The Lindbergh Children

AUTHOR’S NOTE: This article is not as long as it looks. Pasted after the article is pertinent scripture.

Three Greek words (to explain the article’s title):

idios = “one’s own” or “his own”

epilusis [noun] = interpretation

epiluo [verb form of epilusis] = “to let loose upon,” as a hunting dog is let loose upon game

The first two of these Greek words play into a key verse of scripture.

2 Peter 1:20 “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private [idios] interpretation [epilusis].”

This verse could read, “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any personal letting loose.”

Yet we do it so easily.

And often.

And, because of the excitement of the hunt, without concern for errors we’ll make.

SO WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?

In this case, moi.

I follow political news to some degree. There’s been recent coverage of how the federal government is altering the economic structure of America, and turning us into a nation of government hand-out addicts.

Two mornings ago, I came across Mark 8:15, where Jesus told his disciples, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of [king] Herod.” (I knew from Matthew 16:12 that ‘leaven’ meant ‘doctrine’.)

When I saw ‘leaven of Herod’, I thought, “AHA! Jesus is making a political statement here. I bet it will have something to do with people who depend on the government, rather than God, to meet their needs.”

That was me, letting the dogs loose.

The hunt was on.

But only for about 30 minutes. Then the dogs got called back in.

What saved my butt from going too far astray was having been taught that the most of Word interprets itself *. With this in mind, the first step in my ‘hunt’ was to look for additional references to Herod.

Two chapters earlier (Mark 6:14-16) was all the further I needed to go.

The doctrine of Herod had nothing to do with government dependency, but regarded who Herod declared Jesus really was. Herod, in something like an official kingly decree, stated that Jesus was actually John the baptist, resurrected.

(Mark mentions a group called ‘the Herodians’ in 3:6 and 12:13. Both times they conspire with the Pharisees against Jesus.)

The damage that Herod’s doctrine did was to remove the importance of Jesus … from being the messiah, to somebody of lesser impact. Not the son of God. Not the savior of mankind (see Matt 16:13-16 below). Herod’s doctrine did not inspire an alliance with Jesus, but rather inspired an alliance with the Pharisees.

Herod’s proclamation misguided many people. That’s why Jesus referred to it as leaven (yeast). It would rise and spread. This is also why he told his disciples to beware of the doctrine of Herod. Even today, we have some religions that concede that Jesus existed, but was little more than a helpful guy that healed some people. Not a person to be thought of as lord and savior.

But … back to my dogs. They quickly were called back in. I had tried to let my mind loose on a verse, but some good biblical research training won the day.

If I had pursued my political angle, I’m sure I could have developed quite an article, because my dogs would have found lots of game to slant the direction I wanted.

Yet, there would have been great cost.

1- I would have mishandled God’s Word for my own ends.

2- I would have ended up in error, and passed it on to others.

3- I would have accomplished the same result as Herod’s doctrine: lowered the importance of Jesus … in my case, from being the savior to being a political analyst. **

 

——–scripture (all KJ)———————

Mark 8:15  And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Matthew 16:12  Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

* There are some Eastern cultural references in the Bible. When Westerners read them as if they are Western cultural references, error occurs. Example:  Romans 12:20 “Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.”  Westerners often think that heaping ‘coals of fire’ is a way of hurting your enemy, like with future damnation. But it refers to an Eastern practice in their ancient towns. Early in the morning, after everyone’s fireplaces died down during the night, a townsperson would carry around, on his head, a crock of hot coals to the neighborhood. Anyone needing a coal to get their home fire going again could have one. The Romans verse refers to the warming affect the crock would have on the person dispensing the coals, and teaches us a way to warm the heart of our enemy.

Mark 6:14-16

14And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do show forth themselves in him. 15Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets. 16But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead.

Mark 3:6  And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

Mark 12:13  And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.

Matt 16:13-16

13When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. 15He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

** In my research of this topic, I did run across an interesting statement by Jesus that, to some degree, relates to private possessions and government dependency. Here it is, from Luke 12.

Luke 12:13-14

13And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. 14And he [Jesus] said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?

Below are some bullet points drawn from three different healings performed by Jesus. (Scriptures are further down.)

It does not matter if …

1. …THE ILLNESS IS WINNING

The woman with the issue of blood “was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse.” (Mark 5:26)

2. …MODERN MEDICINE HAS FAILED YOU

The woman with the issue of blood… (Mark 5:26). There’s a tendency to dismiss these gospel-era physicians as quacks. That seems hasty. Knowledge of natural remedies was available, both from scripture and experience. Even modern medicine loses its share of patients.

