Tag: The Bible

A couple of weeks ago, I posted seven Bible verses on my Facebook page about how to treat foreigners. These verses, from both the Old and New Testaments, speak to the importance of welcoming and caring for strangers. I’ll post them at the end of this blog, and I encourage you to read and reflect on them. My only comment at the top of the post was, “Food for thought.”

Why?

I was asked why I posted these scriptures. I have two reasons: I highly regard the Bible and enjoy spreading its timeless teachings. Second, I have observed an increasing anti-immigrant posture among Christians over the past two decades or so, which has been amplified by some of Donald Trump’s rhetoric on deporting millions of illegals when he comes to power.

So, I posted the Bible verses. What could possibly go wrong? I mean, it’s Scripture. We love God’s truth—except, of course, when it conflicts with our prejudices. When this occurs, we look for some wriggle room or attempt to justify why “this” verse doesn’t apply to us or to this situation.

Comments

What followed was a sometimes healthy conversation about immigration—illegal or otherwise. However, some of the comments were unkind. So, I explained my post: “Just to clarify. I’ve posted these verses as “food for thought” as stated. They were written to Jewish believers and Jesus’ followers. How could/should they inform how WE treat the foreigner amongst us as well as those seeking refuge? If you want to politicise them, we could ask ourselves how these scriptures could inform how we vote (for example). Pls discuss.”

Later, I stated: “Maybe I need to be more careful about which Bible verses I post. In future, should I stick to ones that don’t rattle cages, biases, and preconceived ideas? Asking for a friend.”

Full disclosure: I’m an immigrant. When I was twelve, my parents, Ten-Pound Poms, my sister, my brother, and I emigrated from the UK. I am grateful for my parents’ courage and for Australia’s welcoming embrace. I feel at home here and wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.

Clarification

Since my Facebook post, it would be helpful to explore this topic further. What does the Bible teach, and what are my thoughts on immigration? Here we go!

Firstly, I am not an advocate for open borders. Every country has a sovereign right to determine who should and should not enter. No nation can cope with an unlimited influx of people, straining resources and being unjust to its citizens. Consider Acts 17:26: “From one man [God] made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.”

Christians also believe that God has given governments the responsibility to safeguard the stability and security of their people. (Not all nations satisfy this obligation.) Anyone who commits a crime needs to be brought to justice. If that person is not a citizen, authorities should have the right to deport them once they have completed their sentence in Australia—if it is safe and possible.

However, I acknowledge that governments don’t always get this right, and constituents will vote to protest poor policies and decisions—something that has happened in Australia with the offshore detention of asylum seekers and, recently, in the US with the ‘zero-tolerance’ immigration policy that led to family separations.

Politicising People

The problem, as I see it, is when people are used as pawns to gain political power. Some parties see immigration as a vote winner, and it is. Sometimes, the argument is couched in compassionate terms: “We need to stop people from drowning at sea.” “We must break the people smugglers’ business model.” While I agree with both statements, they sound hollow and insincere. I hear, “We don’t want more of these people in our country—send them back to where they came from.”

God does not see people as political pawns, and neither should God’s people. Immigrants, like all humans, are made in God’s image and possess inherent dignity. Christians should advocate for and vote for policies that respect the God-given worth of every person.

To cheer on a politician who uses dehumanising language about precious people is contrary to walking with Jesus. To call all immigrants criminals is simply untrue. I often ask myself what I would do for my family if we were in an unsafe country. The answer is ANYTHING. I would do everything in my power to move us to a place of safety and provide my family with the best prospects in life. The vast majority of immigrants and refugees are just like us. They want a better life, to be safe, and to look forward to a hopeful future. Let’s remember to empathise with their situation.

Most unauthorised immigrants in the United States have lived there for at least a decade and have not been convicted of any serious crimes. Deporting millions of these people will result in family separation on an extreme scale. For example, almost 5 million US citizen children live with at least one unauthorised immigrant parent who would be at risk of deportation. The economic and legal impacts of these policies will also be chaotic for the US.

War and Persecution

Imagine escaping conflict, oppression, and discrimination to arrive in a country where some politicians and residents serve up more of the same—placing people in indefinite detention and forcibly separating children from their parents. The levels of cruelty we have witnessed from policies like this are heartbreaking.

Jesus summarised all Scripture by teaching us to “Treat others as you want them to treat you.” Would you want to be detained, deported, or chastised if you were seeking a better life? Of course not, so why would you support a politician with policies that do just that and then defend them even though they contradict your faith and scripture?

The non-Christian world observes this hypocrisy, rolls its collective eyes, and takes another step away from the church, the faith, and Jesus. You can preach the Gospel until you’re blue in the face, but if your actions drown out your words, what’s the point?

Conclusion

Please consider what I’ve written in this blog and reflect on the verses below. These scriptures do not cover everything the Bible says on this topic, but they make a clear point: believers are not to oppress or mistreat anyone. The Lord considers all people the same, so should we.

 

 

Leviticus 19:33-34: When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself.

Exodus 22:21: Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.

Zechariah 7:9: The Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another.’

Number 15:16: This law will never change. I am the LORD, and I consider all people the same, whether they are Israelites or foreigners living among you.

Deuteronomy 27:19: Cursed is anyone who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow.

Matthews 25:35: For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.

With its unique blend of beauty, poetry, and paradox, Ecclesiastes stands out in the biblical canon. It challenges some traditional views, leading us to question: How can we grasp the essence of Ecclesiastes, its purpose, and its message?

Ecclesiastes is a book that is easily misunderstood if you don’t realise why it was written. The early church debated removing it from the Bible because it contained untrue statements, but I’m glad they did include it. Like Job, Ecclesiastes is a poetic book that refuses to dodge the hard questions and doesn’t always provide easy answers. In that way, this book reflects real life.

Author

Ecclesiastes begins with “the words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem.” The Teacher is the Hebrew Qoheleth (ko-hell-et), meaning “a collector of sentences or students or wisdom sayings, or “a preacher.” Qoheleth is found seven times in Ecclesiastes and is the Jewish name for this book. He identifies himself as king over Israel in Jerusalem—probably Solomon, a man known for his wisdom (Ecclesiastes 1:13, 16-18; 12:9-10).

While its actual author is unknown, the book is primarily considered the work of King Solomon and was possibly written sometime before he died in 931 BC. If the author was not Solomon, the anonymous writer wanted us to think it was Solomon.

Themes

Ecclesiastes is a quest to find the meaning of life or meaning in life. Qoheleth finds life meaningless—a word repeated 33 times in this little book: “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” “I have seen everything done under the sun; all are meaningless, chasing after the wind.”

Qoheleth identifies this problem and then attempts to find answers: How can I find meaning in my life? The book then documents his experiments with various things to find meaning.

