OT and the Trinity

Some comments about last Sunday's lesson...

First, thanks for bearing with me in trying to cover some deeper issues fairly quickly. I wasn't really fair to the texts in the OT we were looking at to make the kinds of points I was trying to make in the short amount ot time we had. Maybe we'll take it slower this week. But hopefully it was a helpful exercise for you guys to look at the OT and discuss how it applies to the Triune (three-in-one) God revealed in the NT.

A couple of issues were brought up that I wanted to address. Thanks to Roy for bringing them up and keeping me on my toes as a teacher. I wasn't really prepared to discuss their implications given preparation time (or lack of it) and actual time in class. But I don't want to leave things hanging either so I've had a chance to think and read some about them.

1 - Does Isaiah 48 really talk about Cyrus, the Persian emperor who took over the Babylonian empire? I was not aware of this context Sunday morning but chapter 48 does refer to Cyrus, as God's agent to punish Babylon and let the Jews return to Judah and Jerusalem. Cyrus is actually mentioned by name earlier in Isaiah (chapter 44 and/or 46 I think). In chapter 48 God is encouraging the Jews through the prophet that he will use Cyrus to free them out of exile. However, for verse 16, which we focused on for our Trinitarian discussion, it is not clear who is speaking...and this is the significant issue here. Who says, "The LORD God has sent me and His Spirit"? There are three main opnions: 1) Cyrus (minority opnion), 2) the prophet Isaiah himself, or 3) the Suffering Servant which is the subject of chapter 49. The grammar and syntax is somewhat ambiguous, but most choose option 2 or 3. The Suffering Servant is a recurring figure in Isaiah and some chapters on Him are explicitly linked to Christ in the NT. This is the interpretation I was assuming (based on Wayne Grudem). You can see how significant this verse is for the Trinity if Christ the Suffering Servant is claiming to be sent by God along with the Holy Spirit. But we must stop short of being dogmatic on this point given the ambiguity in the text.

2 - Were the Hebrews of Moses' day true monotheists or polytheists? As for the Hebrews themselves, we have Biblical evidence that they believed in and worshipped other gods besides Yawheh, so I think this is a given many were polytheistic. The real question is, was the author(s) of the Pentateuch a true monotheist or a henotheist (one who believes in multiple Gods but only worships one). I think you can make the case for either. On the one hand, there are passages that seem to assume the existence of other gods who are not to be worshipped. However, there are other passages that talk about the other gods as if they were just dumb and powerless pieces of wood, stone or metal. This seems to undermine the idea that the author in any sense considered them 'real'. Additionally, the creation story seems to point back to a single Creator that would necessarily be a supreme God. I lean to the author of the Pentateuch being monotheistic for the following reasons, but again I'm not dogmatic:

1. I believe what he wrote was inspired by God, and so he had God's perspective on the truths of the existence of other gods.

2. Even though there are passages which seem to assume the existence of other gods, I don't think this means he believes they are indeed real. Today we also talk about other gods such as Allah, Molech, or even objects such as money and fame without actually believing they are actual gods. I might say, "don't make money a god" to someone but I don't actually believe in a transcendent being that is personified by money.

Anyway, I look forward to this Sunday discussing the Trinity in the NT.

-casey

The Prodigal God, Week 1

Hey, Ladies and Gents!

This week we started our first week in the six week study of Luke 15 and the parable of the prodigal son based on Tim Keller's book and study. I encourage you to check out the book and read it as were going through it.

You can also check out the web site with a preview video and links to Keller's sermons, etc at: http://www.theprodigalgod.com/

Please join us for Wednesday night discussion down in the Homebuilders Sunday School room from 6:00 - 7:30 PM...child care is provided. We will meet to discuss personally and in more depth what the lessons cover on Sunday mornings. Here are some questions we'll probably ask this week that you can ponder in the mean time:

1. Was there anything from the DVD that was new to you or had an effect on you? Did you hear naything that raised questions in your mind?