3. …THE ILLNESS IS LONG TERM

A. The woman with the issue of blood had suffered for twelve years. (Mark 5:25)

B. The man at the Bethesda pool “had an infirmity thirty and eight years.” (John 5:5)

4. …YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR ILLNESS

A. The possessed man from the Gadarene tombs. After Jesus healed him, the man was “in his right mind”. (Mark 5:15)

B. The man born blind. The disciples asked Jesus, “Who sinned here?” The blind man likely carried the same question in his heart for years. Jesus answered, “That’s not the issue. The issue is that the works of God are displayed.” (John 9:1-3)

God is able to heal anyone, of anything, at anytime. Be strong.

—————-scripture passages cited——————–

Mark 5:25-26

“25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,

26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,”

John 5:5

“And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.”

Mark 5:15

“And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind…”

John 9:1-3

“1 And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

3 Jesus answered,

Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.“

 

AUTHOR’S NOTE: As often happens with my articles, this is not as long as it looks. Pasted after the actual end of the article are all the scriptures I’ve referenced. )

The ‘parable of the unjust judge’ (Luke 18:1-8) should really be called ‘the parable of persistent prayer’. Verse one makes this plain.

 

Granted. The judge receives the most character build-up, but only to reveal flaws pertinent to the story. The judge finally did the right action, but for the wrong reason. To focus on him for the title weakens the intention of the parable … which is to strengthen our prayer life to a strong God.

 

ASSUMPTIONS AND POSTULATIONS (things I have not confirmed but believe are true):

 

1- Jesus’ chose the character of a widow for a reason. Widows were fairly helpless and defenseless in that culture. Much of the welfare of a woman (or a family) was dependent upon a husband/father being alive. Widows and orphans, unable to fight their own battles, pretty much slipped into that culture’s version of welfare. Hence the widow’s need for the judge.

 

2- The widow’s request was valid. Her adversary was being unjust. If I’m wrong, this is not a ‘deal-breaker’. The lesson on persistency is still intact.

 

But the widow was not asking merely for a ruling. She was asking for a favorable ruling, I believe Jesus had her asking for something righteous. Otherwise, the parable gives the impression that, with enough persistence, God will answer even unrighteous prayers.

 

3- In v.2 and v.4 we are told this judge does not fear God, nor regard man. Since Jesus injected these two traits into the parable, it means that the absence of either trait could have been a reason for the judge to hear the widow’s case immediately, rather than trying to avoid her.

 

4- The phrase “neither regarded man” (v.2) needs consideration. It sounds like a good thing … like the judge will make rulings on law, not influenced by wealth, popularity, power, etc. But the widow would have none of theses things. Otherwise, she would have handled her adversary a different way. So why did Jesus add this characteristic to the story?

 

Other translations (examples: NRSV and NIV) have a different wording. If they are more accurate than KJ, then what Jesus was saying was that the judge had no compassion for people. This fits the judge’s character, and the story line better.

 

5- In v.6, when Jesus instructed the audience to hear what the unjust judge “saith,” he was not merely referring to the words of the judge, but his logic, and the decision resulting from that logic (vs.4c-5).

JESUS AND HUMAN NATURE

 

Jesus knew human nature was stoutly opposite to God’s nature in two critical ways. Humans want fast results. Humans give up quickly. Hence his question in v.8, ”

Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?“

This question from Jesus should ring loudly. As you read the gospels, you get the impression that Jesus did not have to wait for results. But this is because we are usually reading about his numerous on-the-spot signs/miracles/wonders.

 

The gospels are not as packed with info about his personal prayer life. This parable is one of the few references.

 

Two points to take from this parable are:

 

1- Jesus accepted the normalcy of a time span, sometimes lengthy, between a prayer and an answer.

 

2- Jesus knew the thing to do during the time span was to continue repeating the prayer.

 

He had learned these points through his own experiences.

 

　

 

TWO WAYS TO INTERFERE WITH YOUR OWN PRAYERS

 

1. A sure way to be persistent in a specific prayer, yet never get a result, is to carry the nagging question in the back of your mind, “Is the delay God’s way of saying I should not have this prayer answered?”

 

There are a few things to know about that nagging question:

 

A- Though it sounds like a legitimate question, it is too often a faith-killing doubt.

 

B- If it crops up frequently, that means it is dwelling in your heart.

 

C- If it is in your heart, then it is what you believe, regardless of your prayer.

 

D- If A, B and C are true, then it is the enemy Jesus described in Mark 11:23-24.

 

When your mind works at cross purposes with your heart, your heart supercedes. Your prayer is reduced to an unproductive religious action.