He adopts a scientific approach, starting with a hypothesis: everything is meaningless. Is this true? How can I find meaning in life? Is this possible?

We must understand this about Ecclesiastes to avoid quoting isolated verses that contradict the rest of scripture. An excellent example is Ecclesiastes 9:5: “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten.” The first phrase is accurate—we all know we’ll die—but the rest contradicts scripture’s teaching on resurrection, judgement, legacy, and eternal life.

From Chapter 2 onwards, Qoheleth documents his various experiments to discover meaning in life, the first three of which are explored in Chapter two:

Experiment 1: Pleasure

In verses one to three, he writes: “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved meaningless. “Laughter,” I said, “is madness. And what does pleasure accomplish?” I tried cheering myself with wine and embracing folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was good for people to do under the heavens during the few days of their lives.”

And then verse ten: “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.” The result? Everything is meaningless.

Experiment 2: Wisdom and Foolishness

“Wisdom is better than folly…but I came to realise that the same fate overtakes them both…The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What, then, do I gain by being wise?” Everything is meaningless.

Experiment 3: Hard Work

“My heart began to despair over all my toilsome labour under the sun. For a person to labour with wisdom, knowledge, and skill; they must leave all their own to another who has not toiled for it.” (v. 20-21). What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labour under the sun? All their days, their work is grief and pain; even at night, their minds do not rest. This, too, is meaningless.” (v. 22-23).

Experiment 4: Fatalism

Qoheleth begins chapter three with a well-known and much-loved poem (v. 2-8): “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die…” It’s a stunning song, but the message is simple: whatever will be will be, so resign yourself to fate.

Solomon ends chapter 3 with a fatalistic comparison of humans with animals and concludes that there is no difference between them: “Humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return.”

Chapter 4 continues the theme of fatalism as Qoheleth works himself into a pessimistic state over oppression and loneliness: “I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive. But better than both is the one who has never been born.”

Experiment 5: Materialism

In chapters 5 and 6, Qoheleth explores business, high finance, capitalism, and investing, concluding: “Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is always dissatisfied with their income. This, too, is meaningless.”

He continues, “Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb, and as everyone comes, so they depart. They take nothing from their toil that they can carry in their hands. This, too, is a grievous evil: As everyone comes, so they depart, and what do they gain since they toil for the wind?

The truth of those words resonates through the centuries. Ancient words that are just as accurate today—materialism is meaningless. When John D. Rockefeller died, one man was curious about how much he left behind. Determined to find out, he set up an appointment with one of Rockefeller’s highest aides and asked how much Rockefeller left. The aide answered, “All of it, sir.”

Experiment 6: Knowledge and Integrity

From chapters 7 to 10, Qoheleth searches for meaning in being wise and upright. These chapters contain many pearls of wisdom and strange assertions, including, “I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all.” (7:28). Those words are untrue.

Ultimately, Qoheleth says it’s good to be wise and honest rather than foolish and corrupt, but eventually, we all die. When we’re dead, we know and receive nothing and are all forgotten. And so, the best you can do is “Enjoy life…all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days.”

Ecclesiastes shows what human life is like when we seek meaning in “things” and not in the creator.

Qoheleth’s Conclusion

Remember his hypothesis: Everything is meaningless. And his question: How can I find meaning in life? The answer is yes, as long as you “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth. Remember him—before the silver cord is severed, and the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the spring, and the wheel is broken at the well, and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.”

These verses (12:6-7) poetically describe the process of dying from a 3000-year-old perspective:

“The Silver cord is severed” (loosened) refers to the white spinal fluid.

“The broken golden bowl” signifies the skull, which is precious like gold and contains the human brain.

“Before the pitcher is shattered at the spring” denotes the right ventricle of the heart that, at death, ceases to pump blood around the body.

“The wheel is broken at the well” is the heart’s left ventricle. The wheel is broken, the pulse stops, the blood ceases to circulate, and death follows.

Qoheleth summarises: “Now, all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.”

Ecclesiastes declares: Life is a mixture of good times and bad. The pleasures of life cannot offer lasting satisfaction, but they can be enjoyed as gifts from God. Ultimately, everything comes from God’s hand. Meaning is found through a respectful relationship with our creator. And whatever we do in life, remember his commandments, the greatest of which Jesus said was to love God and our neighbour.

Ecclesiastes shows what human life is like when we seek meaning in “things” rather than the creator. Jesus agreed.

Scripture contains fascinating stories and statements that allude to God’s growing, developing, and changing. Let’s explore those with open minds, ready to challenge our preconceptions.

Immutable

Christian theology teaches that God is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, eternal, and immutable. The prefix omni means all, so God is all-powerful, everywhere present, all-knowing, immortal, and unchanging. I want to question that last word in this blog because, in scripture, we see God shifting his decisions and choices and growing in understanding.

I realise my statements fly in the face of a common belief amongst Christians that God is always the same and never changes. What does the Bible say? Maybe you’re thinking of Malachi 3:6, “I the Lord do not change.” But a text out of context is a pretext. “I the Lord do not change” is in the context of God’s faithfulness to Israel. Change (Hebrew: shanah) means to fold or bend. We could translate that verse, “I the Lord do not fold. So, you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” The statement is about God’s consistency in his dealings with his people.

Moses’ Example

When Moses descended Mt. Sinai after receiving the Ten Commandments, he found that the people had returned to their Egyptian gods. They had made for themselves a golden calf and were worshipping it. God then told Moses that He was ready to destroy the nation—”Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” God had changed his mind about his formerly chosen people.

The following discussion between God and Moses is fascinating as he intercedes for Israel. A summary of Moses’ argument is: “What would the Egyptians say? They’d probably accuse you of evil intent because your plan all along was to lead them out of Egypt and kill them yourself.” The result? —The LORD changed his mind about the disaster he planned to bring on his people.

Other Examples

Scripture says that God had second thoughts about making Saul the king of Israel. “I regret that I made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not carried out my commands.” Samuel was angry at God’s statement, although it’s unclear whether he was angry with God, Saul or both. Samuel channelled his anger by praying all night.

In the Book of Jonah, we have a similar situation. God was angry with the people of Nineveh because of their wickedness, and he sent Jonah to warn them. Jonah eventually got there—in a roundabout fashion—after being asked twice by God. He preached a short message—”Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” That’s all it took for everyone from the king down to call on the Lord with fasting. “When God saw what they had done and how they had stopped their evil ways, he changed his mind and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened.” Jonah was not happy. He was all ready for a good smiting.

Character or Actions?

Any time the scriptures affirm God’s unchangingness, it always concerns his character, not his actions. Consider these verses:

God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfil? (Numbers 23:19)

He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind” (1 Samuel 15:29). In the future, God would be a human being, though.

