Category Archives: Bible Study

SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS…BELONGING – 2

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Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name. “On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him. And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

‭‭Malachi‬ ‭3‬:‭16‬-‭18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

God created humans with the deep need to belong. By instituting the sacred bond of marriage, safeguarding it in a legally-binding covenant for life, He created families to satisfy and nurture that need to belong. 

One of the cruellest tricks the devil has played on the human race has been to destroy belongingness in the family. He has cheapened both the sacred estate and the exclusive sexual union of marriage to the extent that marriage is scorned and casual sexual intercourse has become a form of recreation and entertainment in society all over the world. The outcome is many generations of orphans who belong to no one. 

Then, despite the network of family ties God intended, Satan’s next step was to ruin those ties through selfishness, conflict, and even permanent “cancellation” within the family. The first two siblings, Cain and Abel, were separated forever by Cain’s murderous act against His brother. 

God’s purposes were put on hold but never obliterated by human wickedness. His plan to reconcile His people, alienated from Himself  and from one another by their sin, was perfectly fulfilled when humans “cancelled” His own Son by crucifixion in the belief that they had finally got rid of Him. 

Despite the belongingness of the ties God wants us to have within the human context, there can be no greater belongingness than to the God who created us to belong to Him and to one another in His divine and forever family. 

A while ago, I was reading the following verses in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians and puzzling over its meaning. 

“No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him— these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.”

‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬-‭10‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In these words of Paul, “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived — the things God has prepared for those who love him—“, I recognised that I had read words like this somewhere before…

Aha! I remembered!

“Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭64‬:‭4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

…similar words but not exactly the same. Like a miner digging for treasure, I began to dig into the meaning of “wait” in Isaiah’s version, “love” in Paul’s quote…Where was the link?

The meaning of the Hebrew word “wait”, “chakah”, has in it the idea of something being carved into or pierced. Pierced? What does that have to do with love?

There was an Old Testament practice that illustrates this process of belongingness through love and piercing. Let me explain how I came on this idea. 

“If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free, without paying anything.”…

“But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭21‬:‭2, 5‬-‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Wow! Look at that! A perfect match!

If he loved his master and his family who remained slaves in the master’s household, a slave could forgo his freedom by his having his ear pierced by an awl driven through his earlobe, which would become his mark of belonging. 

What is the connection between this practice of piercing and our belongingness to God? My mind went, immediately, to Jesus on the cross…

“The soldiers therefore came and broke their legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.”

‭‭John‬ ‭19‬:‭32‬-‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Isn’t God’s Word amazing!

Jesus was pierced in our place for our sin, so that, because we are “in Him” through faith in Him, we can now belong to God forever, His love slaves…

Now, let’s look at Paul’s words again. 

“What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—“

Why did Paul write, “those who love Him” and not “those whom He loves”? The two Scriptures must be a perfect match. The slave’s love for his master and to be pierced was his choice. Our love for Jesus and our identification with the one who was pierced for us is our choice.

 For us, then, our belongingness to God through Jesus was forever sealed by His being pierced for us.  No matter what separation, rejection, cancellation, alienation, happens to us on earth, we are God’s own treasured possession, chosen and bound to Him by the blood of His Son. 

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession.”

SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS…ISRAEL, GOD’S TREASURE – 1

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The Bible is full of treasures, both God’s treasures and ours. If we mine for these treasures, we will surely find them. 

Israel was God’s treasure. 

“Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine,”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭19‬:‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Before time began, God chose one nation out of all the nations on earth to be His own possession.  

“For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession”, that is, His “segulah”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭7‬:‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

After He had created the nations, He assigned to each nation a governor, a member of His “divine counsel”,  

“When the Most High assigned lands to the nations, when he divided up the human race, he established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number in his heavenly court.”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭32‬:‭8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

…but He chose Israel to be His personal responsibility. 

So close and intimate would this relationship be that God entered into a marriage covenant with Israel. In the language and cultural protocol of the children of Israel, He betrothed them to Himself to live within the boundaries of His covenant relationship. 

In Hebrew culture, when a young man sought a bride, he would choose a young woman out of all the maidens in Israel, get to know her, and then make his intentions known to her. 

Using the first appropriate word in this process of courtship, “lachah”, which can mean “I want to take you,” she would know that he intended to marry her. After a period of time, when he was sure of his choice, he would seal his intention with the next accepted word, “segulah”. 

“The Hebrew word “segulah”means a “treasured possession” or “special, peculiar treasure”. It refers to something of great value, a beloved and carefully guarded possession, such as a king’s prized trophies or the nation of Israel as God’s special people. The term can also refer to segulot (plural), which are small items or practices intended to bring good fortune or a blessing, like a bride’s jewelry used by a single woman to attract a spouse.” (Sourced from Google) 

At Sinai, God entered into a betrothal pact with His people. It was in this covenant commitment, embodied in the word, “chesed”, the strongest Hebrew word used to express God’s love and loyalty to His people, that God remained  faithful to Israel regardless of their unfaithfulness to Him. This love kept Him from utterly destroying them for their rebellious defiance of His covenant. 

