Tag: Stories Of Scripture

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Restoration – The Messenger of Jesus

 “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty.But who can endure the day of his coming?… For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. Malachi 3:1-2

We will conclude our story of scripture here, with the last book of the Old Testament. The book of Malachi was written sometime after both the temple and the Jerusalem walls had been rebuilt. Though the city and sanctuary were now in functioning order, the people of Jerusalem still yearned for the glory days when they had their own king ruling over them, if those days were any good, to begin with. Things just weren’t what they could be. The Jews longed for a Messiah, a rescuer, someone who could make their world whole.

God speaks through the Prophet Malachi to announce to the people that the “messenger of the covenant”, the Lord whom they desire, is on the way. In fact, the name Malachi means “messenger.”

The prophet announces that there is someone coming who will refine people’s hearts like fire and wash people of sin like strong soap. How will they know when he’s about to arrive? God will send a messenger ahead to prepare the way. The next chapter says that God will specifically send the prophet Elijah. You might remember that Elijah was the guy who called down fire on an altar way back when the kings were still ruling Israel.

When we turn the page from the Old Testament to the New Testament, we find out the identity of these two mysterious figures. The messenger preparing the way is John the Baptist, and the Lord who will refine and wash us clean is Jesus of Nazareth. The story of Scripture has led up to this son of a poor carpenter from a small town in Galilee. He is not rich or royal, but he is the Son of the living God, Emmanuel, God with us. He is slow to anger, abounding in love, champion of the poor, king of heaven, model of humility, savior of all humankind.

As we conclude this devotional series, could you tell someone the story of Scripture? Could you tell someone the story of Jesus Christ? Like the women returning from the tomb on Easter morning, will you be God’s messenger?

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Restoration – Milestones of Faith

With praise and thanksgiving, they sang to the Lord “He is good; his love toward Israel endures forever.” And all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid. But many… who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy.  Ezra 3:11

The Temple is being rebuilt. It is literally a dream come true. People are shouting and singing and playing music. They’ve traveled from foreign lands to resurrect the community of God from ashes and rubble. It should be the happiest day of these people’s lives. Yet, when the foundation is laid, some of the older members present begin to cry. Why? Are they happy tears because things are finally getting made right again? Or are they genuinely sad? Overcome with emotion because the old temple is never coming back? It’s difficult to say exactly why these people are weeping, but we can at least say that this is an emotional day for everyone.

Emotions have an important place in our faith journey. Sometimes we find ourselves riding an emotional high after worship. Perhaps we find ourselves convicted and ready to join a noble cause after hearing someone’s testimony. Maybe you’ve caught yourself crying while sharing your own experiences at camp or on retreat.

Emotions are a gift from God that help reinforce our spiritual experience, but it’s important that we do not mistake our emotions for real, solid, faith. The Jews have worked so incredibly hard to follow God’s call in rebuilding the temple. The crazy part is, they have only just started. This is just the groundbreaking ceremony. There are years of work still ahead of them, and they will face all kinds of challenges to get the job done.

The Christian journey is like building a temple. It takes a long time and a lot of hard work. There will be many emotional milestones to encourage us along the way. May we celebrate and give thanks for the joyful milestones in our own faith journey, but never lose sight of our goal in Christ.

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Restoration – Ezra and the Temple

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:  The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Ezra 1:1

In the British Museum, there’s a small stone artifact roughly the shape of a glass Coca-Cola bottle. It’s called The Cyrus Cylinder, and it is one of the few instances we have specific archeological evidence for something that happened in the Bible. The Cylinder is inscribed with an account from Cyrus, King of Persia, which is modern day Iran. It explains that the king spent time and money to restore many temples in the empire, especially ones that the Babylonians destroyed. This included building a new temple in Jerusalem.

The way the Book of Ezra tells the story, Cyrus makes the decision to organize the rebuilding of the temple after God stirs up his heart. It is God who works through this powerful foreign king to restore the sanctuary in Jerusalem, and Jews from all over will be called together to get the job done. God has a habit of stirring up hearts, and it’s our job to work together to get the job done.

One day, God stirred up the heart of UMC minister Rev. Brian Combs with the words from a poor man in his ministry. “The shelter lets out early in the morning and I’m on lockout until afternoon,” the man said. “In the park, there’s a chance of arrest; in the library a chance of getting kicked out, and middle of the day and middle of the week is when I struggle with addiction the most.  I’d rather hear the Good News than get high.”  Brian decided to do something about that, so he founded a church which meets at 12:30 PM on Wednesdays.

Rev. Brian and King Cyrus were both moved by the Holy Spirit to do the work of God. They had their hearts stirred, and they followed through with commitment and action. May God move our hearts to do God’s will and may our hands and our feet follow.

