Background: Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job
Ezra
This book, which follows 2 Chronicles, skips the Babylonian captivity and resumes the story of the people coming back into the land, and rebuilding their lives, their worship, and the temple in Jerusalem.
Nehemiah
This old testament book tells the story of the rebuilding of Jerusalem, especially the walls. Nehemiah likely came back to Jerusalem earlier than Ezra, but the two of them worked together to institute religious reform and covenant renewal.
Esther
This short book tells the story of Esther, a Jewish girl, who was used by God to save the Jewish nation after she became the Queen of Persia. It also explains the origins of the feast of Purim.
Job
This old testament book tells the story of Job, a patriarch likely contemporary with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Through it we learn that sometimes we experience suffering, not for something we’ve done wrong, but to fulfill God’s purposes. We must learn to trust God completely because He is sovereign.
**Very Visual Devotion (with manipulatives)
Ezra
This book, which follows 2 Chronicles, skips the Babylonian captivity and resumes the story of the people coming back into the land, and rebuilding their lives, their worship, and the temple in Jerusalem.
Nehemiah
This old testament book tells the story of the rebuilding of Jerusalem, especially the walls. Nehemiah likely came back to Jerusalem earlier than Ezra, but the two of them worked together to institute religious reform and covenant renewal.
Esther
This short book tells the story of Esther, a Jewish girl, who was used by God to save the Jewish nation after she became the Queen of Persia. It also explains the origins of the feast of Purim.
Job
This old testament book tells the story of Job, a patriarch likely contemporary with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Through it we learn that sometimes we experience suffering, not for something we’ve done wrong, but to fulfill God’s purposes. We must learn to trust God completely because He is sovereign.
**Very Visual Devotion (with manipulatives)
Devotions in Ezra
Ezra 1:5 - When God Stirs Up Your Spirit
Devotions in Nehemiah
Nehemiah 8:10b - The Joy of The LORD (Holy Day Lesson - Trumpets)
Nehemiah 9:21 - I Love to Tell the Story
Devotions in Esther
Esther 4:14 - Survive or Thrive
Devotions in Job
Job 2:10 - How Do You React to Disaster?
**Job 5:9 - Wonders Without Number
**Job 12:7 - Invention By Observation
Job 12:23 - God's Sovereignty
Job 16:19 - Our Witness is Jesus Christ
Job 28:28 - Reflected in Your Life
**Job 35:10 - A Song in the Night
**Job 36:24 - Magnify the LORD
**Job 37:13 - Swirling Clouds
Job 38:2 - Darken Counsel
**Job 38:4 - Our Creator God
Ezra 1:5 - When God Stirs Up Your Spirit
Devotions in Nehemiah
Nehemiah 8:10b - The Joy of The LORD (Holy Day Lesson - Trumpets)
Nehemiah 9:21 - I Love to Tell the Story
Devotions in Esther
Esther 4:14 - Survive or Thrive
Devotions in Job
Job 2:10 - How Do You React to Disaster?
**Job 5:9 - Wonders Without Number
**Job 12:7 - Invention By Observation
Job 12:23 - God's Sovereignty
Job 16:19 - Our Witness is Jesus Christ
Job 28:28 - Reflected in Your Life
**Job 35:10 - A Song in the Night
**Job 36:24 - Magnify the LORD
**Job 37:13 - Swirling Clouds
Job 38:2 - Darken Counsel
**Job 38:4 - Our Creator God
When God Stirs Up Your Spirit
“Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem.” ~Ezra 1:5
When Judah had been taken captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, they were eager to get back to Jerusalem. But Jeremiah told them they would be in captivity for 70 years. So they might as well settle down. In Jeremiah 29:4-14, he tells them to build houses, plant gardens, take wives and have children, and take spouses for their children so that they will have children. One additional thing Jeremiah told them: pray for the place where you’re living, because if the place is prosperous, you also will prosper. Eventually the people did settle down and put down roots.
After 70 years, God stirred the spirits of the people that He wanted to go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. But they’d settled down in Babylon. They’d gotten comfortable. Who would have been willing to go back to Jerusalem for work hard, to face opposition? It wasn’t an easy task facing them. But God would help them and King Cyrus was willing to finance the rebuilding out of the royal treasuries. (Note: not everyone was supposed to go back to Jerusalem; Esther is a book about those who stayed in Babylon.)
Here, today, we are not in captivity, but we are strangers in a foreign land. We are sojourners here, looking for God’s kingdom. This is not our home; we just a-passin’ through. But our God tells us in Luke 19:13 to “occupy until I come.” So we get comfortable. We build houses and plant gardens and get married. And there’s nothing wrong with that - as long we don’t so comfortable that we’re not willing to have our spirits stirred by God to do His will. Regardless of the work or the opposition, our goal should be to serve God in whatever capacity He desires. The lesson from Ezra is that, if it’s God’s will, then regardless of the difficulty or the opposition, God will be with us.
