted with the choice of believing or disbelieving the acts of Jesus in his earthly ministry. And that issue of faith comes to a head with Christ’s resurrection.

The women exhibited belief. They made the pilgrimage to Christ’s tomb and discovered it empty. It is upon the testimony of women – even though a woman’s testimony was not considered reliable in that day – that believers know Christ is risen from death.

The men, however, are nowhere to be found. One reason for unbelief by people who ought to know better is that they go looking for all the wrong sort of evidence. While on this earth, Jesus refused to be like any sort of worldly ruler; he sought to use his authority by being a servant; and he tapped into the power of humility and love.

If we go limiting our epistemology (the study of how we receive knowledge) then we will likely not discover the truth about much of anything. The male disciples refused to believe the testimony of the female Mary Magdalene. The risen Christ finally showed himself and rebuked the stubborn men.

To see Jesus will take something else, something more, than our standard use of three dimensions and five senses and critical thinking skills. As important and needed as they are, it isn’t enough to truly see the risen Lord. We need to bring in some other epistemic impulses: the conscience and the gut; the spirit and the heart; intuition and experience; and the testimony of witnesses whom we would rather dismiss, than listen to.

Jesus ascends to heaven, but not everyone sees it – for obvious reasons. There are some who may search for evidence their entire lives, never to find it, because they want confirmation by means of their own mentally contrived and culturally conditioned constructs.

The Gospel is neither ant-intellectual nor only understood by the scholarly and learned; the good news of Jesus Christ is both simple and complex, easy to understand and hard to comprehend, compelling and revolting. And there is one thing for sure: the person and work of Jesus will always challenge us, change us, and move us.

The story is still being written, not just with pens and keyboards, with textual criticism and documentary evidence, but with mercy and love upon the tablet of the heart.

Lord, I want to believe. Help me in my unbelief! May I see and hear the risen Savior, through the enablement of the Spirit. Amen.

Respect Wise Sayings (Proverbs 22:1-9)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

Being respected is more important than having great riches.
    To be well thought of is better than silver or gold.

The rich and the poor are alike
    in that the Lord made them all.

The wise see danger ahead and avoid it,
    but fools keep going and get into trouble.

Respecting the Lord and not being proud
    will bring you wealth, honor, and life.

Evil people’s lives are like paths covered with thorns and traps.
    People who guard themselves don’t have such problems.

Train children to live the right way,
    and when they are old, they will not stray from it.

The rich rule over the poor,
    and borrowers are servants to lenders.

Those who plan evil will receive trouble.
    Their cruel anger will come to an end.

Generous people will be blessed,
    because they share their food with the poor. (New Century Version)

The Bible is a big book. In fact, it is more like a compilation of many books – 66 of them, to be precise, contained in the Old and New Testaments. Although the Bible has the grand theme of presenting a redemptive drama, it is not a flat one-dimensional piece of literature. 

Throughout the Bible’s contents, from Genesis to Revelation, it is chocked full of various literary genres. From poetry and narrative stories to apocalyptic accounts and exhortative epistles, Holy Scripture provides a many-sided look at the unfolding drama of God’s redemption toward humanity. 

Included in this big Bible is the book of Proverbs, a collection of wise sayings to help people navigate God’s big world. The chief reason it’s important to know that the Bible contains different types of literature is so that we can read it and interpret it well. 

A proverb is a short pithy statement of experiential truth. 

It’s not the same as commands or law. The individual Hebrew proverbs are designed to point out that, all things being equal, this is how the world works. For example, let’s consider one of the most misunderstood and misused verses in the Bible: Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. 

Many a parent has been made to feel unrelenting guilt over a wayward son or daughter, believing that somehow they have failed. The reason they have such feelings is that they treat the book of Proverbs as clear promises to claim. But biblical proverbs simply were not meant to be stretched in this manner.

Rather, the proverb is meant to communicate to us that if parents are diligent and faithful in raising kids, that in all likelihood, this training will never leave them; it will always stick with them in some way, shape, or form. 

Furthermore, it’s also true that many a parent has rejoiced over an adult child coming back to their faith after a sojourn in the muck of the world. Important to that return is the foundation laid years ago with faithful parenting that desired to pass on wise and good instruction.

Proverbs, therefore, are meant to encourage us, not with an ironclad promises, but with the hope that all the blood, sweat, and tears that parents, teachers, mentors, and others put into children, and into their diligent work, will someday likely bear much fruit of responsible lives that contribute and benefit the church and the world. 

So, be diligent, patient, and do not give up; keep persevering knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

And also consider the proverb that honoring, respecting, and fearing God will bring a person wealth, riches, and an abundant life. It might. Perhaps likely. But it’s neither a promise nor a command. And it’s definitely not a math equation; you cannot build an algorithm from it to get rich quick. No, the verse is a proverb.

In other words, if we are careful to pay attention to God, and seek to obey and trust the Lord for all things, then, it is quite likely that you will find yourself with plenty, and not be in want. Thus, we ought never to look at the world with black-and-white glasses that unthinkingly believes that all rich people are hard workers and godly, whereas all poor folk are lazy good-for-nothing’s.

What’s more, many a poor person is rich in faith and good works, whereas many of the rich, care little for God and spend their wealth on self-centered concerns. Understanding a proverb as a proverb helps us to avoid stereotyping people and giving them labels they don’t deserve.

Let’s keep going. I do believe, as the proverb says, that generous people will be blessed. But know this: genuine generosity always costs us something. It will take money, time, energy, and/or resources which become depleted when we give liberally. Some folk never acquire wealth because they are committed to sharing what they have with others. And, in my opinion, these are the persons who are truly blessed.

If we keep an eye toward acquiring wisdom, pursuing experiential knowledge, and trusting God, then we look to places in the Bible like the Proverbs, and seek to live life as it was intended to be lived.

Internalize the biblical proverbs and, all things being equal, you are quite likely to have a good and blessed life.

Blessed and almighty God, the Giver of life, it is from your hand that we have received all we have, and are, and will be. We understand that your divine call upon us is to be the stewards of your abundance, the caretakers of all you have entrusted to us. Help us always to use your gifts wisely; and teach us to share them generously. May our faithful stewardship bear witness to the love of Christ in our lives; we pray with grateful hearts, in the gracious name of Jesus. Amen.