 

2. Another way to interfere with a prayer is to be desperate for the result.

 

A desperate prayer does not contain much faith or trust. You can read in several psalms and find what sounds like desperation, frustration, impatience, etc.* But usually, after voicing concern, the psalmist will make a positive statement about the Lord being the source of the answer. The psalmist performs an attitude adjustment on himself.

 

As Jesus read the psalms, he would have seen the repetition of ‘how long, Lord?”, and seen the attitude adjustments that were afterward made. It would have spoken to him, bringing him to understand the need for persistent prayer, and inspiring him with a parable about it.

 

THE DELAY IS NOT A NEGATIVE THING

 

If you firmly grasp the advantage of persistent prayer, then the delay will be a positive, faith-building event for you. Romans 5:3-4 describes it.

 

And, once the delay is over, and the prayer is answered, there will be a double benefit: 1- the answer to the prayer; 2- your personal grasp and growth of how the process works.

 

Your confidence in God’s willingness, and in your own love for patience, will get a gigantic boost.

 

Being determined is perhaps the unwritten message in this parable. Too many prayers are offered on a whim. Then we expect God to act on the fleeting thought we had. But the best things in life, AND the greatest deliverances in life, arrive through harder work than whims and fleeting thoughts. There has to be some determination on our end to arrive where we are wishing to be.

 

Praying persistently for something is too often required. Stay positive on that requirement.

———scripture references (all KJV unless noted otherwise)—————-

Luke 18:1-8

18:1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:

3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.

4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;

5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.

6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.

7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.

Mark 11:23-24

23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.

. Romans 5:3-4

3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations [in this context, think 'delays'] also: knowing that tribulation [delays] worketh patience;

4 And patience, experience [something Jesus went through, too]; and experience, hope:

* Here are all the times the phrase “how long” appears in Psalms (15 times in 19 verses). It usually comes from man, posing a question to the Lord.

Psa 4:2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.

Psa 6:3 My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long?

Psa 13:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

Psa 13:2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

Psa 35:17 Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.

Psa 62:3 How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.

Psa 74:9 We see not our signs: there is no more any prophet: neither is there among us any that knoweth how long.

Psa 74:10 O God, how long shall the adversary reproach? shall the enemy blaspheme thy name for ever?

Psa 79:5 How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire?

Psa 80:4 O LORD God of hosts, how long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people?

Psa 82:2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.

Psa 89:46 How long, LORD? wilt thou hide thyself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire?

Psa 90:13 Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.

Psa 94:3 LORD, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?

Psa 94:4 How long shall they utter and speak hard things? and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?

————————————————————————–

There are times when your frustration is not going to get resolved. Annoyingly, yet also thankfully, life goes on.

Dwelling on a frustration keeps you stuck in one place. You’ll have to set it aside, even in the unsatisfying state it is in, and start moving again.

BACKGROUND:

After Moses was in the mountain 40 days and 40 nights, the people below got restless and ordered Aaron to make them a god to worship. Aaron collected gold from them, melted it, and made the golden calf. Then Aaron said, “Here is the god that brought you out of the slavery of Egypt.”

The people loved it and partied hard around it.

When Moses came down from the mountain, he destroyed the calf, as well as those heartily dedicated to such idolatry.

But there were more repercussions to come…

MOSES’ FRUSTRATION:

Exodus 32:30-35 (NIV)

“30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.”

31 So Moses went back to the LORD and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold. 32 But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written.

33 The LORD replied to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me I will blot out of my book. 34 Now go, lead the people to the place I spoke of, and my angel will go before you. However, when the time comes for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.”

35 And the LORD struck the people with a plague because of what they did with the calf Aaron had made.”

Moses gave the LORD an ultimatum (32b). At the time, Moses thought he was serious about it. He thought he could leverage forgiveness out of the LORD by pushing this ‘hot button’. But the LORD knew Moses had a hot button himself … the mission of reaching the promised land. This is the button the LORD pushed in return (34a).

Moses was not going to get his demand of the LORD. So he changed his mind and heart. It was a change that illustrates Ecclesiastes 12:13 (KJ) “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear [reverence] God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”

　

“You can’t always get what you want … but … you’ll get what you need.” (specifically edited lyrics from an old Rolling Stones song)

Gideon’s first encounter with God was not with God Himself, but with an angel of the LORD, appearing as a man.

Gideon and the angel have an honest and inspiring conversation.

In Judges 6:21-22, the encounter with the angel ends in a way that alarms Gideon, so much that he cries out to the LORD God.

Judges 6:21-22

“21 Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.