2. Who do you indentify wih more, the younger brother or the older brother? Why?

3. How close is a great feast to your idea of heaven?

4. Is there anything you would like the group to pray for you personally or as a result of what you saw on the DVD?

See you Wednesday!

casey

The Book of Job and the Problem of Evil

This last Sunday we turned our focus on the first two chapters of Job and discussed what God had to say about evil and suffering through this story. If you missed Sunday and haven't read in Job for some time, I encourage you to sit down, crack open the book and at least read the first two chapters. Most of the rest of the book is more difficult to read (but still rewarding), but the first two chapters are easy and shouldn't take more than 5 or 10 minutes.

OK, done? :)

I asked the class to discuss six questions I felt there might have been answers to in the text. I'll list the questions, references, and summarize the discussion below:

1. Why did God single out Job to Satan? (1:8, 2:3)

This is a difficult question to answer, and we should always tread lightly when guessing God's motive without it being explicitly revealed. Some answers were, "to teach Job a lesson" and "to teach Satan a lesson". I like these. I also put forth "to bring attention to His glory". God is glorified in the faith and worship of His creatures. Pointing out Job's righteousness is a way to bring glory to Himself. Consider how this might motivate God in what He does in this story and your story.

2. What is Satan's motivation in this story? (1:9-11, 2:4-5)

I believe that it is ultimately to defame God...detract from His glory. Satan wants to show God that He shouldn't receive glory from Job because Job is only faithful for what God gives him, not because of who God is. Consider this when thinking about how and why the enemy might attack you.

3. Is Satan free to do whatever he wants to? (1:11-12, 2:5-6)

Obviously not. He appears free to think, desire and plan, but ultimately God is sovereign and Satan can do nothing apart from God's permission or restraint. How does lead you think about the bad things that happen in your life? As we discussed before, evil can be explained in part by God allowing his creatures the freedom to choose against Him...but there is apparently a limit to the evil that God will allow. Cross reference these verses with 2 Thessalonians 2:3-7 in regards to God restraining evil, and with Luke 22:31-32.

4. By what methods does Satan attack Job? (1:15-19, 2:7)

Satan apparently had/has the ability to provoke men to evil and violence (the Sabeans), cause natural disasters, and infect with disease. Obviously not every evil act of man, natural disaster or sickness has Satan behind it. But how does this open your eyes to what happens around you?

5. Characterize Job's response to His suffering. (1:20-22, 2:10)

Its important to study Job's reaction to his pain because the Bible says that in it he did not sin.

Job grieved. The tearing of the robe, shaving the head and mourning were typical cultural expressions of grief. Its OK to be sad when life is painful.

Job worhipped. Our pain and suffering does not change who God is. He is still holy and requires our worship.

Job self medicated. I think. The bit in 2:10 about scraping himself with potsherds seems to me some way to deal with the pain or discomfort of his boils. If you're sick, go to the doctor. If you are deeply wounded, seek Godly counsel. If you you are exhausted, take some time to rest.

Job acknowledged God's sovereignty. This goes hand in hand with worship. Job knows God is sovereign and just, even if he does not understand it. Without all of his questions being answered, at least for now he is content to receive from God whatever God plans.

6. Who does Job blame for his problems? (2:10)

Could Job have raged against the Sabeans for stealing his livestock and demanded justice? Could he have cursed nature for killing his children? Could he have blamed the devil (though he didn't know about the conversation between God and Satan)? Since he believes God is sovereign, why is he not angry with God?

Job believes God is ultimately responsible...He could stop it if He wanted to. But he does not assign blame to anyone. Can we understand responsibility without blame?

And this tension is what makes the rest of Job, I think. Job sees the apparent injustice of what has happened to him. He is horrified and tortured about it, because he knows His God could have stopped it, but didn't. He can't blame God, but he knows He is responsible.

If that is bothering you, I reocmmend you read the rest of the book, or at least the last four or five chapters when God breaks the silence to answer Job.