How willing are you to have your spirit stirred by God?
The Joy of the LORD
for the joy of the LORD is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10b
This is one of those Biblical phrases which finds it way onto coffee mugs, wall hangings, and embroidered pillows. But over the years, I’ve looked at it and thought, “What does it mean? What is the joy of the LORD?”
Why were the people grieved? They had assembled to celebrate the Feast of Trumpets. Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites were reading the Book of the Law to them and explaining its meaning. The people were so convicted of their sin. They, as a people, had just come back from captivity because of their sin. They must have felt that there were so many things in God’s law that they were not doing; it was overwhelming. And they wept.
But Ezra, Nehemiah, and the Levites told the people not to weep, not to grieve. Why? Was their sin no big deal? Were they just to shrug it off as of no account? No. Nehemiah 9:1 completely repudiates that idea. Just as soon as the holy days were over, the people assembled in sackcloth, fasting because of their sins. So why were they not to weep and grieve at this time? The people were told, “This day is holy to the Lord your God” and “the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
What is the joy of the LORD?
Zephaniah 3:17 is a great companion scripture to Nehemiah 3:17:
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
We are given a parable, a picture, of what this might look like in the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-21. Specifically in verse 20, we see the father having compassion on his approaching prodigal, running to greet him, embracing him, and kissing him. So with that picture in mind, read Zephaniah 3:17 again.
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
God is mighty to save - but save from what? God will quiet you by his love - how did God show His love for us? God saved us from our sin - because He so loved us that He gave His Son for us (John 3:16).
And we look forward to that day, when our faith that God has saved us is made sight. What day is that? It is when Jesus Christ returns. What day will He return? The Feast of Trumpets.
Wait a minute! What day is it in Nehemiah 8:10 that they were no to grieve on because it was a day holy to the Lord? It was the first day of the seventh month, the Feast of Trumpets. They were no to grieve on this day because it foreshadows the Feast of Trumpets when Jesus comes back to save once and for all those who are His. On that day, according to 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, we’re changed from this carnal, perishable nature to spiritual, imperishable life, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump.
And then, on that day, we will say:
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
and we will weep and grieve no more. Our sin is gone. Our God has saved us. The joy of the LORD is our strength.
I Love to Tell the Story
“Forty years you sustained them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.” ~ Nehemiah 9:21
I love the hymn, “I Love to Tell the Story!” It’s a great hymn. But what story is it that the song is talking about? Is it about dogs digging tunnels and chasing squirrels? Is it about our summer vacation? No, it’s about Jesus and his love. That story, the one about Jesus and his love, that story starts in Genesis, not in Matthew. It starts when God the Father and God the Son created the world and made man in their image. It is shown when God called Abram, when God sent Moses to rescue his people from Egypt, when God anointed David king over Israel, and when God brought the captives back from Babylon.
So look at Nehemiah 9:21. Why is this verse here? We might expect it to be in Exodus or in the Psalms or in Joshua. But why is it in Nehemiah?
Nehemiah is retelling the story of God’s love and long-suffering with His people. He’s encouraging them to renew their covenant with God. He’s exhorting them to be steadfast against adversity and difficulties. So he’s reciting God’s provision to those who love Him and who are called by His name.
You, too, need to recite God’s provision in your life personally. You need to remind yourself of what God has done for you, how He has blessed you, how He has guided you. It builds your faith and the faith of those you tell. When the going gets tough, it encourages you to persevere and it encourages others who hear you. It honors and glorifies God.
You may be building a wall with opposition and with difficulty all around you. You need to tell the story of Jesus and His love. As for me, I love to tell the story.
Survive or Thrive
“. . . And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
My mom had a hoya vine as far back as I can remember. It was in a pot in the corner, with its own trellis to climb. Then, in the summer of 1976, my dad took out the wall between the garage and the living room, more than doubling the size of the living room. He built a huge, beautiful fireplace in one corner and in the opposite end, with the leftover bricks, he built a planter for the hoya vine. That vine loved it. Not only did it spread out, it started blooming. The hoya vine has the most beautiful flower clusters. It really responded to being planted in a new place.
I couldn’t help thinking about Mom’s hoya vine as we read through the book of Esther this week. Because of Esther’s natural beauty she was given the opportunity to be queen. Because of her graciousness and sweetness, she won the favor of the people around her. But it was because of God’s grace that she actually became queen. Once in that position, she was faced with a choice. When Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews became known, she could have stayed quiet. No one knew her ancestry. But Mordacai pointed out that it could have been just for this reason that God made her queen. “. . . And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)
What incredible implications this has! There were enemies of the Jews. The Jews were in danger of being destroyed in the Persian kingdom. Nevertheless, our Sovereign God had made a way for them to be saved - through Esther’s position as queen. But she still had to step out in faith and say something. It wasn’t enough that she was queen; she had to take action.