22 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face.”

Gideon thought he was going to die. Not a good frame of mind to fulfill God’s purpose in your life.

It is here that we find Gideon’s learning curve on recognizing God’s voice.

This time, no angel of the LORD is sent. This time, the LORD speaks to Gideon Himself.

23 And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.”

This was the necessary next step in Gideon’s growth: recognizing the LORD’s invisible voice.

During the rest of the account of Gideon’s life (Judges 6-8), there are no more angels involved*. Gideon has learned what God’s voice sounds like.

This is God’s preferred means of communication. Direct. Not through channels or relays.

It’s the way of a father with a child. God wants each of us to learn to recognize His voice. How you first learn it will be between you and God.

My first experience with God’s voice was standing next to my Dad’s hospital bed, where he was recovering from a cardiac arrest.

I was so unpeaceful. Partly because of my Dad’s scary health condition, but mostly because I was lazy in my mind. My moments of peace were few and far between because any disturbance would distract my attention.

While I was standing next to Dad, God shouted a command to me. He wanted me to perform a simple action.

After a few seconds of “Whoa! Where did that voice come from?”, I obeyed. Once I did, He shouted again, this time telling me the ‘why’ of the action.

I later thought, “Wow. If God talks that loudly, it will be easy to hear Him.”

Trouble is, that was the last time He shouted. Since then, He has spoken in his trademark ’still, small voice’. I’m sure I have missed His guidance several times, due to the aforementioned lack of a disciplined mind.

In my extremely prolonged Christian infancy, I still thought I was going to get some type of preferential treatment via volume. It took many years of the maturing process to realize what happened in the hospital was a one time, personally tailored exposure. To hear more from God, I was going to have to exercise some control over my thoughts, and not let my peace-of-mind get taken so easily.

Gideon got his angel.

I got my shout.

Then, both Gideon and I had to learn to tune into that ‘still, small voice’.

Your first exposure to God’s voice is not guaranteed to be like Gideon’s or mine. But you can count on it being the perfect teaching technic for you.

I hope that after you get your first exposure, you don’t waste years of opportunity because you won’t keep your own mind under control … a requirement to let that ‘still, small voice’ get through.

————————–footnote—————————————–

* All the times Gideon hears from the God:

6:11-22 the angel of the LORD

6:23 the LORD (after an alarmed Gideon cries out to the LORD. It’s the first time Gideon hears the LORD’s voice without a visual in front of him.)

6:25 the LORD (the same night as the encounter with the angel. Gideon gets his first assignment.)

7:2 the LORD (“Your army is too big.”)

7:4 the LORD (“Your army is still too big.”)

7:5 the LORD

7:7 the LORD

7:9 the LORD (the final mention of the LORD speaking directly to Gideon)

VARIATIONS

 

6:14 It says the LORD spoke to Gideon. I think we can assume it means via the angel. That’s the visual Gideon was seeing. He thinks he is talking to a man. Yet during this conversation Gideon was unknowingly learning some things about how the LORD’s voice sounds. Things like direction, volume, effect on the heart … Gideon was picking up on the nature of the LORD’s voice.

6:16 same as 6:14

6:27 “the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon”. Probably not verbal, but rather an inspired idea to act upon.)

6:36 “And Gideon said unto God”. The fleece, stage one. Gideon does not hear back from God verbally, but DOES get a response to his test.

6:39 “And Gideon said unto God”. The fleece, stage two. Same response as 6:36.)

Talk about being “born with a silver spoon in your mouth”.

There are four scriptures pasted after this article that touch on the inheritance that comes with our new birth.

I’m not going to get into the specifics of the inheritance. I just want to make the point that we’ve been given something by God.

Some of that gift is immediately useful to us while here on earth.

I wrote a SongSermon called “Swiss Army Knife”. The message is that God has given us every tool we’ll ever need in this life. A specific secton of lyrics goes,

“God’s Word stands despite the laws of man.

And anyone at all can hire on to God’s plan.

With the job comes a full set of tools.

God doesn’t want them back still wrapped and unused.”

We have inherited something, a spiritual wealth. God wants us to feel free to access this inheritance and make frequent use of it.

I had a home incident that helps me picture this freedom of access.

We like to keep bananas in the house. Years ago, when I used to spend a lot of time in the basement, I also kept bananas down there. One day the upstairs supply was bankrupt. My daughter was packing her lunch for work, and wanted to include a banana. Finding none upstairs, she came downstairs and took one from my bunch.

What excited me about this action was that she didn’t ask permission. She just, without hesitation, took one. She knew that I was always willing to share my supply with her.