God, who is enthroned from old and who does not change, will hear them and humble them because they have no fear of God. (Psalm 55:19)

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8). Context? Jesus is consistent, “So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas,” but instead rely on God’s gracious character. God’s character is static, but his actions aren’t. They depend on how WE respond to God’s instructions (Jer. 18:5–10; 26:3; Joel 2:13-14; Jonah 4:2; Amos 7:3,6).

When God Learns

I find one final aspect of God’s changeableness fascinating—what God learned in the person of Jesus. Ponder this for a moment. Until God was born into the human family, he didn’t know what it was like to be human.

The gospels tell us that Jesus [God] grew in wisdom, stature, and favour with God and man. The Hebrews author spells this out by telling us we have a high priest [Jesus] who can empathise with our weaknesses so that we can approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need, something that would not have been possible before the incarnation because God lacked firsthand knowledge of the human experience.

Summary

God’s character is unchanging, but his mind and actions change when people or circumstances alter. Prayer appears to be able to change God’s mind. Through the incarnation, God grew in understanding what it is like to be human. Paul wrote, “In Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.” For the first time, God fully understood—by personal experience—what it was like to be a human being. Let that sink in. And as a result, God’s love and compassion, mercy and grace, were fully extended to humanity for our good.

I hope my words cause you to think, question, search, and wrestle with scripture. Your insights and views are welcome and crucial to our collective understanding. Please feel free to discuss this in the comments below.

I’ve had several conversations recently with Christians—and former Christians—about the Bible stories in which God appears to command or sanction genocide. For numerous people, it’s been a deal breaker as they’ve been unable to reconcile a God who IS love with a God who appears to endorse unloving things.

My Journey

I began wrestling with this about two decades ago. I resonated with Bible stories of battles and vengeance in my younger years. The stars of the stories were my heroes. Then, I began to feel uncomfortable with them and would skip over these descriptions, pretending they weren’t there—except they were. We need to face it. The Bible records some pretty awful stuff. As I matured, I observed inconsistencies between these portrayals and Jesus’ teaching.

I love Jesus and wouldn’t consider leaving my faith, but I needed to reconcile the irregularities I saw in scripture and the multiple questions that begin with “How could a loving God…” You can fill in the blanks.

Awful Examples

Consider Deuteronomy 20:16–18, in which Moses instructed the people, “However, in the cities of the nations the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave anything that breathes alive. Completely destroy them…as the Lord your God has commanded you. Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshipping their gods, and you will sin against the Lord your God.” In other words, I know you people lack self-control and might get led astray, so let’s kill everyone and remove all temptation!

The Hebrew word “destroy” means to devote something to God by eradicating it. We are outraged by the terrorism we witness in the world, yet here it is encouraged, indeed commanded, by God.

From Joshua chapter six onwards, we see the systematic destruction of thirty-one cities and their inhabitants – men, women, children, and all the animals. Entire towns were slaughtered with no terms of surrender and no chance to relocate to another land. And according to the author, God is right there cheering on the massacre. How can we reconcile these events with the God of love? Here’s what I learned.

Ancient Stories

As I’ve taught on many occasions, the world of three or four thousand years ago was very different from today. People were tribal, and the tribes often went to war. They viewed God as “on their side” and would give them victory over their enemies. We see this reflected many times in the scriptures. We still see this echoed in some Christian circles today where God hates all the same people they do, votes as they vote, and is against everything they are.

In ancient times, the role of women was to give birth because more babies made the tribe bigger, more prosperous, and better able to defend itself in battles. The men spent their time hunting, fighting, and participating in the early stages of the baby-making process.

Most tribal people had multiple gods and presented offerings to them, frequently with human sacrifices. Israel was different as it became increasingly monotheistic, and there were recurrent warnings to the people to remain faithful to the one true God and not to engage in pagan revelry. We must appreciate the Old Testament narrative through this framework.

The Tanakh

Our Jewish friends call the Old Testament the Tanakh. I like that name and frequently use it myself. The Bible is a collection of Hebrew books, first and foremost written from an Eastern perspective. That’s a challenge for Western people like myself, who’ve been raised to see things differently. Invariably, we see things as black or white, right or wrong. Our history has to be accurate, but Eastern thought is different.

Easterners tend to view history as stories with a meaning. The details can change over time to convey truth to people living in different circumstances. We see these changes reflected in the Tanakh. Jews see the sacred text as the fluid narrative of the relationship between humans and the Source of all creation. The Tanakh tells the ever-evolving story without editing. And like all evolving narratives, the lines between the “players” get blurred. The attributes of humans and the divine “bleed” into each other because the relationship is vital. The Tanakh is relationship-centred. And it continues to be played out today, demonstrating the ongoing relevance of our faith in the modern world.

A Question Book

The Tanakh also observes how people sometimes justify their actions and consequences. It is not a book of answers; it is written to provoke questions. When you read the genocide stories, what questions come to mind?

  • Why do you think the people acted in the way they did?
  • Could trauma hold the key? Under specific pressures and with enough accumulated trauma, even good people will do horrific things.
  • How would you suggest they act?”
  • How would you act in similar circumstances?
  • What would Jesus do?

A question has power that surpasses the answer. My Jewish friend Tal says, “The Tanakh and God are supposed to be argued with. It is a good conflict that, if done with respect, causes growth.” He continues, “Spots within the Tanakh that are completely good or evil are rare. And that’s why I love the narrative. It reflects our life experiences more, which is very messy. After all, the name Israel means ‘one who wrestles with God,’ and that gets messy.”

Christians should respectfully discuss the scriptures and listen to other people’s insights. Scripture has done its job if the discussion causes powerful positive change.

Important Lessons

In chapter 10 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he gives insight into the Christian purpose of the Tanakh: These things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. (6). These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us. (11)

Followers of Jesus need to read these stories in the Tanakh and learn the lessons that still apply today.

Jesus’ Example

In the fullness of time, God was born into the human family to show us what he was REALLY like. Jesus shows us a much better way. Consider his words in the sermon on the mount:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?

And so, love your enemies, and don’t kill them. That’s Jesus’ way, as he said, “The Son of Man did not come to destroy people’s lives but to save them.”

 

Further Study

How the Bible works

Digging Deeper #72: The Wrath of God

Digging Deeper #84: The Bible’s Genocide Stories

 

There’s a fascinating verse in Romans chapter 12 that, at first glance, looks like permission to inflict pain on the people we don’t like: “In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

Paul’s teaching in Romans 12 is about showing kindness to those who don’t like us (or we don’t like, or both). The apostle quotes Proverbs 25:21-22, If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.