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Restoration – A Good Broken Heart

They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. Nehemiah 1:3-4

Nehemiah was a Jewish man working in the court of the King of Persia. The Persians had defeated the Babylonians many years before and were much kinder. The Jewish people had taken to heart the instructions from Jeremiah to put down roots and get on with their lives in exile. Nehemiah was born and raised outside of Jerusalem. Eventually, some Jews moved back to Jerusalem, and they sent word back to Nehemiah that the conditions in their ancestral home were awful. Nehemiah breaks down and cries. He is broken-hearted, devastated. He rallies himself together enough to go to God in prayer.

The city of Jerusalem is more than walls and buildings. It is supposed to be the place for God’s community here on earth. Living in exile has been tolerable, but Jerusalem is the dream. It is where God’s people are able to worship, read Scripture, and celebrate holy days. It is where real fellowship happens, and the family of God is made stronger. Without walls, not only does Jerusalem look unimpressive, but it is also vulnerable to raiders and foreign invaders. It is unsafe and inhospitable and unsustainable for the community of God.

Nehemiah’s experience makes us ask ourselves, where is our breaking point? Do we care about God’s community as much? Would I ever be so moved about the plight of a city or people? Do I care as much about the community of the church or my small group?

Over the course of the book, Nehemiah raises funds and recruits volunteers and goes about the difficult and dangerous work of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. He was broken by what he witnessed, asked God for guidance, and put in the work to make things right. The fact is, there is so much in our world today that should break our hearts and motivate us to do God’s work. Give God permission to break your heart so that you might be a better servant of the community of faith.

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Restoration- The End of Exile

Comfort, comfort my people, says your God; Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for…A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:1-3

The Prophet Isaiah is given this oracle to speak to the people of Israel when they near the end of the Exile. God is calling out to Israel to give them comfort. It’s an important verse in the book of Isaiah because it presents a huge shift in the message of the book. In fact, some people call the following few chapters the “Book of Comfort” because the tone is one of support and encouragement. The Jews are about to go home.

The second part of this passage talks about building a road in the wilderness. A long straight path on which God will travel. But where is God going, and where has God been? Remember that one of the most important themes of Scripture is that God is always with God’s people. The Lord was with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, David, Deborah, Ruth, Esther. When Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple was burned, God did not migrate up to heaven or float out into the desert. God went into exile too.

Christian writer Bob Goff tells a story about a tradition he started with his children and neighbors more than twenty years ago. On New Year’s Day, he sent his kids door-to-door to invite everyone to a parade they would be having later that day. The only catch was that no one would be allowed to watch the parade. They all had to march in the parade together.

Isaiah imagines the journey back to Jerusalem like a parade with the living God leading the way. Many generations from now, John the Baptist will use this very scripture to talk about his purpose in preparing the way for Jesus Christ. John will literally go into the wilderness beyond Jerusalem to preach and turn people’s hearts back to God in anticipation for the ministry of Jesus. Imagine God walking side-by-side with you, offering comfort, support, and encouragement.

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Exile – Esther

Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, … And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

Esther 4:13-14

The Book of Esther is another tale from the Exile. Esther is Jewish woman born in the kingdom of Persia where her parents ended up after the fall of Jerusalem. The first half of the book is kind of like Cinderella. The Persian king and queen have a falling out, so the King goes shopping for a new Queen. Esther, an orphan Jewish girl, goes through a year-long makeover process. She is eventually chosen as the new queen, but she keeps her identity as a Jew a secret because her uncle Mordecai, who works for the king, tells her to.

One day a plot is revealed that a new law would destroy the life of every Jew in the kingdom. Mordecai sends word to Esther that she has the opportunity to save her people by appearing before the king and asking him to change the law. Esther is terrified of upsetting the king. Lots of people had lost their heads – literally – by appearing before the king without an invitation.

It’s clear that Esther has never thought of herself as having any power. She’s spent her whole life at the bottom of society because she was a woman, a minority, and young. But now that she’s queen, Esther has the opportunity to use her power to help others. Mordecai hints that God might have made her queen for just this reason. She can be the heroine of this story, but if she is too scared to act,  then God would have to find someone else.

Every day, the Holy Spirit offers us opportunities to participate in God’s work in the world. It is a privilege and a responsibility to be servants in the Kingdom of God. Ephesians 2:10 reminds us that we are created in Christ Jesus to do good works, and Esther 4:14 reminds us that if we refuse God’s purpose will still be done. You have the power to change things for the better, so in what parts of your life are you tempted to remain silent?

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Exile – The Fiery Furnace

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him…the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18

It was a custom of Babylon when they conquered a place to take some of the young people and make them servants in the court of the king. This is what happened to three guys named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These guys served the Babylonian king faithfully but still practiced their own religion. After a while, King Nebuchadnezzar decided he needed to double down, and make these Jews into real, idol-worshiping Babylonians. He built a massive statue, brought all his officials, and told them all to worship it. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused. They were thrown into a furnace as punishment, but they were rescued by a mysterious human-like figure.

It’s unclear if it was Jesus or an angel, but God showed up in a monumental way to save these boys who stood up for their faith. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego believed that God was able to deliver them. They believed that their faith in God was worth more than anything else in this world. They believed that no fear would get in the way of what God had planned for them.

