Categories: uncategorized
Date: 05 January 2011 12:24:38
OT Gen 9:18 - 11:9 was a really great read, despite the geneology in the middle. It starts with pure humour. Noah who yesterday God stopped being anhiliated in the flood, because of his goodness, grows a vineyard and gets pissed on his crop. Then he passes out, naked, outside of his tent. One son comes along and basically goes and tells his brothers what's happened in that taking the mick way. Then the other two more seriously come and cover their dad up, being all embarressed and respectful. At the end of this who gets punished? Um, the kid who told his brothers....I found it all a bit humourous.
Then after one of those biblical family trees which gives you useless information - like why modern military stuff gets called Nimrod - you get to the tower of Bable. I thought I knew the story, but I didn't get it. I had one of those buzz moments I hoped this project would bring.
Reading through it appears that it wasn't the arrogance of the people building the tower which got God going, it was the potential of what they could do. This is a story which talks of progress and a move to modernity (despite being pre-modern). It starts with man moving out of one continent and developing building skills. The tower of Bable was an attempt at people achieving fame but it was also about unity and stability being achieved through teamwork and power. I find it facinating that God feared the results of their intelligence and unity and so decided that this civillisation had to be dealt with.
I also started thinking whilst reading it about the parallels with contemporary celebrity culture and progress. The internet, (with translation tools), yet again gives us one language and a unity together with potentially unlimited potential. We are also surrounded by people who want to make a name for themselves. So despite it being many thousands of years ago Bable is v. much a story of today.
NT Matt 4:23 - 5:20 was one of those v. familiar passages packed with soooo much it would take a week on retreat to really make any headway.
You begin with Jesus ministry; healing, teaching and preaching which was both within and outside the centres of "religion". He was a celebrity of his time, but one feels a reluctant celebrity.
The beatitudes are huge and I cannot attempt to get my head around them here. The best and most memorable talk I've heard on them came from Dave Andrews at Greenbelt a few years ago. This talk was related to a project he was starting. The website related to it all was Plan Be / we can be. I encourage you to go and explore this if you want to explore the beatitudes in more depth. This is the link to the Greenbelt Shop and the talk I was talking about. This is the link to the one he gave last year which I might well purchase when I have some money.
The end of the passage was challenging because after emphasising how the law, (a load of stuff we will get to later but which relates to tradition and God's intended way of living), still stands. Verse 20 is, "for I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven." I know that we have the whole death, ressurrection and general grace thing to go which can be argued to act as the over-ride button, but this is a seriously challenging verse!
Psalm 4:1 - 8 comes under the category of a cool, reassuring Psalm.
Basic message from today is: attitude matters and God matters!