It appears to read: be nice to your enemies and cause them pain! So, what’s the deal with the burning coals? How should we understand what the Bible is teaching us here? I have found three explanations:

Remorse

In the ancient world, people would carry a tray of burning coals on their heads as a sign of repentance. The scriptures speak of people expressing sorrow by wearing sackcloth and ashes. Consider Mordecai, who, upon learning of Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews, tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly.

Jesus reprimanded two cities, Chorazin and Bethsaida, for their hard-heartedness towards his ministry: Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. Bethsaida was the hometown of the apostles Peter, Andrew, and Philip. Imagine hearing Jesus’ words of rebuke about your birthplace.

So, the explanation is that showing kindness to your enemy may open the door for them to repent and change how they behave towards you. And that certainly can happen.

Judgment

The second understanding of the burning coals symbolises a life of nonviolence and allowing God’s judgement to operate. The context certainly supports that understanding. The previous verse says: Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. In other words, be kind to your enemy and allow God to judge them.

In this interpretation, the burning coals symbolise God’s judgment.

Kindness

In the third explanation, the burning coals are a sign of kindness, not judgment, and I agree. Paul encourages people to act kindly to their enemies.

In ancient times, people would cook their meals over a fire, as in many parts of the world today. If the fire went cold, the woman of the household would put an earthen jar on her head, walk to their neighbour’s house, and ask for hot coals.

Imagine your enemy coming to your door and asking for hot coals from the fire. Our natural inclination would be to refuse them. And that’s Paul’s point for followers of Jesus. Live in such a way that does better than expressing your typical feelings. If your enemy is in need and you have the opportunity to be kind, then be kind. If their fire’s gone out, give them hot coals to carry home on their head.

Jesus’ Teaching

In Romans 12, Paul reiterates Jesus’ teaching from his sermon on the Mount:

  • Give to the one who asks you.
  • Do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
  • Love your enemies.
  • Pray for those who persecute you.
  • Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

Paul agrees:

  • Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
  • Do not repay anyone evil for evil.
  • Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
  • If possible, as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

The last statement is significant because sometimes, living at peace with someone is impossible. You should not feel duty-bound in such circumstances.

Jesus’ way is never passive or idle. Jesus was an activist, not a passivist. But the activism he supported was showing practical kindness to others, even our enemies.

We could summarise Paul’s teaching here by this statement: The best way to destroy an enemy is to turn them into a friend.

In last week’s blog, I outlined Jesus’ way of reading, understanding, and interpreting the Scriptures as a better way than a flat or uniform method.

For the first couple of decades of my Christian life, I read the Bible as an unchanging text where every word has equal authority. The justification for this approach to Scripture is 1 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” There it is in plain language; all Scripture is equal and vital. Except, we Christians do not live or practice the Bible this way. So, how should we understand Paul’s statement?

The Context

Paul is commending Timothy for his love of the sacred writings (Gk. gramma). Using a different Greek word, Paul contrasts these with the Scriptures (Gk. graphé). The sacred writings included but were not limited to, the Scriptures.

While the writings are sacred, only the Scriptures are God-breathed, likely a term coined by Paul, who combined two Greek words (Theos & Pnau) to make a new one. The Scriptures Paul refers to are the Tanakh, or what we Christians call the Old Testament. They were (are) the Jewish Scriptures Jesus and the first-century Church used.

The New Testament

When the New Testament refers to the Scripture(s) as it does 53 times, it speaks about the Tanakh. But there became increasing awareness amongst the Church that some of the sacred writings of the apostles were also to be considered as Scripture. Peter writes about Paul’s letters, “He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures.”

The four Gospels were eventually stitched together to differentiate them from the many debatable texts that began circulating in the first century. The epistles were sent to the churches and then swapped amongst various congregations. For example, Paul writes to the Colossian Church, “After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you, in turn, read the letter from Laodicea.” Revelation was sent to seven Churches in Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey.

The Completed Bible

The Canon of Scripture, the Bible as we have it today, was completed in the fourth century. The Greek word kanon means reed or measurement. For a book or letter to qualify to be included in the Bible, it had to measure up to specific standards:

  • The writer must have been one of Jesus’ Apostles or their scribe. For example, Mark was Peter’s scribe for his Gospel.
  • The writer had to claim to have written from divine inspiration, which then needed to be confirmed.
  • The content could not contradict books already recognised as Scripture or contain any errors.

The earliest list of suggested New Testament scriptures was compiled in Rome, in 140 A.D., by Marcion. Although considered heretical[1] by many, his list established that the idea of a New Testament canon was accepted then.

By the end of the second century, all but seven books (Hebrews, 2 and 3 John, 2 Peter, Jude, James, and Revelation) were recognised as Scripture. By the end of the fourth century, all the Western Churches acknowledged all twenty-seven books in our present canon.

By the year 500, the Greek-speaking Church had also accepted all the books in our present New Testament.

Back to Paul

With that background in mind, let’s return to Paul’s statement about all Scripture being relevant. Scripture is helpful for:

  • Teaching – how to apply it to the way we live.
  • Rebuking – an inner conviction that comes from truth.
  • Correcting – to straighten out or rectify.
  • Training in righteousness – the cultivation of mind and morals.

All Scripture is helpful for at least one of these things, but that does not mean that all Scripture is applied literally or equally.

Examples

Jesus taught people that external things couldn’t defile them. In a society where religion had become all about outward show, Jesus’ teachings were revolutionary: “It is what comes out of a person that defiles them.” Mark adds the clause, “In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.” The understanding of the early Church was that the food laws of Leviticus 11 & Deuteronomy 14 were no longer relevant. How are those chapters beneficial, then? A sense of gratitude may be one answer!

Seven times in his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago…But I tell you.” He corrected or amended several verses from the Tanakh, possibly showing God’s original intent and practicality of those Scriptures.

The New Testament Scriptures make Sabbath-keeping optional for Christians. Paul writes, “One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord.” (Romans 14:5-6; Cf. Exodus 31:14).

What Applies and What Doesn’t?

We, Christians, need to have our lenses in place to see clearly to apply Scripture correctly. Jesus is our primary lens, as we discovered in last week’s blog and my recent sermons here and here.

We can view the Scriptures through the Gospels, reading backwards and forwards. I also suggest looking through New Testament eyes when reading the Tanakh.

Jesus changes some of the Scriptures, as we’ve seen above. Others ceased, such as circumcision, animal sacrifices, and food laws. At the same time, much of the Scriptures continue unchanged. Christians and Jews alike worship God, help the poor and marginalised, tithe, and love their neighbour as themselves.

Paul tells us that the ultimate purpose of Scripture is “so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” That is what Christians are to be known for.

[1] Marcion preached that God had sent Jesus Christ; an entirely new God distinct from the “vengeful” God who had created the world.