That is the unquestioning freedom we should have to go get things out of our inheritance from God.

What God wants from us is not a new request for permission each time a need arises, but thankfulness for an always present permission.

There is nothing … not red tape, not a government panel, not a lawyer, not a minister, and especially not an angel with a sword … standing between us and the bananas.

—————————-scriptures———————————–

1 Corinthians 2:12 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.”

Galatians 3:29 “And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Colossians 1:12 “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:”

1 Peter 1:4 “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

[pertinent cut-pastes are below]

Reading the English translation of Josephus can be a bit laborious. Here’s the nuts and bolts of what he wrote about the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1-9).

1. After the Flood, those who survived with Noah lived up in the mountains, skeptical about living at low altitudes. Noah’s three sons were the first to get the courage to relocate “from the mountains into the plains.” Others followed.

God told the people to colonize … spread out. They did not, one reason being they felt safer staying together.

2. Nimrod (Noah’s grandson) “excited” the people to disobey God, and stay together. “He also gradually [note, 'gradually'] changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning men from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power.”

Nimrod also had a plan to outsmart God if God chose to cause another flood. They would build a waterproof tower, immense at the base and too high for a flood to reach the entrance at the top.

3. Nimrod was a popular figure, so the people were “very ready to follow” him. Nimrod implemented a major change in theology. The new ‘religion’ esteemed “it a piece of cowardice to submit to God.”

 

There is more to the story, as we all know. Language barriers appeared, halting the tower project, and causing the people to disperse, eventually throughout the world.

But my focus is Nimrod. His popularity got him the top position of power. A priority of his was to make his hatred of God become everyone’s hatred of God. One key step was to make the people dependent upon his government.

 

——–cut/pastes start here————————————-

Genesis 11:1-9 (KJ)

1And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.

2And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there.

3And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar.

4And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

5And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.

6And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.

7Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.

8So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.

9Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.

—————————————————————————————–

Genesis 10:8 (NIV)

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth.

[regarding 'mighty warrior':  my Facebook friend Ambient Catalyst resolves a discrepancy.

"Many people have read the Bible without a knowledge of the Hebrew, and read 'mighty warrior' and they think Nimrod was a decent guy ... Nimrod comes from the Hebrew verb marad, meaning 'rebel.' Adding an 'n' before the 'm' it becomes an infinitive construct, 'Nimrod.'

The word 'mighty' from the Hebrew also equivocates to mean 'tyrant'.

So it's a correct position to state that Nimrod, rather than a mighty warrior, was a rebel tyrant."]

[P.S. Visit Ambient's FB page, Community4Christ]

—————————————————————————————–

Title: THE WORKS OF JOSEPHUS (Antiquities, Book 1, Ch. 4, Sect. 1-3)

Author: Flavius Josephus

1. Now the sons of Noah were three-Shem, Japhet, and Ham, born one hundred years before the Deluge. These first of all descended from the mountains into the plains, and fixed their habitation there; and persuaded others who were greatly afraid of the lower grounds on account of the flood, and so were very loath to come down from the higher places, to venture to follow their examples. Now the plain in which they first dwelt was called Shinar. God also commanded them to send colonies abroad, for the thorough peopling of the earth, that they might not raise seditions among themselves, but might cultivate a great part of the earth, and enjoy its fruits after a plentiful manner. But they were so ill instructed that they did not obey God; for which reason they fell into calamities, and were made sensible, by experience, of what sin they had been guilty: for when they flourished with a numerous youth, God admonished them again to send out colonies; but they, imagining the prosperity they enjoyed was not derived from the favor of God, but supposing that their own power was the proper cause of the plentiful condition they were in, did not obey him. Nay, they added to this their disobedience to the Divine will, the suspicion that they were therefore ordered to send out separate colonies, that, being divided asunder, they might the more easily be Oppressed.

2. Now it was Nimrod who excited them to such an affront and contempt of God. He was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah, a bold man, and of great strength of hand. He persuaded them not to ascribe it to God, as if it was through his means they were happy, but to believe that it was their own courage which procured that happiness. He also gradually changed the government into tyranny, seeing no other way of turning men from the fear of God, but to bring them into a constant dependence on his power. He also said he would be revenged on God, if he should have a mind to drown the world again; for that he would build a tower too high for the waters to be able to reach! and that he would avenge himself on God for destroying their forefathers!