One more point that is embedded in some of the questions above is that the evil done to Job was planned, desired and perpetrated by Satan. Yet God explicitly allowed it to happen for His purpose. We don't always know why things happen. Take comfort that God is in control and working all things to the good of those who love Him, but don't accuse God of evil. Evil come from His creatures, not from God.

Problem of Evil and Suffering Pt. 2

This Sunday we continued our discussion on the problem of evil and suffering. For part one see the previous blog post below. This week we started out continuing our discussion on evil which can be summarized as thus:

- Can God be really good and all powerful and never end or finally do away with evil? Last week we discussed why a good and all powerful God allowed evil to happen in the first place (see the previous post). But can this God allow evil to exist forever? I say, "no". God would not be just if evil is never judged. In Revelation 20:10 - 21:4 tells us that one day God will judge and banish all evil and suffering...and that He will make His dwelling with man forever. So we know that God is just and will one day set everything right...Praise God!

- Why is God waiting to end evil...why doesn't He end it right now or why didn't He end it as soon as Adam sinned? God could have ended evil right after Adam sinned, but the result would have been in Adam's eternal condemnation and a people less heaven. God loved Adam (and his descendants) too much to let things end that way. Without Christ's sacrifice no one can survive the coming judgment. Why didn't God end the world after Christ's sacrifice? All I can say is that He is patient and long suffering...God will end things on his own time, but until then perhaps He wants as many people with him eternally as possible.

- Are evil and suffering the same thing? What is suffering if not? Suffering and evil are tightly related but different things. Suffering can be seen as a consequence of evil. If we look in Genesis 3 we see the first suffering enter the world because of Adam's sin. It was a direct consequence, seemingly brought on by God's curse, but why?

- What is the purpose of suffering? God uses the consequence of evil, suffering, to redeem us. Imagine if life on this earth was easy and pain free...would we even know that we were desperately in need of God and His forgiveness? Our pain and suffering lets us know something is wrong, that we are missing God, and it drives us to him. This is why Paul can say they we should consider it joy when we suffer. But suffering can have other purposes to, I think. Sometimes suffering can be punishment or discipline. But the Christian should primarily view it as discipline to train us to depend only on God.

But God is not distant in our suffering. God was not content to let evil steal his creatures and His creation or to lose them forever to evil. God the Son became a man so that He could bear our suffering with us and for us. Ultimately he suffered on the cross and the agony of being separated from His Father.

This enabled God to end evil without ending us. His suffering produced our salvation.

This Sunday we will look into the book of Job to see what insights it gives us on human suffering. Please prayerfully read at least chapters 1 and 2 in preparation and also 38 through 42.

Thanks...

casey

How Can A Good and All Powerful God Allow Evil and Suffering?

Hello, family!

Today we kicked off a topic we will be discussing the next few weeks in class regarding understanding how and why God allows evil and suffering in our world. Its an objection that many skeptics and atheists bring up as reasons to doubt the Christian message. I also think the issue ruminates in the heads of many Christians from time to time, even if its not spoken.

Here is a recap of the discussion this morning:

- The question (if there is a God, how can he allow evil) itself presupposes true evil and good, or injustice and justice. The argument for an objective and universal good or morality really requires a God in the first place.

- Examples of evil and suffering include: human genocide, natural disasters, suffering of innocents, God's apparent injustice in the OT.

- Where does evil come from? Our free will to reject God and His will.

- Why does God allow evil to exist? Because he desires a true loving relationship with people, so they must have the option to not choose God. If there is no other choice but God, the "relationship" is contrived and forced.

- What is evil? Evil is the rejection of God, disobedience to his command, or deviation from His will and character. Evil cannot exist without goodness...it is defined in the negative as a lack of goodness. Evil can be defined as being "not good". Whatever is not good, is evil. It is much like light and darkness, in that darkness is not a hting in and of itself, but merely a lack of light.

- Is God at fault for creating evil since he gave humans free will and knew they would choose it? No. First, evil is not a created thing since it is just a rejection by free agents of God. Secondly, even though God knew man would sin, man bears the full responsibility of choosing evil instead of God (and Satan too).