Since I decided to follow Jesus, I have loved reading and studying the Scriptures. But I can’t say that my relationship with the Bible has been easy-going. That’s mainly because of how I understood the Bible to work and how it should be read. I’ll explain:

The Uniform Way

For the first couple of decades of my Christian life, I read the Bible as a uniform text where every word has equal authority. The justification for this approach to Scripture is 1 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” There it is in plain language, “all Scripture.” It’s all equal, all important and all the same. Except I have never met any Christian who lives the Bible this way – me included! So, what did Paul mean?

Paul is writing to his dear son, who led the Ephesian church. Timothy struggled with the burden of his role, so the apostle wrote to encourage him. Amongst other things, Paul reminds Timothy of his devotion to “the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”

All Scripture is helpful, but that doesn’t mean that all Scripture is applied equally. The problem with the uniform way of reading the Bible is that it doesn’t account for this difference. More on that next week.

The Progressive Way

The Progressive Way views the Scriptures as a developing story “where all the words accumulate in a crescendo of consistent truth.”[1] In recent years, I have become much more comfortable with this way of reading Scripture as it embraces the evolving narrative of God’s love for people and his desire to “reconcile the world to himself in Christ.”

The Bible is living, dynamic, and energetic. Just like flowing water, the Bible’s message is heading somewhere. It’s got momentum, and it’s progressing. For example, the Bible shifts from a revenge perspective to a way of grace and kindness personified in Christ. We witness the Bible’s progression in many ways, including slavery, women’s rights, interracial marriage, illegitimate children, war, capital punishment, and gender diversity. The Bible is not a static book. But there’s still a better way to read and understand the Scriptures.

The Jesus’ Way

The Bible itself calls Jesus the Word. Notice the capital W. When speaking about Scripture, the Bible employs a small ‘w’. Jesus is the Big W Word, the One to whom the written word must bow because Jesus is Lord! If Jesus Christ is Lord, he is supreme even over the Bible.

That’s how Jesus understood Scripture. Consider his Sermon on the Mount, where he altered several Old Testament verses. “You have heard that it was said to our ancestors,” said Jesus, “But I tell you…”

Jesus abolished the food laws (Mark 7:19), and Paul agreed (Romans 14). Goodbye Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, and hello bacon!

At other times Jesus disagreed with Scripture (Mark 10:1-9) or chose not to argue about individual verses and extend kindness instead (John 5:1-14; 8:2-11), something we Christians would do well to imitate.

The Revd. Peter Bartel put it this way, “Read the Bible. When anything in the rest of the Bible disagrees with Jesus, listen to Jesus.” Jesus is Lord!

A Beautiful Example

Luke is the only gospel writer to include the amazing story of post-resurrection Jesus walking and talking with two of his disciples. Luke tells us that the men, Simon and Cleopas, were kept from recognising him.

Jesus gave them the most amazing Bible study as they chatted: “Beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” Wow! I have wondered why Luke didn’t document Jesus’ words. I can only think that it was because we are supposed to read and study Scripture for ourselves. Christians are to read the Bible like that, the Jesus’ way.

Final Reflections

C.S. Lewis wrote, “It is Christ himself, not the Bible, who is the true Word of God. The Bible, read in the right spirit and with the guidance of good teachers, will bring us to him.”

Neither Lewis nor I are devaluing the Bible. We are simply putting it in its proper place. I am not teaching a low view of Scripture but a high view of Jesus. I fear that making the Bible an idol is possible as if the Trinity consisted of Father, Son, and Holy Scriptures.

The Bible teaches that Jesus is the Word of God! The primary revelation about Jesus is found in the small w word. Each page points to him. And so, as you read the Bible, Jesus’ Way ask: 

  1. How does this point to or reflect Jesus?
  2. In what way(s) does this draw me into intimacy with Jesus?
  3. Does this verse or story align with what I know about Jesus?

For a Christian, it’s the only way to read Scripture!

 

[1] A More Christlike Word. Dr Bradley Jersak (P. 41).

The unsettling story of Ananais and Sapphira is found in Acts chapter five. The first two verses summarise the story:

“Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. With his wife’s full knowledge, he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.”

Their duplicity, described by Peter as “lying to God,” led to their untimely death.

Interestingly, Peter makes such a big deal of this deceit, especially in light of his betrayal of Jesus. Peter received nothing but grace for his error and yet is quick to pronounce judgment on others. I’m glad Christians don’t behave like that anymore! So, how should we understand the disturbing story of Ananias and Sapphira?

A Parable?

The story may be a parable rather than a literal historical event. For example, the Bible Background Commentary reveals some rabbis allegedly disintegrate foolish pupils with a harsh look. We still talk about someone giving a withering look, but the “look” doesn’t literally shrink the person. We understand the expression metaphorically.

The New Interpreter’s Study Bible says about this story: “Theological and pastoral questions arise. Why is Peter so harsh in not offering the couple an opportunity to repent? Does God really punish sinners in such a drastic manner? The story is more folklore than historical and is meant to underscore the serious breach that occurs when members of the community lie to one another.”

And so, what KIND of truth is found in Acts 5? Is it factual, or is it symbolic, a parable designed to teach truth while itself not being a true story?

People sometimes get hung up on facts rather than truth. For example, instead of trying to work out how a large fish swallowed Jonah, ask yourself what truth is being taught in this story. What can we learn, and how can we apply this truth daily?

An Ancient Teaching Method?

A well-known educational tool in the first century was comparing positive and negative examples. Acts chapter four ended with a general statement of the church’s generosity and then a specific instance – Barnabas sold a field he owned, and laid the money at the apostles’ feet.

And then Luke, the author of Acts, compares this with the story of Ananias and Sapphira, who also sold a piece of property. Remember, there were no chapter divisions in Luke’s letter.

Many people who had become Christians were from different nations and had stayed in Jerusalem after Pentecost (Acts 2). These people had no means of support – no social security benefits. The church was their lifeline, and there were no churches beyond Jerusalem.

These freewill gifts were entirely at the discretion of the giver. The land was sold and placed “at the apostles’ feet,” indicating that the offering was not for the apostles but for them to distribute to those in need. Barnabas demonstrated the right way to do this. Ananias and Sapphira displayed the wrong way.

The message in these stories is this: when you give, do it like Barnabas and not like Ananias and Sapphira.

An Older Story?

The story of Ananias and Sapphira contrasts with the account of Achan in Joshua 7, in which the sin of one man brought death upon many others—in the story of Ananias and Sapphira, the demise of two people brought purity to a community rather than death. God takes the corporate holiness of his people very seriously.

Honesty is the Best Policy

The Acts 5 story shows that God takes sincerity in claims very seriously. Pastors should remember this when asked about the size of the church we lead. Far too many of us become evang-elastic in our answers.