In the worst moments of their disobedience, exemplified in their persistent disregard for His first requirement…

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me.”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭20‬:‭2‬-‭3‬ ‭NIV‬‬

…He resolved not to destroy the completely. His indictment and judgment against them was heartbreaking. 

“Will they not return to Egypt and will not Assyria rule over them because they refuse to repent? A sword will flash in their cities; it will devour their false prophets and put an end to their plans. My people are determined to turn from me. Even though they call me God Most High, I will by no means exalt them.”

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭11‬:‭5‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

However, God’s covenant love for Israel prevented Him for turning them into another Sodom and Gomorrah. As He agonised over His decision to destroy them, He cried out…

““How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboyim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused. I will not carry out my fierce anger, nor will I devastate Ephraim again. For I am God, and not a man— the Holy One among you. I will not come against their cities.”

‭‭Hosea‬ ‭11‬:‭8‬-‭9‬ ‭NIV

Israel has always been and always will be God’s treasured possession. He has never abandoned them and He never will. He has promised that, in His predetermined purpose for all people, He will fulfil His will for His “treasured possession. “

This is the conclusion of the matter…

“I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin….Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious….If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches.

I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins.” As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now receive mercy as a result of God’s mercy to you. For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭11‬:‭1‬, ‭11‬, ‭16‬, ‭25‬-‭29‬, ‭31‬-‭32‬ ‭NIV‬‬

So, God’s faithful love for Israel and His covenant commitment always to do good to them will culminate in and combine His purpose for them with His purpose for the whole human race…in one united family through Jesus.

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility….Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household,”

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2‬:‭13‬-‭16‬, ‭19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

MARK’S GOSPEL…NOT HETE! – 43

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Mark‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭NIV‬

“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.”

‭

What a starling announcement! Not here! “But He is supposed to be here! We saw His body being carried here. Why is He not here? Who carried Him away? Where is He?”

A thousand questions flooded the confused thoughts of these two women. Who is this young man? What is he saying? The last thing on their minds was…Jesus is alive! That was an impossibility beyond common sense. 

The stone slab on which Jesus body lay was bare…empty…the body gone! A faint bloodstain was  the only evidence that a broken body had indeed been on that piece of rock, but where was He?

They hardly heard the young man’s explanation. Risen! That was not possible. Nobody can simply rise and walk away from his own burial place, especially since the entrances was blocked by a massive, immovable stone!

They could not deny the fact that the tomb was empty… so, where next? 

“Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid…

‭‭Mark‬ ‭16‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Terrified out of their wits, the women fled the scene, ignored the angel’s instruction, and went to ground, hiding their secret from even their closest associates…and here Mark’s story abruptly ends. What happened to the end of the manuscript?

There is no explanation for this inconclusive conclusion except that the final triumphant declaration of the resurrection might have somehow got lost or deliberately been removed. Who knows? 

However, this magnificent story  could not have been left incomplete. The message must be told. “He has risen. He is not here. See the place where they laid him.”

Some unknown writer closed the gap. In a brilliant summary, taking into account all the events after the resurrection of Jesus, including the disciples’ stubborn unbelief until they themselves saw Him, and the unseen world of Jesus’ exaltation, we are assured of the truth, “He is risen indeed!”

“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.” 

After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭16‬:‭9‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

MARK’S GOSPEL…A LOUD VOICE – 42

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Mark‬ ‭15‬:‭33‬-‭34‬, ‭37‬-‭39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”)….With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!””

There is something unusual about the behaviour of Jesus…a dying man, suspended between heaven and earth by nails in His hands and feet, His lungs constricted by the weight of His body. 

Every breath was agony as He pushed against the nails to take a shallow breath. He would eventually suffocate when His body grew too weak to relieve the pressure on His lungs…an agonising death, like the slow leak of a punctured tyre. 

Yet, twice in Marks record, Jesus cried out with a loud voice…how was this possible? 

First, He called to the Father in the prophetic words of David, 

…“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭15‬:‭34‬ NIV

What was He saying? 

Was this the human Jesus, feeling the terrible isolation from the Father that the sin of the world was inflicting on Him? Had the Father, in that moment, literally forsaken His Son, left Him to suffer alone, with no comfort or assurance of His presence?

Was Jesus, as He had done so many times before, in the agony of that moment fitting perfectly into the picture of prophecy? 

What do we make of Paul’s statement, as he outlined the broader context of Jesus’ death…?