3. Now the multitude were very ready to follow the determination of Nimrod, and to esteem it a piece of cowardice to submit to God; and they built a tower, neither sparing any pains, nor being in any degree negligent about the work: and, by reason of the multitude of hands employed in it, it grew very high, sooner than any one could expect; but the thickness of it was so great, and it was so strongly built, that thereby its great height seemed, upon the view, to be less than it really was. It was built of burnt brick, cemented together with mortar, made of bitumen, that it might not be liable to admit water. When God saw that they acted so madly, he did not resolve to destroy them utterly, since they were not grown wiser by the destruction of the former sinners; but he caused a tumult among them, by producing in them divers languages, and causing that, through the multitude of those languages, they should not be able to understand one another. The place wherein they built the tower is now called Babylon, because of the confusion of that language which they readily understood before; for the Hebrews mean by the word Babel, confusion. The Sibyl also makes mention of this tower, and of the confusion of the language, when she says thus: “When all men were of one language, some of them built a high tower, as if they would thereby ascend up to heaven, but the gods sent storms of wind and overthrew the tower, and gave every one his peculiar language; and for this reason it was that the city was called Babylon.” But as to the plan of Shinar, in the country of Babylonia, Hestiaeus mentions it, when he says thus: “Such of the priests as were saved, took the sacred vessels of Jupiter Enyalius, and came to Shinar of Babylonia.”

[editor's note: this may look long, but two-thirds of it is scripture pasted at the end, for reference]

The movie “Wild Hogs” (John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, William H. Macy) used the term ‘posers’. It referred to those who dress up like bikers, ride a motorcycle, maybe have a tattoo, but don’t have true biker mentality and toughness.

Hold that thought for later.

Acts 13:6-12 [the entire chapter is pasted below] appears to be a turning point in the first century church. This is where Paul becomes the central apostle of Christianity. Here are the indicators of this “promotion.”

1- His i.d. is changed from Saul to Paul (verse 9). He has always been called Saul until now. This name-change in itself might seem minor, except that, if we need to know of this name-change, it means Paul will continue to appear as the book of Acts unfolds.

2- There is documentation of his continued growth. More of Saul’s gift ministries are identified in Acts 13:1 (prophet, teacher). He’s already shown he’s an apostle. He was the one whom God gave the original revelation that the new birth was ‘Christ in you’ (Acts 11:25). (See also Acts 14:14, and Colossians 1:27).

3- There are changes in the order of names. Earlier, it was “Barnabas and Saul” (verses 1, 2 and 7). Then it changes to “Paul and Barnabas” (verses 43, 46 and 50). Note also in verse 1 there is a list of five people with gift ministries. Barnabas is listed first, Saul is listed fifth (last). Note also in verse 2 that it is the Holy Spirit that says, “Barnabas and Saul”, and not the other way around. At least not yet.

4- In v.13, the group becomes “Paul and his company”. The group has never been called this before.

5- Peter hands over the audience (and, in retrospect, the reins) to Barnabas and Paul in Acts 15:7. Peter is not mentioned in Acts after that. (There is something Interesting in Acts 15:12, “Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul…” Barnabas is listed first. In the specific context, it appears that the church leaders in Jerusalem still thought Barnabas was senior over Paul.)

6- When Paul and Barnabas split up in Acts 15:39, God’s Word follows Paul’s journeys, not Barnabas’.

And now, to me, the two most telling indicators.

7- Paul successfully encounters a well-entrenched devil spirit. By ‘successfully encounters’ I mean Paul wins the battle with the devil spirit and the sorcerer hosting the devil spirit. Paul humbles them both and thus delivers a man who had been caught up in their deception. This is the first detailed record of Saul/Paul in front-line action with a devil spirit.

8- It was Saul/Paul (not Barnabas) who handled the face to face confrontation with the “child of the devil” (v.10).

I’ve spent all this time documenting Paul’s ‘promotion’.

But that’s just FYI stuff.

I believe the most important thing to take from Acts 13 is recognizing that Paul had developed a lifestyle based on the kind of fasting described by both Isaiah and Jesus. [See Isaiah 28:6-7 and Mark 9:29, pasted below]

It was the type of fasting that resulted in … the deliverance of others *.

In Mark 9, a man comes to the disciples, seeking deliverance for his son. The disciples had plenty of victories under there belts, but are stymied here. Jesus arrives, and provides the deliverance. Later, the disciples ask why they had failed. Jesus says, “This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.“

The devil spirit in the child was a tough old bird, whose defeat required matching toughness from God’s person on the scene. Jesus called that toughness “prayer and fasting”.

Many of us think, “I could never reach that point.” And that limitation is true for everyone who believes it is true. But if the deliverance of others becomes important enough to you, you will find that limitation is too major of an obstacle to let it exist in your heart any more.