The whole scenario with Ananias and Sapphira was utterly unnecessary. They were likely a very wealthy couple (Sapphira was an uncommon name and always found amongst rich women). The property was theirs. No one had asked them or forced them to sell it. It was a matter of their own volition.

Furthermore, they had conspired to keep some of the money but made out they were giving it all, exposing their pride in the pretence. They lied to and tested the Holy Spirit (God). Was this a form of blaspheming the Holy Spirit? Was this sin unforgivable? Whatever the case, one truth that stands out in this story is honesty is the best policy.

A Harsh Sentence

The Dead Sea Scrolls excluded such an offender from the communion table for a year. But here, a much stricter sentence is imposed. There’s no mention that God did the killing. Peter pronounced the sentence, possibly operating a gift of the Holy Spirit. Was he a novice in using these powers? Did he learn from this? To my knowledge, there is no record of anything like this happening again. And I’ve never had anyone die during an offering at Bayside Church – not yet, at least!

Concluding Comments

The punishment doesn’t appear to fit the crime. Far worse sins are recorded in the New Testament Scriptures without death as the punishment. Consider the case of a young man committing incest with his stepmother and Peter’s rank hypocrisy that Paul condemns to Peter’s face. But Peter doesn’t drop dead as a result.

If this is a literal historical event, my only thought is that the apostles wanted to protect the baby church. Such protection wasn’t needed as the church matured.

A literal understanding of this story troubles me because it doesn’t appear to reflect God’s nature of unfailing love and forgiveness. Neither does it demonstrate Jesus’ statement, “the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them” (Luke 9:56)

If Ananias and Sapphira were real people, they were a part of the church and Christians. They would have been considered “saved.” There is no pronouncement that they were “lost”. I hope they’re in heaven.

We regularly awaken to the news of another mass shooting in the USA. Several people have recently been shot for simply arriving at the wrong house. They were mistaken or lost and killed or seriously injured. Add to that the mass shootings in schools, churches, and shopping malls, and it appears that America is highly unsafe.

My main concern in this blog is the people who follow Jesus, claim the Christian faith, are staunch defenders of gun ownership and the Second Amendment, and use the Bible to endorse their point of view. How does this align with the teachings of Jesus?

Self-Disclosure

I want to be transparent about my emotions on this topic because I feel very passionately about it. It is also a cause of enormous frustration to me as the US appears unable or unwilling to act on this significant problem. While I am not anti-firearms per se, they should be strongly regulated. I acknowledge some people love hunting, but I’m not one of them. I struggle with the concept of killing animals and calling it a sport. I understand that sometimes culling is necessary, but there’s a big difference between culling and killing for fun.

I greatly appreciate our government’s decisive action to reduce the number of illegal firearms in Australia. After the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, our new Prime Minister, John Howard, introduced a gun amnesty in which 600,000 firearms were handed in. Gun deaths by homicide and suicide plummeted, and Australia has not seen the likes of Port Arthur since. The same cannot be said for the US.

Back in the USA

There were 647 mass shootings in the US last year. A mass shooting is where four or more people are shot or killed, not including the attacker. With this definition, shootings of under four people are not included.

In 2022, there were only 97 days when a mass shooting was not recorded. So far, in 2023, there have been 185 mass shootings. Last weekend saw eleven mass shootings, but we only heard about the worst one. There are so many that it’s not worth reporting on the smaller ones.

Why’s it Getting Worse?

The trend has risen sharply in recent years. In 2022, there were 44,290 gun-related deaths, a 31% increase on 2019. Nine of the ten deadliest mass shootings in the US occurred after 2007. There are several reasons for this:

Gun ownership is on the rise. And no wonder, there is so little regulation that even a 13-year-old can legally buy a gun. If you don’t believe me, watch this short clip from Bryant Gumbel’s Real Sports. US gun laws are lax, irregular, and ineffective. For example, US Federal law does not require that background checks be made on private sales of guns, including at gun shows or online. Regulations on the safe storage of firearms are also lax in some states.

A fractured society. America was already politically divided well before Covid-19. The Pandemic only made things worse.

Rampant Conspiracies. I know this firsthand as I’ve watched some dear friends descend the rabbit hole of ridiculous plots. They believe in a Deep State Cabal that controls the government. They love Trump because this Cabal does not govern him, so they want him back in power. They believe the Port Arthur massacre was a false flag operation, an excuse for the government to strip Australians of firearms so the government can control the masses. Senator Pauline Hansen peddled this rubbish just a few years ago. Many Americans (including Christians) buy into this and fear it is happening in the US.

Toxic masculinity. 98% of shooters are men.

Financial or personal hardship. Undoubtedly, the gap between the haves and have-nots is getting wider. And this resentment can fuel frustration and anger that can lead to violence. But people face these things in Australia and other countries without resorting to shooting others.

The Second Amendment

Christian Nationalism, a perversion of the Bible and the gospel, is sadly rising in the USA. I know several conservative American Christians who love their God and their guns. They view the US Constitution as sacred and defend their beliefs from Scripture.

The Second Amendment states, A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. The militia refers to the American people.

The Second Amendment needs to be amended. It was first enacted on 15 December 1791, long before semi-automatic weapons. Muskets were the order of the day. Muskets were inaccurate, had a 30-second reloading time, and couldn’t shoot as far as 100 metres.

Misquoting Scripture

Christian gun activists quote Luke 22:36 & 38 to defend their beliefs. Jesus told his disciples, “But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. The disciples said, “See, Lord, here are two swords.” “That’s enough!” he replied. There you go. Jesus told his followers to buy weapons to defend themselves, so we should own guns. But is that what Jesus is teaching here?

Jesus is speaking to Peter and John just before his arrest. When Judas betrayed Jesus, his followers saw what would happen and said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?” And one of them struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. Jesus said, “No more of this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him. (Luke 22:49-51).

Why did Jesus tell Peter and John to ensure they had weapons if they weren’t supposed to use them? Because those arresting Jesus came fully armed with swords and clubs (Luke 22:52-53), but Jesus didn’t want his disciples to behave that way. Impetuous Peter misses the moment and the message and gets it wrong again.

Jesus wanted to show that they weren’t leading an armed rebellion, so Luke 22:36 is not teaching American Christians that they should own guns. Jesus teaches the opposite by telling Peter, “Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” That could be a prophetic word for the United States, a nation living by and dying by the gun.

I invite you to pray for the US and the American church. I wonder what will need to happen before the nation and some sections of the church come to their senses and act in unity to stem the shedding of innocent blood. How many more people will need to die before a change is made?

One of the things that stands out in the Bible’s early chapters is the age at which some people lived. I mean, Adam was 130 years old when he started a family! Even the thought of that is exhausting.

