So it has been a couple days since I have had time to return to my study. The last reflection was a bit of a daunting process, and perhaps I haven't sat down to write another because I didn't have a few hours to write. I think that perhaps I need to allow myself to spend varying amounts of time on these. When I have enough time I will write a lot, and when I don't, I will write what I have time for. We shall see; this is all a new and growing experience for me.
ROMANS 3:9-20
9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
10 As it is written:
“ There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”[a]
13 “ Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;[b]
“ The poison of asps is under their lips”;[c]
14 “ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”[d]
15 “ Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”[e]
18 “ There is no fear of God before their eyes.”[f]
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
REFLECTION:
What are my initial thoughts about the reading?
My initial reaction to this reading is a two sided emotion. Initially I am in agreement with the idea that we are all in the same boat, that we are all sinners. I don't like the idea that the Jews have a privilege over the Gentiles except in being the first the Gospel was revealed to. I don't like to think of God as picking favourites. However, on the other hand, I feel I have to exchange the word Christian for the word jew in this text, and then the reading is quite confronting. Although I do openly acknowledge that I am a sinner, I am struggling with the idea that my faith, my knowledge of the laws and nature of God does me no benefit. Its something I haven't struggled with before, but I find myself struggling with now. I've said it before, but Ill say it again: I LOVE it that God is the God of ALL, but I am feeling the strength of my selfish, childish nature in wanting to be set apart, different, and special.
I also both accept and reject the idea that all the quotes that make up the majority of this reading imply. I realize/know that there is no one righteous, but I want to believe there are people that are searching and longing for God; people that fear God and want to do His will. I fully know what saying"People aren't really that bad" sounds like, and I fully "understand" that to God our righteousness is pitiful, but I don't experience that. I see the beauty in the people around me trying to be all they can be.
...and in the same breathe, I can say in all honesty, that I see so clearly how broken we are. I get it. Everything I am capable of isn't enough.
What sentence or phrase popped out at me?
Two verses popped out at me for different reasons -verses 13-14 and verse 19-20.
13 “ Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;[b]
“ The poison of asps is under their lips”;[c]
14 “ Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
I love the imagery and poetry of this verse...and I also feel like it speaks to me and my bitter tongue. I feel love of the sound and taste of these words, and yet I am confronted by what it says. It leaves a difficult residue to swallow.
All of these verses are quotes from the book of Psalms; they are the complaints of David about the evil men around him. I always find it interesting to think about David. He is said to be the beloved of God, but he is such a bitter hypocrite. I think about his deceit around the whole Bathsheba incident and then listen to his complaining about the liars around him. I have no doubt that as the King and a man in a position of power, he was indeed surrounded by people that were deceitful and bitter, but it does give me pause. And then I think of myself. I consider the people I complain about: dishonest people and people unfaithful to their promises. I complain about complainers, and people who don't understand or take time to understand the plight of others.
But I am a complainer and a person with a hard and often compassionless heart. I feel like my lips are like poison sometime. I treasure my words and take pride in trying to honestly communicate what I feel, but I fall short. And sometimes I take perverse joy in saying bitingly honest and painful things to people.
AND, Second verse that popped out at me:
19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
I knew getting into Romans that it was about our justification by grace and not works, but I long to confront these words in an honest unbiased manner; without preconceptions. I cannot come to this chapter however, without thinking of Bonhoeffer and all Rob has been teaching over the past year. I am confronted by the needs for faithful works but also longing to meet and interact with God's grace in a true and organic way. I am aware that in order to do this I have to come to a place of honest repentance. This, I have realized, I am bad at. Pride is one of my biggest challenges. I am challenged by this verse to acknowledge my sin. Perhaps I need to remind myself what the law is...or read Bohoeffer again to be reminded how short I fall.
I love the line -that every mouth may be stopped. It speaks to one of my great pet peeves -people that feel like they have everything right and criticize everything anyone else does. Do I do this? Probably.
Are there any sentences or phrases that don't sit easy with me? If so, why?
I think I have mentioned it above, but the line, "There is none who seeks after God", bothers the crap out of me. I see so many people seeking God. Yes, I see people giving up on God and living for themselves, but I also see so many hurting people who so desperately want to find God. This line reminds me so very much of people (guys in particular) who say that the good guy never wins, because they feel hard done by that they are alone. This verse makes me just think David is whining about how he is the only one trying to be a good guy...and yes I understand, and sometime I feel the same way.....but I don't think it's true.
What does this reading tell me about the person/people who wrote it?
Again, I find all the metaBible stuff very interesting; All the quotes from the old testament are so interesting. They are all so mixed and intertwined. Because so much of this reading are quotes from Psalms, I feel like I am getting to know David as well as Paul. It is very interesting. It is obvious that Paul has a great knowledge of the Tanakh, and it makes so much sense that in a letter to predominantly converted Jews he is drawing wisdom from their books of wisdom. He lists example after example of texts which emphasis his point so that it isn't weird at all that they are not direct quotes or that they are quoted out of context.