There is a lot more to discuss and say about this subject (we only made through about 25% of my notes). I would love to have everyone come contribute the next couple of Sundays. If the tming works out, I also plan to open up the book of Job to see what insights it offers.

Until next Sunday, I leave you guys with this 18 minute video from Christian apologist Paul Coban on the same subject:

Good God & Evil World (in 18 Minutes) from Paul Copan on Vimeo.

Worshipping with Our Minds

Hey folks...long time no post, I know. I think we will try to be better about that starting this summer. yes, I've probably said that before.

Anyway, here is a link promoting John Piper's Desiring God conference this year. The emphasis is on how right thinking is very important to the Christian life. I agree with one point in the video, that American evangelicalism in the 20th century was sometimes characterized by anti-intellectualism. Its understandable in some ways because the intellectual community by and large have attacked Chrsitiantiy in the last couple of centuries. However, we cannot cede the fruits of disciplined thought and study over to the skeptics and atheists...and we as individuals cannot neglect to feed out intellects as well as our souls.

So this is a challenge...LET'S NOT BE LAZY INTELLECTUALLY! Let us worship God with our minds as well. It's much easier just to react to events and ideas with pre-supposed opnions on everything. Its much more difficult to challenge our own thinking, and to let revelation (the scriptures) challenge how we think. But we don't do this detached from faithful prayer and devotion. Thinking should be an act of worship...not something exercised apart from faith.

Dug Down Deep

Check out this promotional video for the book I referred to in our February talks on theology. It is Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris. You might recognize some of the quotes in the video.

DugDownDeep_Carnahan.mov from Covenant Life Church on Vimeo.

WOW...PASTELS!

Pre Easter Activities for Kids

From Elizabeth:
As a Baptist, we don't celebrate a church calendar and often we hit Easter with a quick-Jesus died and rose again, okay now bunnies, eggs, flowers! While Christmas has a big lead in (we can't escape it) Easter doesn't. In college I had an Episcopal roommate (and friend) so I began celebrating Lent and I LOVE it-how it prepares us for Easter. Here are some Lent activities for children I found on the web, we are going to try the Pot one and save the jelly beans for next year (I kinda edited the meanings of the pot one but might work on the jelly bean's wording).
Let me know if you do anything special (and you don't have to call it Lent).

Prayer Pot Instructions
On Ash Wednesday: Place the prayer pot (little clay pot-can be made or bought) in a special place where it can't be missed, perhaps the center of the family table. It reminds everyone that Lent is here, but remains empty for the next few days.
On the First Sunday of Lent: A small heart cut from construction paper is placed in the pot during the main meal, to remind everyone of God's love and that they should show their love for, and be kind to, others.
On the Second Sunday of Lent: A small seed is placed in the pot to remind everyone that God's love for them constantly grows and that they should show love and compassion for other people.
On the Third Sunday of Lent: Place a rubber band in the pot as a reminder that God always stretches His patience and everyone should do the same for others, even when it isn't easy.
On the Fourth Sunday of Lent: A marble is placed in the pot to remind everyone of all that God has given to us and the importance of taking turns and sharing with others in all that they do.
On the Fifth Sunday of Lent: Add a Band-Aid to the pot to remind everyone that God ‘binds up the broken-hearted’ and we should help other people when they are sad or hurt.
On Palm Sunday: Place a tiny piece of a palm, to remind everyone that Jesus is their King and they should remember to say their prayers to Him.
On Easter Sunday: The last item is a tiny piece of eggshell to remind everyone that Jesus rose from the grave and will always be with them and is always ready to hear their prayers.

Last year our kids were 3,4 and 6 and we felt 40 days to give up one thing was a bit long for them. We came up with this idea instead to go along with the jellybean prayer and it was a hit at our house. The kids are excited to do it again this year.