And that’s not the least of it. Lamech lived to the ripe old age of 777. Adam was 930 when he died. Methuselah was 969, the oldest person of all time. Noah became a dad for the first time at 500.

Ancient texts from many cultures have listed life spans most modern people find unbelievable. For example, the 4,000-year-old Sumerian King List details the reigns of kings in Sumer (ancient southern Iraq) as exceeding 30,000 years in some cases. It also mentions eight kings who reigned for 241,200 years. No one would take that literally.

Explanations

As with almost everything in the Christian world, there are various opinions and positions on the ages in Genesis. Some will take these ages literally, as that’s how they regard Genesis. God created the world in six 24-hour days, made a woman from a man’s side, and people lived for hundreds of years.

First-century Roman-Jewish historian Josephus wrote, “let no one, upon comparing the lives of the ancients with our lives, and with the few years which we now live, think that what we have said of them is false; or make the shortness of our lives at present an argument, that neither did they attain to so long a duration of life, for those ancients were beloved of God, and made by God himself; and because their food was then fitter for the prolongation of life, might well live so great a number of years: and besides, God afforded them a longer time of life on account of their virtue, and the good use they made of it.”

Metaphor

While some people consider these ages literal, others believe they’re metaphorical. Most Jewish theologians think Genesis chapters 1 to 11 to be symbolic. Many Christians agree. I’ve written about this elsewhere. You can also listen to my teaching on this on the Digging Deeper podcast.

The stories up to Abraham are to be understood metaphorically rather than literally. Long lives and old ages are a way of saying the person lived for an extensive time or has seen a lot of events. We still use Methuselah as an example of longevity today with the Idiom, “He’s as old as Methuselah.” When we say this, we don’t mean it literally. No one is suggesting the person is 969 years old. It’s used to communicate that someone is very advanced in years. Other similar idioms include “She’s as old as the hills.” (or “over the hill”) or “They have one Foot in the Grave.” None of these sayings is considered factual, but they all communicate the truth.

Other Considerations 

Some interpret the ages as an ancient form of bragging. Another consideration is how time was measured and viewed in the ancient world. For example, Jesus said, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:40). But that is not literally true. Jesus was crucified on Passover (or the day before Passover according to John’s gospel) on a Friday. He died about 3 p.m. He rose again early on Sunday morning, meaning he was in the grave for about 40 hours, not 72 hours. Jesus’ statement is not literally true.

An understanding of the Hebrew mindset is helpful here. Ancient Hebrews considered time as a “part for a whole.” In other words, a portion of a day was still considered as an entire day, a concept known as Synecdoche. We use expressions like this too. For example, cattle are counted by “head.” But the “head of cattle” doesn’t discount the rest of their body. Someone may comment on your car by saying, “nice wheels.” Of course, they’re referring to the entire vehicle. And so, Jesus’ statement about three days and three nights takes in Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, even though Friday and Sunday were only part days.

Was time measured and viewed in the ancient world as it is today? Probably not. A metaphorical understanding of the Bible’s old ages sits well with me. But you decide what is comfortable for you. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter. Is it a truth that affects the way we live today? Not at all.

Finally,

If you hold a literal view of this subject and feel strongly that you must defend it, it would be helpful to ask yourself why. Why is that important to you? Does it affect your life or that of others? Do you have a “House of cards” view of Scripture? – If this is wrong, nothing in the Bible is correct. The Bible doesn’t behave that way; sometimes, it doesn’t behave at all. We mustn’t make the Scriptures into something that they were never intended to be. The Bible is alive, active, inspired, and ancient and contains truth that powerfully impacts us today even though it comes to us from times past.

 

One of the first Bible verses I read this year was Isaiah 43:18-20,

“For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? 
I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. Yes, I will make rivers in the dry wasteland so my chosen people can be refreshed.”

God was about to lead his people back to their homeland after being captive in Babylon. In the preceding verses, God reminds them of the power he used to set them free from earlier captivity when they were enslaved in Egypt for 400 years. With Mighty strength, God brought his people out of Egypt, through the desert and into the Promised Land. But in Isaiah 43, God says, “forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new.”

There is a potent life principle here: sometimes, we must forget the greatness of past successes or the shame of past failures to embrace God’s new things in the present and future.

Anything from the past holding you back needs to be forgotten;

otherwise, it becomes a hindrance.

But this doesn’t mean we are to forget everything that’s happened in our lives. There are lots of things that we should remember.

Recollect Fond Memories

Recall family celebrations and great friendships, the good things in life, and the cherished memories that still stir emotions and gratitude. Things like running through the sprinklers on a hot summer’s day, climbing trees, pillow fights, and laughing so hard that your stomach hurt.

A few years ago, Christie and I took the kids to Malaysia for a holiday. One day the heavens opened for a tremendous tropical storm that left large pools of water everywhere. The kids and I spent ages jumping in the puddles. It was so much fun. Scuffing your feet through piles of autumn leaves is equally satisfying—fond memories.

Remember Things to Rectify

The Bible has lots to say about restitution & forgiveness (see Proverbs 14:9; Matthew 5:23-24). I love the story of Zacchaeus, the chief Tax Collector of Jericho (Luke 19:1-10). Here’s one of the most despised individuals in his town, who made millions by ripping off the poor (sound familiar?). Amid the grumblings of the battlers, Jesus went to Zacchaeus’ house. We’re not told what they chatted about, but whatever Jesus said hugely impacted this rich, crooked, lonely little man.

Listen to Zacchaeus’ words, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” If I have cheated anybody! Of course he had, and paying back four times the amount would have been equivalent to pumping millions of dollars into Jericho’s economy, making a massive difference to the needy.

Imagine the impact – I bet the complainers stopped whining when the money arrived! And all because a man remembered and decided to do something to correct the wrongs of the past.

A Personal Story

My first job after high school was working in a record store in Perth. At night, I studied radio announcing at a Technical college. By day, I managed the cassette department, and so I primarily worked alone. During this time, I helped myself to money from the till and stole some records and cassettes. Eventually, I was found out and sacked. I denied any wrongdoing, but I knew I was guilty.

Fast-forward to the next few years. I became a Christian and went to Bible College to train for pastoral ministry. I studied Christian Ethics in my second year, and the lecturer taught about restitution. I felt strongly convicted of my stealing but reminded myself that all my sins were forgiven when I became a Christian. But the guilt wouldn’t budge, so I went to my lecturer to explain my dilemma.

He encouraged me to phone my ex-boss, admit guilt, apologise, and seek to repay what I had stolen. I did so with fear and trembling. She answered the phone, and I got a frosty response when I told her who was calling. I did as my lecturer had suggested and offered to repay the money. All I had was the semester’s fees (about $1,000), and I asked if that would be sufficient. She said it was, so I sent that to her as a money order, along with a tract on becoming a Christian. I know…but I was young and zealous!