The desire to bring deliverance to others must be fairly dominant and habitual in your thinking. Walking around with all this power from your new birth, but not knowing WHY you have this power, neutralizes the special abilities you have, and turns you into just another religious person, barely effective at best.

A poser.

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* The part of fasting that simply involves ‘not eating’ has been elevated too high. Skipping meals does happen, but is not a goal in itself. It is a by-product from being so involved in the mission … a mission to accomplish the deliverance of others.

Fasting is not a requirement for approval. It is a symptom of other things going on.

Granted, there is some self-imposed meal-skipping that can be beneficial for health reasons, or as an exercise in self-discipline. But ‘self’ is the key word. These missed meals are for personal reasons, not for the deliverance of others. Like bodily excercise, such meal-skipping profits a little.

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Acts 13 (KJ)

 

1Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

 

2As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

 

3And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.

 

4So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus.

 

5And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister.

 

6And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus:

 

7Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.

 

8But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.

 

9Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him,

 

10And said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?

 

11And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.

 

12Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

 

13Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem.

 

14But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat down.

 

15And after the reading of the law and the prophets the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.

 

16Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, give audience.

 

17The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high arm brought he them out of it.

 

18And about the time of forty years suffered he their manners in the wilderness.

 

19And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Chanaan, he divided their land to them by lot.

 

20And after that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet.

 

21And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years.

 

22And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.

 

23Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:

 

24When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.

 

25And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose.

 

26Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent.

 

27For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him.

 

28And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. 29And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. 30But God raised him from the dead:

 

31And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people.

 

32And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers,

 

33God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. 34And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David.

 

35Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.

 

36For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:

 

37But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.

 

38Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:

 

39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.

 

40Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets;

 

41Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.

 

42And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath.

 

43Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.

 

44And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.

 

45But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

 

46Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

 

47For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.

 

48And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.

 

49And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.

 

50But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts.

 

51But they shook off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium.

 

52And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost.

 

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Isaiah 58:6-7

 

6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?

 

7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?”

 

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Mark 9:17-29

 

17And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;

 

18And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.

 

19He answereth him, and saith,

 

O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.

 

20And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.

 

21And he asked his father,

How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.

22And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.

 

23Jesus said unto him,

If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

24And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

 

25When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him,

Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.

26And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.

 

27But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.

 

28And when he was come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out?

 

29And he said unto them,

This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

Two Midian soldiers were awakened to take over the night watch. One had been dreaming. The other interpreted the dream as the downfall of the Midian army by “the sword of Gideon.” The first did not argue the interpretation. He just trembled in his boots like his teammate.

Gideon had never led an army into battle, so he had no reputation in that regard. Add to that the fact that the Midianites had been kicking Israel’s butt for seven years. So why had these two soldiers even heard of Gideon, let alone become afraid of him?

Basically because Gideon had committed a significant act of vandalism … and got away with it.

He destroyed an altar to one god and replaced it with an altar to a different god. The repercussions from this god-defying act made Gideon’s name a house-hold word, at least in the camp of the Midian army.

But let’s backtrack a little.

Gideon’s hometown, like the rest of Israel, had slipped into idolatry. The predominant god was Baal. When the true God of Israel spoke to Gideon, He gave Gideon the assignment to destroy the altar to Baal, and build a new altar to Him.

There are some pithy plot twists to this story.

1- The idolatrous altar belonged to Gideon’s father, who had been sucked into Baal-worship like the rest of Israel.

2- When the townfold learned it was Gideon who had committed this sacrilege, they demanded Gideon die for such spiritual treason. Yet, it was the father, whose altar had just been replaced, that calmed the mob with, “Let Baal fight his own fights.”

3- The mob, though not out for blood now, saddled Gideon with a new name: Jerub-Baal, “Let Baal plead against him” *. This new name, rather than a liability, would spawn and rapidly spread Gideon’s reputation as a mighty man.

4- And, it seems, Gideon didn’t even know he’d become that notorious until a few hours before he attacked the Midian army. That in itself is a very interesting story… how God used Gideon’s notoriety to weaken the enemy, and strengthen Gideon.

But the point of this discussion is … how a stand for God gets attention. Few of us will have such a high-profile life as Gideon, who, in a short time, became “bigger than life”. But somewhere in our circle of contacts, someone will notice a stand for what’s right, when the norm has been something else.

“The norm”. That is probably our greatest friend in advertising something that is NOT the norm. So much contrast. It’s hard for people to miss.