On Ash Wednesday we set out a glass jar for each child with a small copy of the jellybean prayer taped to it. We determined a behavior to go with each jellybean color (corresponding with the prayer). Each day the kids could earn a jellybean of any color they followed through on. They could not eat the jellybeans until Easter. The kids could not earn white jellybeans, these represented the Grace of Christ, which is a gift not earned ourselves. On Easter morning, the kids woke to find their jars filled up where they were still empty (lacking) with white jellybeans (Christ's grace)

This is how we interpreted each color. You can make your own ideas based on ages and needs of your children.

• Red is for the blood Christ gave (each morning we chose something to sacrifice that day to earn the red jellybean. It had to be something they would have had the opportunity to have or do on that day)

• Green is for the palm's cool shade (green jellybeans were earned for good deeds. It was a good dead to provide shade for Jesus with the palm)

• Yellow is for God's light so bright (yellow jellybeans were earned for sharing God's light through kindness to others)

• Orange is for prayers at twilight (orange jellybeans were earned for attentive behavior during bedtime prayer time and night time bible story)

• Black is for sweet rest at night (these were earned for going to bed good. we used blue though, as our kids are not fans of black jellybeans)

• White is for the Grace of Christ (these we could not earn as mentioned above)

• Purple is for His days of sorrow (we earned these through apologizing to anyone we hurt with our words or deeds that day)

• Pink is for each new tomorrow (pink jellybeans were earned when we forgave those who apologized to us for hurtful behavior)

During the course of 40 days the kids did not tire of this activity and have talked about how fun it was throughout the year.
Of course, the Easter bunny might not want to bring any more jellybeans for the baskets!!

More on Movies and Theology

I found a really cool video today of some "captial T" theologians from Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, KY, including seminary president Albert Moehler, discussing theology and the movie Avatar...and using it to discuss how Christians should engage movies generally and the culture at large. Some really interesting stuff is said that parallels some of our recent discussions in class.

Enjoy.

How to Watch Movies

The last couple of weeks we've been challenged to know what we believe and why...and to be aware of outside influences on us through entertainment and media that could challenge and undermine the truth. Though we Americans are probably over saturated with entertainment and could stand to dial it down, we are still going to view a LOT over the next few years. So instead of being passive receptors of whatever values and worldview (what I call little 't' theology) those storytellers have, we as Christians should consciously interact with it to 1) strengthen and fill out our own beliefs, 2) resist untruthful messages and influences, and 3) be discerning about what we subject ourselves and our family to.

I've compiled a list of suggestions and questions to ask below to help us in this endeavor. your homework is to run a movie/book/TV show through these things this week to try to flesh out the theology of a given story. I've suggested we could all do it with Star Wars (any of the episodes, but especially 4, 5 and 6 since I'm a geezer) and discuss in class this Sunday. I have since thought of a better idea...The Matrix! Either way, the goal is just to interact with the story and have some good discussion about either set of movies (or anything you want to apply it to).

‘Theology’, in the context of a story (movies, books, TV, etc.), is best understood in a more general sense as a philosophy, set of values, or particular perspective on reality rather than a proper Christian belief system. But we want to compare the theology in these stories with our (hopefully) orthodox Christian theology.

Look for explicit as well as implicit theology in a story. This will be necessarily subjective to some degree (different people might see different things, and we are many times guessing the author’s intention).

Look for intentional and unintentional parallels with orthodox Christian theology, in addition to contrasts and contradictions. Unintentional parallels are a result of the fact that the Christian view is the one based in reality, and since it is a reality and common to everyone including unbelievers, parts of it will show up in competing theologies sometimes unintentionally.

Here are the questions I suggest asking as a starter to try to figure out what the theology of a particular story might be. Of course there can be many more based on the individual story you are interacting with. Additionally, some of these questions might not make much sense in one story, but give you a lot to think about in another story.