I didn’t hear from her again, but it didn’t matter. I had made amends like Zacchaeus. I had remembered a past wrong that I had the power to rectify. The sense of God’s presence was overwhelming.

Do you have unresolved issues from the past? Do you need to make restitution?

Recall the Great Things God has Done

“I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds” ~ Psalm 77:11-12.

In Scripture, God instituted a feast or an altar whenever he did something incredible. Consider the Passover Feast that reminded people of their mighty deliverance from slavery. Jesus instigated communion to remind us of his death and resurrection (Luke 22:19).

In the Tanakh (Old Testament), there are several altars of remembrance so that the recollection would anchor people in truth.

Consider the story of Joshua leading the people across the Jordan and into the promised land (Joshua 4). “They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan River, one for each tribe, just as the Lord had told Joshua. They carried them to the place where they camped for the night and constructed the memorial there.” The altar was a reminder of God’s power, presence, and redemption. Whatever challenges they faced in the future, the altar was a constant memorial of who God was and what God could do.

I encourage you to think of the times God has been particularly present for you. Consider those memories as altars to anchor and inspire you in the present, especially when you encounter difficulties.

A Final Story

Before he became the apostle Paul, Saul was one of the most distinguished religious leaders in Israel, “advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age” (Gal. 1:14). In his letter to the Philippians, Paul outlines his Jewish credentials (3:3-6), which were extremely impressive. But he writes, “whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.” And he had lost much ~ prestige, reputation, finance, property, and family. His wife and children likely abandoned him when he converted from Judaism.

But, Jesus had found him and called him, and he wouldn’t look back. In fact, “one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” God was doing something new, and Paul wouldn’t miss out because of regrets, mistakes, or successes.

Imagine the grace the church needed to exert towards Paul, the guy that had imprisoned and killed some of their relatives. This same man was now preaching in their churches.

Forget what is behind, strain toward what is ahead, and press on toward the goal. God is making pathways through the wilderness and creating rivers in the dry wasteland to refresh you. Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?

Someone recently told me that they felt confused about why God accepted Abel’s offering and not Cain’s. It seemed unfair to them, and I agreed.

We find the story in Genesis 4, and it moves very fast. Adam made love to his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. Two decades in two verses!

Over time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favour on Abel and his offering, but he did not look with favour on Cain and his offering. So, Cain was outraged, and his face was downcast. God and Cain had a chat about his attitude, during which God told him, “sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” That’s a crucial part of this story that I’ll come back to shortly.

So, why did God reject Cain’s offering? Was it because God prefers meat to veggies? Cain was a farmer who tended the ground and grew crops. Abel was a shepherd who kept flocks. It made sense that farmer Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. It equally made sense that shepherd Abel brought an offering from some of the firstborn of his flock. Both men gave an offering of what they had.

Campfire Stories

There is no mention of teaching on offerings in this story or before. Although God had killed an animal to make clothes for Adam and Eve to cover their nakedness, there is no inference in this story, or before it, that God expected or required an animal offering.

Cain’s gift is the first recorded offering mentioned in the Bible. Should that not tell us something? Remember, this is a campfire story. It’s a metaphor, a parable, as is the case with the first eleven chapters of Genesis. What question around the campfire was asked to prompt this story?

It could have been a child asking a parent why do people kill each other or why is there evil in the world? It’s an ancient dilemma that people still grapple with today: If there’s a loving God, why is there suffering and evil in the world? The ancients would create stories to explore possibilities. The story of Cain and Abel could explore some of the reasons for pain and suffering.

A Question Book

The Bible is a book of questions, not just a book of answers. My Rabbi friend says, “If you read a story that doesn’t raise more questions, you’re not reading the Bible properly.” He says, “The sacred texts are verbs, not endpoints.” Some of the questions we could ask about this story include: How do the principal actors react in the story? What is Cain’s reaction to Abel’s offering being taken above his?

Cain was furious, and his face fell—what an evocative, profound description. You’d have witnessed the fallen face if you’ve ever had to correct a child!

The apparent rejection shatters Cain. God says to Cain (paraphrasing): “how you’re feeling is normal, but if you nurture this resentment and envy, it will be like a tiger crouching at the entrance to your cave.”

God hadn’t turned his back on Cain. God was allowing Cain to learn from disappointment and rejection, something he would repeatedly experience, as we all do.

But instead of learning from the moment, Cain’s ego was bruised. God didn’t invalidate Cain’s feelings. But Cain doesn’t heed God’s advice and has a confrontation with Abel instead. The crouching tiger had not been tamed.

Another Conversation

God: “Where is your brother Abel?”

Cain: “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

The Hebrew here suggests a question like, “Do I stay awake all night keeping an eye on him?”

Cain asks, am I responsible for him? And, if so, where does that responsibility begin and end? It’s an excellent question. Everyone is responsible for others to a point unless it becomes detrimental to you.

God: “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.”

Remember, this is an allegorical story. Blood doesn’t speak, but that doesn’t detract from the truth here. The New Testament picks up the same metaphor: “Jesus the mediator of a new covenant [whose shed blood on the cross] speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” (Heb. 12:24).

Abel’s blood spoke of retribution, anger, unrighteousness, and death, whereas Jesus’ blood communicates forgiveness, justice, and life.

The story ends with Cain being disciplined by God and then settling in the land of Nod, [wandering] east of Eden. He gets married and starts a family.

Central Truth

For me, one of the key takeaways from this story is this:

If we lose perspective, something that is temporary can become permanent.

We all have had, or will have, defining moments in our lives.

Cain’s defining moment transpired when God did not look with favour on his offering. Cain became downcast, envious, and angry and then acted out on his emotions.

What if Cain had permitted himself to reflect on his feelings for a few hours? Something unjust had happened to him. He needed to acknowledge his emotions and feelings. We have all been on the receiving end of injustice and experienced emotions that made us feel like lashing out. So, we wait. Meltdowns are inevitable, so be good at them!

An Example

Imagine you didn’t get a promotion at work. You process this:

I deserved that promotion.

I feel angry. Envious. Cheated.

There’s no justice in the world.

These are not evil thoughts. They are valid.

These moments are going to happen.

I won’t deny them; I acknowledge them.

I will chat it through with a friend.

I will bring it to God in prayer.

There are no taboo reflections.

But I won’t let them fester inside me.

They don’t define me.

I don’t have to act on them.

The Heart of the Story

The core of this story is God’s questions and statements to Cain: “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” It will become a crouching tiger.

Eventually, the feelings will dissipate. But If you don’t healthily process them, the tiger will pounce. If you handle your disappointments correctly, you will have greater strength to overcome those same temptations in the future. It’s a wonderful ancient story with a practical modern-day message.