Relevant

Today was a special day for me. After morning lectures I hurried (with a noticeable amount of anticipation) to the dining hall for lunch. In the dining hall I found what i expected - food and fun. However, today, along side the food and the fun was a book store. After a good few moments perusing the hundreds of books i came upon a rather substantial volume entitled Old Testament Ethics for the People of God by a gentleman called Chris Wright. This being a subject I'm somewhat intrigued by at the moment, I promptly paid the reduced price(£15) and took the book back to my room.

Special times...

As I open this book to read, the question I have is this: 'Do Christian people really believe that the whole of the Old Testament is completely relevant to the church and the world today?'

There are some countries where the Old Testament (or Hebrew Scriptures) is not a regularly read part of the Bible. There seems to be a number of believers who confess with their mouths to believing the Bible but spend little or no time seeking the LORD through Leviticus or Ecclesiastes or Song of Solomon.

However, I lay this aside for the moment. Let us agree that the Old Testament was accepted by Christ and the early apostles, and it is a justified and essential part of the Holy Scriptures of God. It is relevant to the Church and the World today.

If it is relevant, then, how is it relevant?

Is its relevance held solely in the necessity of knowing the history of the Jewish, and consequently the Christian, faith?

Is its relevance held only in seeing how God related to man pre-messiah?

Is its relevance held in knowing the mindset and rules which Jesus had and had to deal with?

Is it a combination of one or more of these things?

I think the Hebrew Scriptures hold their relevance to us today in, among other things, in revealing to us aspects and characteristics of the nature of God that are revealed to us nowhere else (at least not as blatantly) and yet which still exist within the nature of God at this precise moment in time/history/eternity.

The nature and character of the God of the Hebrew Scriptures is still the nature and the character of the God of today.

The giver of the law hasn't changed but those who are receiving it has.

I think we have to learn to read the Hebrew Scriptures as if we were Hebrews.

Not only this, we have to read them as if we were ancient hebrews; with the mindset of ancient Hebrews.

Read the pentacheuch as if you were Moses.

Listen to the Psalms as if you were David.

Mourn as if you were Job

Moan as if you were Solomon

Get outraged at the prophecies of Jeremiah.

Long to go home with the Exiles of Judah.

Long for social justice with Micah.

Fight for purity with King Asa.

Rediscover the law with Josiah.

Has anyone ever told you that the God of the Old Testament is Sexist? Did they tell you He was violent and unfair? Did they say he was unforgiving? Did they say he was pro ethnic cleansing and pro slavery? Did they say He was a contradiction? Did they say He was biased towards the Jews? Did they tell you He was a God of condemnation and anger? Did a Christian tell you God relates to man differently now?

What was your answer?

I once read this quote: "The New Testament is when God got religion"

I wonder if you're happy to settle for that?

I sure as heck aren't.

y

question: Why are you here?

Now, I'm not trying to be all deep and such. I'm not asking "Why do we exist?" or "Why do we exist in the here and now?" I'm not even asking about "How" you came to exist. Just Why are you here?

You are given only so many years on planet earth (at least on this planet earth, I have some understanding that there will be a new one at some point...), only so many precious days, only a few short hours in this neck of the woods and yet you choose to spend some of them reading my blog on the internet.

Why?

Why are you reading this? Do you expect me to say something new? I don't think many things are new under the sun... Do you think I will write something wise? Do you think I will reveal some great revelation? Do you think I can educate you?

Why are you here?

...

Why are you still here?

Is it out of love...? Is it out of respect...? Is it out of pity even? Is it out of boredom...?

Why am I here? Why do I still type? Do I still type because you still read or do you read because i still type?

Why are we both still here?

My time is precious. Precious to me perhaps, precious to others, maybe. more than definitely precious to God.

I wonder if i give Him my time very often. Maybe the time which should be for Him, I give to someone else. Maybe I give it to me.

I guess time belongs to Him anyway. Am I a thief? Do I steal from God His time?

Maybe God ordains that I should use my time not just on being with Him but on other people. People need time. Time is valuable. You give it to one who has value.

Maybe I should give it to those who feel value-less...

Maybe I should give my time to people who I would really rather not spend time with. Maybe I should no longer devalue them.

Who is worthy of your time?

Give it to others...

Give it to Him...

Give it to me..





(Scrap that last one, I'm just being selfish)