God saving them from the fire is indeed remarkable, BUT the real miracle of this story is not just that they were saved from the fire. The REAL MIRACLE is that these three young men had the courage, the fullness of heart, the assurance of God’s love for them, and their love for God that they would be willing to walk into that fire. The real miracle, the real Courage in this story, is not just in what God did, but in what these young men said: “…we do not need to defend ourselves … the God we serve can deliver us … but even if he does not….” May we all have courageous faith just like the young men in this story.

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Exile – The Letter to the Exiles

This is what the Lord says… seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile.…When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:7, 10-11

BibleGateway.com looked at data gathered from people looking up passages on its website to determine the most popular Bible verses and put together a list of the top 100. Number one was, somewhat predictably, John 3:16, “For God so loved the world…” Number two was Jeremiah 29:11.  It’s a very popular Bible verse to put on greeting cards and picture frames, but it is important to know where in the story of Scripture that this verse appears.

This verse appears in a letter that God tells the Prophet Jeremiah to write to the people living in Exile. The letter tells the people that God has issued judgement. The sentence has been handed down from on high, and Israel has received seventy years in exile as punishment for their sins. Jeremiah explains that everything is happening according to God’s plan. They are being punished, and they should settle down and make the best of things. God will bring them prosperity, eventually, but right now they are going to be in Babylon for a good, long while.

The challenging thing God tells them to do is to “seek the peace and prosperity of the city” of Babylon. They are not supposed to sulk or act out with violence. They are supposed to settle down and live a normal life: build houses, have children, plant farms, establish careers. They will flourish in Babylon if they take time to look at the good things available all around them.

God has a plan for everyone’s life, but we might be tempted to think that God’s plan is somewhere in a far-off place, or we haven’t gotten to it yet. Mostly, God’s will is for us to flourish and live worshipful lives regardless of our circumstances. May we not be so distracted by God’s promises for the future that we lose sight of the good things provided for us today.

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Exile – By the Rivers of on Babylon

By the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps for…our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!” How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land? Psalm 137:1-4

When the people of Israel arrived in Babylon, they were utterly traumatized. They had endured years of siege warfare, meaning they had spent months hungry and terrified at the army which waited outside their city gates. When the invading army finally made its way in, many people were killed. Those who survived the siege and the war now found themselves in the heart of the enemy’s country. Their captors mocked them, adding insult to injury, by asking them to sing a song of joy.

The people could not imagine singing a joyful song during such a terrible time, so instead they sing songs of lament. In fact, the Book of the Bible known as Lamentations contains song after song written about the trauma of the Exile.

Lament is the process of expressing one’s sadness or frustration to God. It is a holy practice that is cherished in the Bible but is sometimes missing from the church today. People are hesitant to share their sadness with God fearing it makes them look faithless. Often, we rather brush our trauma under the rug rather than process through it.

This passage has a special place in the modern world. In 1970, a Jamaican musical group called The Melodians released a reggae version of this Psalm. It was originally banned because of its Rastafarian background, but, eventually, it became a number one hit and a favorite song in gospel worship. Today, the lament of Israel takes on new meaning when churches sing these words as a call for social justice and Black liberation.

When you face trials or tragedy, you might be tempted to bottle up your pain or dismiss your suffering as lack of faith. However, God wants us to engage with our pain and the tradition of lament helps us do just that. Search your heart. What kind of pain is weighing on your heart? Take it to God through the practice of lament.

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Exile – The Fall of Jerusalem

An official of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. He set fire to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building, he burned down… he carried into exile the people who remained in the city. 2 Kings 25:9, 11

A few years ago, archaeologists in Israel discovered 2000-year-old date palm seeds in the Masada fortress on the edge of the Dead Sea. The seeds were preserved in the hot and dry conditions of the desert and had likely been there since the time of Jesus. A researcher decided to plant these seeds on a whim to see if they’d grow. Several of the seeds sprouted up from the pot, making them the oldest seeds in the world to do so. The plant began to grow so big they had to move it to a bigger pot.

In 586 BC, roughly 2500 years ago, the Babylonian army broke through the walls of Jerusalem. They ransacked the beautiful temple dedicated to the Lord, and most of the city was burned to the ground. Anyone watching would have assumed that was the end of the story of God. The temple was destroyed, the city was conquered, and the people were gone. God promised Abraham a nation with land. God promised David a King on the throne. Now there was nothing.

However, unlike their northern neighbors, the story of the people of Judah does not end in total destruction. The Babylonians kidnapped many of the inhabitants of Jerusalem and took them away to serve in Babylon. Thankfully, the people of Judah retained much of their identity while living in a foreign land. When they left Jerusalem, the people took with them their holy books, their traditions, in their dedication to the living God.

Like the 2000-year-old date palm seed, the people of God began to bide their time. Their nation was preserved in the hot dry climate of the Babylonian empire. Israel’s family tree was once like a mighty oak, but the people leaving in exile were just a small seed. Sometimes, God allows us to experience exile so that we may come back stronger than ever.