Category: Bible (Page 374 of 425)

The author agonizes in Psalm 120, Save me, Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. Today’s Bible readings sandwich this prayer with brazen examples of lies and deceit.

Hophni and Phinehas served as priests to the Lord. Scoundrels, they stole sacrificial meat for themselves, and slept with women serving in the temple. God condemned their actions and brought them to an early demise. Their violations weave through I Samuel 1-4.

A breathtaking example of the Lord’s response to lying occurs in Acts 5. Ananias and Sapphira chose to lie about proceeds from property they sold and presented to the burgeoning Jesus movement.

They chose poorly.

Caught in the lie, one after the other collapsed and died at the feet of Peter, having not lied just to human beings but to God.

Does God take lying seriously? Apparently. Or to use a crude, more expressive phrase, No sh*t, Sherlock.

The sons of Eli used their priestly roles to abuse people seeking to worship the Lord. Ananias and Sapphira used their money to exalt themselves in front of people seeking to follow the Lord. Like a mother bear with her cubs, menace exists for those who get between sincere people and the Lord they seek.

Rather than put obstacles in the way, my role is to help those seeking the Lord move closer and deeper.

No lie.

Week sixteen of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Toa Heftiba

One aspect of newly discovered faith that bubbles up in people is generosity. The believers in the early church immediately started giving to others. Spontaneous and natural, as God influenced their lives, they began to notice and respond to the needs of others. No one told them to do so.

I know several generous givers. These folks give expansively of their finances, but I also notice they give generously of their time, their influence and their expertise. Generosity seems to flow from their lives, like water from a spring.

Generous people attract friends. Some might take advantage of their generosity, but many more enjoy the good nature and freedom from scarcity generous people bring to those around them.

Personally, generosity doesn’t come natural. I need the prodding of the Holy Spirit, and I need this example from the believers in Acts. I pray for a generous spirit, and I’m ever grateful for the many, many generous people in my life.

Acts 4 in week sixteen of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Elaine Casap

At the hour of prayer, Peter and John happened upon a crippled beggar. The man asked for money, but Peter helped the beggar to his feet, healing him in the name of Jesus.

The lame beggar’s response? After steadying himself against Peter, and feeling strength infuse his feet and ankles, he took a few tentative steps. Next, a careful bounce on his toes. Then – a leap!

What an extravagant pleasure! This man never walked in his life. Born unable to stand, he watched other kids run and play. As a grown man, he begged for his bread, carried to his station by others. This man leaped only in his dreams, then woke to his cruel reality in the morning.

Now walking. Now literally jumping for joy! Now proclaiming the power of Jesus.

This lame beggar’s life reflects our own. Born unable to solve our deepest problem, we wait for healing. When it comes, we join our fellow beggars in walking alongside Jesus.

Someday, thanks again to Jesus, I hope to move from this life to the next. There, alongside that no longer lame beggar, I will experience inexpressible joy.

I plan to look him up in that great city, and join him in leaping down some streets of gold.

Acts 3 in week sixteen of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by Etienne Boulanger

A bizarre story closes Judges, perfectly illustrating the book’s theme of everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

After wiping out most of the tribe of Benjamin in civil war, then swearing to never give the surviving men their own daughters for wives, the leaders of Israel paused. None wanted to see the tribe of Benjamin fade away, and so they hatched a plan to provide the 600 survivors with wives.

First, they murdered everyone in a small town that failed to send anyone to fight with them against Benjamin, keeping only the young virgins. This provided 400 traumatized young women. Still short, the leaders encouraged the remaining bachelors to raid a festival and carry off whatever girl they could catch.

While the innocent women danced, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife.

I am not making this up.

I wonder what these marriages were like? How did their kids turn out? What a great research study – how does a community, where every marriage was founded on murder and kidnapping, develop and grow?

One thing is clear. The philosophy of everyone does what is right in their own eyes, leads to chaos. The powerful, the aggressive, the hateful flourish, while innocent people bear the brunt.

Unfortunately, a similar view of hyper-individualism, personal autonomy, and living my truth abounds in our society. It’s trumpeted in advertising and blooms across social media. The fruit produced feels like the stories in Judges – broken, hurting people looking for the next fix to make us happy.

On the flip side, the Lord heard and responded to the cries of his people in Judges. Our cries reach the same Lord, and our hope rests in his hearing and response.

Judges 21 in week fifteen of reading the Bible cover to cover

Benjaminites seize wives from Shiloh – 1860 woodcut by Julius Schnorr von Karolsfeld