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Read the entire story of Gideon in Judges 6-8

 

* This is the translation in KJ. NIV differs slightly: “Let Baal contend with him.” For the purpose of this discussion, I suppose either works. But I like the NIV rendering because it seems to give Baal more aggressiveness in his attempt to destroy Gideon. This would enhance the reputation that would spread about Gideon … that he was not merely a mighty man, but he was protected by a God bigger than Baal.

2 Samuel 7:27b King David said, “So Your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to You.” (Amplified Bible. The entire chapter is pasted below.)

David was aware of how much the LORD had done for him. So David was wanting to “give something back”. In this case, build an impressive house for the Ark of God so it no longer had to stay in a tent.

David was making at least three significant errors in his thinking.

1- He was making a human-type assumption about what the LORD wanted.

2- His idea was works-based, rather than obedience-based.

3- He was being affected by the status of ‘where you live’.

David was, in a sense, creating his own doctrine. If the LORD had not intervened, David’s religion would have continued to evolve in a material direction.

But the LORD did more than nix the plan. He dwarfed it … with priceless information about the longevity and future of David’s kingdom.

The ‘house of David’ that the LORD would build, would far outlast any ‘house of God’ that David would build.

David immediately knew he was out-classed. His effort to do something big for the LORD would be embarrassingly miniscule in both size, value and duration.

So, all he could do was re-align his thinking to match the LORD’s.

And part of that re-alignment was to pray a prayer (vs.18-29) that, a few hours earlier, would have been outrageous. But, now that the LORD had spoken, it would have been outrageous to have prayed otherwise.

The outrageous prayer was now simple humility.

Christians have a wealth of new statements from the LORD that David did not have. Here are a few (KJ).

Ephesians 3:20

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

2 Peter 1:3

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

2 Peter 1:4

Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

　

The portions that are bold-faced are pretty outrageous. But those portions contain the permission and parameters for us to pray outrageous prayers.

These parameters stretch out before us like the universe. They stretch out like the ‘house of David’ did before him. We can’t see the end.

And like David, since the LORD has laid out these parameters, we should have the courage to pray some outrageous prayers.

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2 Samuel 7 (Amplified Bible)

1 WHEN KING David dwelt in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies,

2 The king said to Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells within curtains.

3 And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.

4 That night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,

5 Go and tell My servant David, Thus says the Lord: Shall you build Me a house in which to dwell?

6 For I have not dwelt in a house since I brought the Israelites out of Egypt to this day, but have moved about with a tent for My dwelling.

7 In all the places where I have moved with all the Israelites, did I speak a word to any from the tribes of Israel whom I commanded to be shepherd of My people Israel, asking, Why do you not build Me a house of cedar?

8 So now say this to My servant David, Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be prince over My people Israel.

9 And I was with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make you a great name, like [that] of the great men of the earth.

10 And I will appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and be moved no more. And wicked men shall afflict them no more, as formerly

11 And as from the time that I appointed judges over My people Israel; and I will cause you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord declares to you that He will make for you a house:

12 And when your days are fulfilled and you sleep with your fathers, I will set up after you your offspring who shall be born to you, and I will establish his kingdom.

13 He shall build a house for My [a]Name [and My Presence], and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. When he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the sons of men.

15 But My mercy and loving-kindness shall not depart from him, as I took [them] from Saul, whom I took away from before you.

16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before you; your throne shall be established forever.

17 In accordance with all these words and all this vision Nathan spoke to David.

18 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?

19 Then as if this were a little thing in Your eyes, O Lord God, You have spoken also of Your servant’s house in the far distant future. And this is the law for man, O Lord God!

20 What more can David say to You? For You know Your servant, O Lord God.

21 Because of Your promise and as Your own heart dictates, You have done all these astounding things to make Your servant know and understand.

22 Therefore You are great, O Lord God; for none is like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all [You have made] our ears to hear.

23 What [other] one nation on earth is like Your people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be a people for Himself and to make for Himself a name? You have done great and terrible things for Yourself and for Your land, before Your people, whom You redeemed and delivered for Yourself from Egypt, from the nations and their gods.

24 And You have established for Yourself Your people Israel to be Your people forever, and You, Lord, became their God.

25 Now, O Lord God, confirm forever the word You have given as to Your servant and his house; and do as You have said,

26 And Your name [and presence] shall be magnified forever, saying, The Lord of hosts is God over Israel; and the house of Your servant David will be made firm before You.

27 For You, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant: I will build you a house. So Your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to You.

28 And now, O Lord God, You are God, and Your words are truth, and You have promised this good thing to Your servant.

29 Therefore now let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You; for You, O Lord God, have spoken it, and with Your blessing let [his] house be blessed forever.