What does this reading tell me about who God is?Do I agree with it?
As I have discussed above, these verses speak to me about a God who is righteous beyond my imagination. What I consider goodness and righteousness is nothing to him. I have a hard time imagining that(duh). Sometimes it is hard to see the goodness of God in this world.
Does this reading urge me to do things differently? To think of things differently?
These verses urge me to be less judgemental. It is my least favourite fault in others, and I shouldn't tolerate it within myself. I need to seek it out in myself and destroy it.
**********
Okay, so that post took days to complete. Not a bad way to go about it though. I am rather enjoying this :)
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Day Two: Away We Go! (Romans 3:1-8)
It may seem a funny place to begin, in the middle of Romans. However, as I am presently doing a study on Romans with my Bible study group, I felt it would make sense to focus on a few verses every day from our assigned reading. Ill start with eight or so verses a day and see how that works.
Romans 3:1-8
1 What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? 2 Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God. 3 For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? 4 Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written:
“ That You may be justified in Your words,
And may overcome when You are judged.”[a]
5 But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.) 6 Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world?
7 For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.
**What are my initial thoughts about the reading? AND ALSO -What does this reading tell me about the person/people who wrote it?
For me these eight verse have required some deeper contemplation. I have had to do a little digging and read them in several different versions, including: The NKJV, The NIV, and The Message. To me this brief section seems to be Paul focusing/trying to communicate with people who are doing religious/theological study and arguing over the judgement and justice of God. Also, It seems to me to be a section addressing the Jews who are having a hard time adjusting to the truth of Jesus and his new covenant- one that seems to abandon so much of the law. Paul spends a lot of time in this letter addressing the fact that Jesus is the fulfilment of the law ( Matt 5: 17 -“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.") but that the law was never understood until Jesus came
**What sentence or phrase popped out at me?
These few sentences popped out at me with power and strength:
"For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar." Specifically "Let God be true but every man a liar."
This verse is interesting to me as it falls in this section regarding God's promise to the Jews. In my understanding of this verse Paul is saying that God is faithful to his promises, and those following the laws laid out for them in the old testament, like circumcision, are justified by the faithful nature of God. These verses come directly after a section in chapter two which has stated that a true Jew is one who is circumcised in the spirit. In the NIV this verse translates:"What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness?" It is comforting to me, a unfaithful doubter, that I am trusting in the nature of God. I may not understand God as the Jews do and did. In fact some of these verses are harder to understand as I am prone to skip over them as not relating to me. Im sure Paul had no idea that someone like me would be reading them thousands of years later trying to grapple with their meaning. However, I do take a lot of meaning from them, they just take a little more focus
**Are there any sentences or phrases that don't sit easy with me? If so, why?
"That You may be justified in Your words,
And may overcome when You are judged.”
For whatever reason, I have had a difficult time understanding this phrase. It is a quote from a psalm of David
Psalms 51:4 4 Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight—
That You may be found just when You speak,
And blameless when You judge.
David is addressing God after the whole Bathsheba incident. Its a beautiful psalm of sorrow, repentance; a cry for mercy and renewal. David admits that he knows God desires truth in his inward parts not just his outward parts and he( sort of insolently) tells God that only He can judge him, because David has sinned only against God (which I would disagree with. HE KILLED A MAN TO STEAL HIS WIFE!)
Interestingly, Jesus sort of quotes this verse in Matthew, but here he is addressing people and telling them that the things they say are important. It comes in the section of Matthew where Jesus is talking about a tree being known by its fruits.
Matthew12:37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
I find this MetaBible stuff very interesting. The initial meaning of things, though not entirely changed, are given new/deeper meaning. It relates to what I was learning about in Karen Armstrong's book, 'The Bible'. I have a lot to learn about the flexibility of God's wisdom.
**What does this reading tell me about who God is?
I would say that these verses have spoken to me very deeply about who God is. These verses tell me God cares about who I am in the inside not who I am on the outside. These verses also tell me God is faithful when I am not faithful, that he will be faithful when I am my usual doubting self. These verses have reminded me of David and how he came before God with his sin stained soul and begged for forgiveness and renewal. I have been reminded by these verses, that God's righteousness cannot be diminished by my actions, (“A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain) but that that does not mean I will not be judged by God for my actions.
**Does this reading urge me to do things differently? To think of things differently?
I feel the urge to trust in the grace and faithfulness of God, but not lose sight of the kind of fruit I am producing.
**********
So that was my first attempt. A rough and scattered grouping of thoughts and revelations. I feel like I will probably get better at this over time.
**********
I pray God will guide me til tomorrow. I pray he will be with me as I try to follow; as I struggle against my own weakness, bitterness and anger.