· How does the story portray God (or its version of God)? If the story does not portray God at all that is still very significant. Does it assume God does not exist, or if He does that He is just not important or relevant? How does that impact the story?
· What is the significance or meaning of any supernatural events in the story…or lack of them?
· How does the story portray human nature, purpose and destiny?
· Compare and contrast the hero/heroine with Christ…stories love messiahs. Values, actions, words, etc. If there is not a clear hero, are there implications of that?
· Analyze the values and characteristics of the ‘bad guy(s)’. What makes them ‘bad’ from the viewpoint of the story teller?
· What in or about the story are you supposed to find funny (if anything)?
· What is it that you are supposed to really like about the story overall? (Some common things in movies are good looking people, cool/hip style, violence, etc.) What is the Christian view of those things?
· How does the story address the following themes: sin, forgiveness, evil, death and afterlife, religion, suffering, rebirth, etc?
· Overall, what characteristics or concepts does the story celebrate versus condemn? (Perhaps none are being either celebrated or condemned…what does this say? A very commonly celebrated concept is ‘romantic love’, for example. Though not necessarily bad and even good in some contexts, our culture tends to idolize it and props it up as the ideal or source of happiness...a position that only God should have.)

Often times, many of the celebrated and condemned values will line up in accordance with Christian belief due to a common understanding of morality (love is good, greed is bad, etc.).
However a very subtle, yet crucial, departure from Christian belief will be present in how the story portrays human nature, potential, and morality.

Train yourself to see life (and stories) through the glasses of the gospel…the understanding of which is based in theology!!!

Easter!!

The Easter Season is soon upon us!
We will be having our second annual Easter Egg hunt at the UT graduate student housing Breckenridge. This will be an awesome social event, as well as an outreach.
Please mark your calendars for Saturday, March 27 10:30-1 (the hunt will be at noon, we will hand out fliers, set up and have lunch before).
Also please start buying eggs and candy which we will be collecting in Sunday school and stuffing at an upcoming playgroup.
Great crowd from last year!

January-February 2010 Calendar

Christmas Party

Well this is as good as we got with our Christmas babies (sorry to Luke who just left and Noah & Judah who are covered). They are in it, but not a single smile!!! But we did have a great time.

Christmas Giving

Merry Christmas to all!
We hope you are having a wonderful Christmas season and wanted to share a few ways that you can give back to that baby who gave us so much!
1. Its the season for the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions. This supports Southern baptist missionaries around the world. Please pray about how your family can give generously and sacrificially this year and be creative-match your Dec tithe, give as much as you spend on gifts for family, give your unexpected bonus or if God isn't pressing on your heart to give really big, please give something. We are highly encouraging everyone in our church to give to this (for more details read below).
2. The Homebuilders Sunday school class is collecting money for Norman Elementary family Christmas food boxes ($35) and sleeping bags for homeless who attend Church Under the Bridge ($10). We will be accepting cash or checks (made out to HPBC) Sundays Dec 5 & 13 and a big in gathering at our Christmas party on Dec. 12. Let's see how many our class can do.
Thanks for your generous spirit this Christmas season!

Lottie Moon served as a missionary to China for almost 40 years during the end of the 1800s. She tirelessly wrote letters home to urge Southern Baptists to give so more missionaries could join her sharing the good news. A lot of changed since that time and the IMB now has around 5000 missionaries serving overseas. They are supported by Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and the Cooperative Program. Last year the LMCO fell $30 million short, so the number of missionaries being able to go in 2010 is extremely limited. Caleb and I went with a two year program in 2002 that is now on hold in 2010 so if we wanted to go this year the IMB would have to tell us sorry but there isn't enough money! Yes the economy is bad but we are very very blessed and all of us have money that we can give so others can go and share the gospel. Many other missionaries with other agencies spend years raising support to go but Southern Baptists have always supported missionaries so the didn't spend the time and have the financial worries; an independent missionaries normally raises $60-80,000 per year to live while the IMB only uses around $41,000 per missionary per year so the money is well spent. Let's not be the generation that stops supporting our missionaries. Let's let God soften our hearts and give so the $100,000 HPBC goal is blown out of the water!

Save the Date! Christmas Party...

We'll be celebrating Christmas with a traditional family dinner on Saturday, December 12th at 5 PM. There will be an ornament exchange for the children, so please keep that in mind as you do your Christmas shopping. Please save the date early so we can enjoy the beautiful season as a church family! An E-vite will follow in a few weeks.