“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.”

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭18‬-‭19‬ ‭NIV‬

“God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ…”

It seems that the Father was there, perhaps hidden from His Son’s conscious awareness, but nevertheless present to supervise this crucial moment when the universe itself held its breath for the outcome! 

It is impossible for God to absent Himself from any spot on earth since the Scripture itself assures us that He fills heaven and earth with His presence.  

“Am I only a God nearby,” declares the Lord, “and not a God far away? Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.”

‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭23‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

David himself cried out…

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139‬:‭7‬ ‭NIV

“He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him— the dark rain clouds of the sky.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭18‬:‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Although it is impossible for God to absent Himself from any geographical location on earth, in the darkness of human experience He can be as absent as it seems.   

Second, Jesus cried out in a loud voice at the moment of His death! Dying people don’t cry out…they whisper or are silent. 

In His many debates with His enemies, He stated categorically that He was in charge of His own death. 

 “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.””

‭‭John‬ ‭10‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Again, this very statement is a declaration that He was giving Himself voluntarily as an atoning sacrifice for the sin of the world. No other human has ever died in this way, controlling his death to his last breath. 

Is it any wonder that a seasoned centurion, who had witnessed the deaths of many criminals executed by crucifixion, should make this his conclusion…

“And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!””

‭‭Mark‬ ‭15‬:‭39‬ ‭NIV‬‬

MARK’S GOSPEL…CRUCIFIED – 41

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A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭15‬:‭21‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Mark’s carefully crafted report has many details. However, unlike Isaiah’s prophecy, he offers no interpretation except a reference, here and there, to prophecy fulfilled. After all, he was telling the story of a servant! The Servant’s feelings, emotions, suffering, are not the issue. What matters is how He took His punishment…rebelling or submitting? For our salvation, this was the crux. 

In His extreme weakness after taking a beating to within an inch of His life, Jesus had a moment of reprieve. The soldiers had pity on Him, or did they? Was it compassion that made them force Simon of Cyrene to carry His cross, or was it impatience?

The crucifixion was carried out with military precision. The soldiers had done it before…many times. They were merely carrying out the instructions of their commanding officer. They were hardened to the screams, the cries for mercy, the writhing in pain, even the swearing and cursing from the lips of the condemned…but this man?  

“Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. Roaring lions that tear their prey open their mouths wide against me…Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet. All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭12‬-‭13‬, ‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Not only was He condemned but also treated in the cruellest way possible, with the jeers, taunts, and insults that could have crushed His soul.  

“I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted within me. My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The Son of God, this Servant of Yahweh, felt it all in the most intense of suffering!

Body battered and beaten, flesh flayed to the bone, hands and feet pierced with huge iron nails, naked and exposed, taunted, mocked, and insulted, He was eerily quiet. No sound came from Him, not a word of abuse, not a threat or protest of innocence, not a cry for mercy…only a flicker of pain across His face that spoke more loudly than the agonising cries of the guilty. And one soldier took note!

“He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53‬:‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Did they drop the upright into the hole with a little more care than they did for the other two criminals? Did they treat Jesus a little more gently, kindly than normal? I think not! They were possibly even rougher, even more cruel, to force a sound from this unusual man… and at least one of the co-crucified took note!

With practised indifference, the soldiers did what they always did. They crouched on the ground at the feet of the condemned and gambled for the discarded clothing. Some garments were in tatters, hardly worth a second glance but….

Jesus’ garments were unusual,  His outer garment, a seamless robe, as Mark took pains to mention, the evidence of His office as High Priest…was highly symbolic and significant…

Google explains…

“In Jesus’s day, the most prominent figure, who wore a seamless robe, was the Jewish High Priest. This sacred, one-piece garment was part of the high priest’s priestly vestments, symbolizing unity and holiness, and was an integral part of his ministry when performing rituals in the Temple.”

“Jesus’ seamless robe holds significance as a symbol of divine unity, Jesus’ unified and perfect character, and the unity of the Church, representing the indivisible body of Christ. Its un-torn nature symbolized the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, highlighting Jesus’ role as a perfect high priest whose divine mission could not be fractured.”

And so, the soldiers, callous and unaware, unwittingly fulfilled yet another prophecy,

“They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭22‬:‭18‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As the spectacle of this crucifixion unfolds, darkness and light clashed, with darkness the seemingly undisputed winner except for one thing…

Peter, the traditionally recognised source of Mark’s gospel, put this pinnacle moment in history, and its eternal outcome, into its divine perspective…

“When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭23‬-‭25‬ ‭NIV‬‬

God’s story was conceived in eternity, written in prophecy, and fulfilled in time. It reached its climax at 3pm on that Passover day when Jesus and the Passover lamb took their last breath together, sealing forever the fate of darkness and releasing on mankind the era of grace!