Romans 3:1-8
1 What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision? 2 Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God. 3 For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? 4 Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written:
“ That You may be justified in Your words,
And may overcome when You are judged.”[a]
5 But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.) 6 Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world?
7 For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner? 8 And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.
**What are my initial thoughts about the reading? AND ALSO -What does this reading tell me about the person/people who wrote it?
For me these eight verse have required some deeper contemplation. I have had to do a little digging and read them in several different versions, including: The NKJV, The NIV, and The Message. To me this brief section seems to be Paul focusing/trying to communicate with people who are doing religious/theological study and arguing over the judgement and justice of God. Also, It seems to me to be a section addressing the Jews who are having a hard time adjusting to the truth of Jesus and his new covenant- one that seems to abandon so much of the law. Paul spends a lot of time in this letter addressing the fact that Jesus is the fulfilment of the law ( Matt 5: 17 -“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.") but that the law was never understood until Jesus came
**What sentence or phrase popped out at me?
These few sentences popped out at me with power and strength:
"For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar." Specifically "Let God be true but every man a liar."
This verse is interesting to me as it falls in this section regarding God's promise to the Jews. In my understanding of this verse Paul is saying that God is faithful to his promises, and those following the laws laid out for them in the old testament, like circumcision, are justified by the faithful nature of God. These verses come directly after a section in chapter two which has stated that a true Jew is one who is circumcised in the spirit. In the NIV this verse translates:"What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness?" It is comforting to me, a unfaithful doubter, that I am trusting in the nature of God. I may not understand God as the Jews do and did. In fact some of these verses are harder to understand as I am prone to skip over them as not relating to me. Im sure Paul had no idea that someone like me would be reading them thousands of years later trying to grapple with their meaning. However, I do take a lot of meaning from them, they just take a little more focus
**Are there any sentences or phrases that don't sit easy with me? If so, why?
"That You may be justified in Your words,
And may overcome when You are judged.”
For whatever reason, I have had a difficult time understanding this phrase. It is a quote from a psalm of David
Psalms 51:4 4 Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight—
That You may be found just when You speak,
And blameless when You judge.
David is addressing God after the whole Bathsheba incident. Its a beautiful psalm of sorrow, repentance; a cry for mercy and renewal. David admits that he knows God desires truth in his inward parts not just his outward parts and he( sort of insolently) tells God that only He can judge him, because David has sinned only against God (which I would disagree with. HE KILLED A MAN TO STEAL HIS WIFE!)
Interestingly, Jesus sort of quotes this verse in Matthew, but here he is addressing people and telling them that the things they say are important. It comes in the section of Matthew where Jesus is talking about a tree being known by its fruits.
Matthew12:37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
I find this MetaBible stuff very interesting. The initial meaning of things, though not entirely changed, are given new/deeper meaning. It relates to what I was learning about in Karen Armstrong's book, 'The Bible'. I have a lot to learn about the flexibility of God's wisdom.
**What does this reading tell me about who God is?
I would say that these verses have spoken to me very deeply about who God is. These verses tell me God cares about who I am in the inside not who I am on the outside. These verses also tell me God is faithful when I am not faithful, that he will be faithful when I am my usual doubting self. These verses have reminded me of David and how he came before God with his sin stained soul and begged for forgiveness and renewal. I have been reminded by these verses, that God's righteousness cannot be diminished by my actions, (“A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word 'darkness' on the walls of his cell.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain) but that that does not mean I will not be judged by God for my actions.
**Does this reading urge me to do things differently? To think of things differently?
I feel the urge to trust in the grace and faithfulness of God, but not lose sight of the kind of fruit I am producing.
**********
So that was my first attempt. A rough and scattered grouping of thoughts and revelations. I feel like I will probably get better at this over time.
**********
I pray God will guide me til tomorrow. I pray he will be with me as I try to follow; as I struggle against my own weakness, bitterness and anger.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Day One: How to begin
It is my intention to spend more time with God -more time in prayer, and more time reading and reflecting. I love words, and somehow I feel writing it all down will help. I hope so anyway. Ideally having a blog will keep me on track.
But where to start? How to proceed? What questions to set for myself each day in study?
Some questions to start with:
What are my initial thoughts about the reading?
What sentence or phrase popped out at me?
Are there any sentences or phrases that don't sit easy with me? If so, why?
What does this reading tell me about the person/people who wrote it?
What does this reading tell me about who God is?
Do I agree with it?
Does this reading urge me to do things differently? To think of things differently?
Hopefully those will help me.........
Here goes!
But where to start? How to proceed? What questions to set for myself each day in study?
Some questions to start with:
What are my initial thoughts about the reading?
What sentence or phrase popped out at me?
Are there any sentences or phrases that don't sit easy with me? If so, why?
What does this reading tell me about the person/people who wrote it?
What does this reading tell me about who God is?
Do I agree with it?
Does this reading urge me to do things differently? To think of things differently?
Hopefully those will help me.........
Here goes!
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