Abraham Pt. 6 -- The Climax

This week we will study the climax of Abraham's story in Genesis 22. I anticipate only covering one chapter this time because of the richness and depth of the story as how it relates to our story in Christ.

Please take the time to read this chapter and meditate on how it relates to us. you should see some obvious parallels between this story and the gospel, as undoubtedly many have heard them before.

Often in OT study these parallels are called "types". Types are people, events or even themes in the OT that occur repeatedly. Often we see these types as foreshadowing events and people in the NT. Chatper 22 is rich in these types, so see what comes to mind when readng it.

Also, here are a couple of questions to consider:

1. How could a good and loving God really ask Abraham to sacrifice his own son? Doesn't that seem barbaric?

2. The Bible says God was testing Abraham...what exactly was he testing Abraham for? Abraham had already left his home and family and circumcised himself in trust and obedience to God...what more did God want?

3. If God knows everything, including Abraham's heart and thoughts, why does He need to test Abraham at all?



-casey

Pumpkin Fun

We had a great time at the Pumpkin patch and Phil's tonight. We missed everyone who wasn't able to attend.

October Shopping Time

It's time to go shopping for good causes!
Shopping List- Candy, children's underwear, canned foods and toys!
HPBC is doing a lot in October and here is how you can be a part:
Bring a bag of candy for Fest 31 the Oct 31 Festival at the Quarries, then bring your family and invite your friends and neighbors.
All children's Sunday schools are collecting children's underwear (Undies Sundays in Oct) for an orphanage in Juarez, Mexico.
Its Fall food drive and boxes are by all the doors of the church. With the recession many are in need right here in Austin.
Coming up is Operation Christmas Child, where we will pack boxes for children all around the world (be looking more details on this one).
If you have any questions let me know:
elizabethharris01@yahoo.com
And remember it is more blessed to give than to receive!

Abraham Pt. 2 and 3

Just wanted to type a few notes about what we covered last Sunday and give a heads up on what we will be covering next Sunday.

First...last Sunday.

I want to correct a mistake I made in class...I said that, within the context of Chapter 16 that Sarai (Abram's wife) was already at menopause. I was wrong...that isn't explicitly stated until chapter 18.

Going back to chapter 15, we see that God makes a covenant with Abram regarding the promised land and Abram's descendants. Abram seems to doubt God's promises of offspring and land by asking God for some tangible evidence of their fulfillments. We might be temtped to think Abram shows a lack of faith, but the story doesn't seem to implicate Abram in the least and he is even commended for his belief and faith within the story.

How should we look at it, then? I think it actually paints a positive picture of Abram in that he aggressively asks God to fulfill his promises. God has already promised to Abram the things he asks for...so I don't think that Abram is so much doubting God as he is seeking the fulfillment of his promises...the blessings from God. It reminds me of Jesus' following teachings:

1. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled"
2. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all of these things will be added unto you"
3. The parable of the man who knocks on his neighbor's door in the middle of the night to borrow something. Jesus says that he who knocks repeatedly is who will be answered, versus the guy who knocks once and gives up when his neighbor doesn't wake up.

The lesson is that vibrant faith does not simply wait idly for God's blessing, but persistently seeks it from God. Here Abram is the father of faith and his reward is the covenant which acts as an unbreakable contract with God over the promised land.


For next week we will cover chatpers 17, 18 and 19 which deal with circumcision, Isaac, and Sodom and Gomorrah. Come with comments and questions!

until then...

casey

Reading for Sunday's Lesson

This Sunday we will continue to study the life of Abraham in Genesis. Specifically we plan to cover chatpers 15, 16 and 17. I know this is way short notice but please read ahead tonight or tomorrow morning if you have time. I think you will get more out of class if you take some time to do so...plus we might have more interesting questions and discussion in class.

Going forward we will try to do better as far as letting you guys know ahead of time what to read and maybe getting some points to think about as well.

See you tomorrow!