The ramifications of this reverberate in our lives as well. Like Esther, some of the people around us may not know what we believe about God. Again like Esther, it might be more advantageous to us in the short term to be quiet about those beliefs. It might mean that we’re accepted by our peers; we keep our job; we are promoted; it could even mean that we save our lives. But that’s all short term. In the long run, it may be that we’ll find out that God put us where we are so that we could take a stand for Him, so that we could be a light in a darkened world, so that we could witness to someone who needs to know Christ and be saved. Who knows why we were put into the position we now occupy? Perhaps it was for such a time as this.
There’s a song Casting Crowns sings called “Thrive.”
Here in this worn and weary land
Where many a dream has died
Like a tree planted by the water
We never will run dry (chorus)
So living water flowing through
God we thirst for more of You
Fill our hearts and flood our souls
With one desire
Just to know You and
To make You known
We lift Your name on High
Shine like the sun, make darkness run and hide
We know we were made for so much more
Than ordinary lives
It's time for us to more than just survive
We were made to thrive
Into Your word we're digging deep
To know our Father's heart
Into the world we're reaching out
To show them who You are (chorus)
Joy Unspeakable, Faith Unsinkable, Love Unstoppable, Anything is possible (chorus)
We were planted in a worn and weary land, much like Esther was. Because of her relationship to God, she was in a position to save her people. She was like Mom’s hoya vine that bloomed where it was planted. Esther had the option of being quiet and just surviving the danger. She had the courage and faith in God to step forward and do more than just survive. She thrived.
What about us? God has planted you in a special place. Are you blooming, or are you just quietly killing time until Jesus returns? As Casting Crowns sings, “It’s time for us to more than just survive; we were made to thrive.”
How Do You React to Disaster?
But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. ~ Job 2:10
If you look up “foolish” for Job 2:10, you’ll find that this is the only time this word is used in the Bible. But it’s closely related to a word that is used more frequently. That’s because “foolish,” as used here, is the feminine form of nabal (#5036) which means stupid, folly, vile, especially impious. It also just happens to be the name of a stupid man who repaid David’s kindness with arrogance and foolishness. Nabal was appropriately named, it would seem! (1 Samuel 25)
So, Job’s wife tells Job to curse God and die. And he tells her that she’s speaking foolishly. Contrast her actions with Job’s: he’s commended in James 5:7-11 as an example of steadfastness and patience. It’s because of his attitude. He’s willing to trust God regardless of whether God sends good or evil.
What? Evil!? Well, not evil in the sense that we normally think of it. This word evil is the opposite of good, pleasant, prosperity. It means calamity or disaster. And we see it used in Isaiah 45:7 where the context helps to define what it means. God says he forms light and creates darkness; He makes peace and creates evil. It’s the opposite of peace. It’s calamity.
Similarly in Jeremiah 29:11 God says He knows the plans He has for His people - plans for welfare and not for evil, to give them hope and a future. The opposite of welfare, hope, and a future is calamity or disaster.
So why does God send calamity or disaster into our lives? Maybe, as Job’s friends are telling him, it’s because of the sin in our lives. Or, it could be for our growth. To get us out of our comfort zone, to get us to stretch ourselves, sometimes God sends some stress. They are not called growing pains for no reason! A third reason might be because God knows we can handle the adversity just fine, but our neighbor needs us to be God’s hands ministering to them when they go through the same adversity down the road. Or maybe it’s like what was happening to Job - to prove that I will praise God regardless of what happens in my life. I will trust Him always. I will view Him as my God, not as my genie in the bottle who exists only to serve my needs.
But in the end, like Job, we may never know why adversity comes into our lives. Also like Job, we just need to trust God. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Perhaps we just need to be quiet and trust that He’s got the reins. Psalm 37:7 tells us to trust in the Lord and to wait patiently for Him.
When calamity comes, trust God. Don’t be a nabal!
**Wonders Without Number
the One who does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.
Job 5:9
Materials needed: leaves, coffee filters, jars, rubbing alcohol
https://www.123homeschool4me.com/why-do-leaves-change-color-science_52/
God’s creation is amazing! This time of year we are often amazed at the changing colors of the trees. But do you know why this happens? During the growing season, carbon dioxide and water combines with chlorophyll to produce oxygen and glucose. We use the oxygen (and breathe out carbon dioxide). The tree uses the glucose to grow. As the autumnal equinox approaches, the decreasing sunlight and temperatures causes the trees to move into a resting period. The leaves use up the chlorophyll which is the chemical which is used in photosynthesis and which gives them their green color. Once the chlorophyll is used up, the color of the leaves is revealed - it actually was there all the time. And you can prove that by doing the same experiment with green leaves instead of the colorful fall leaves.
You know how God gives us object lessons - things all around us which help us to understand spiritual realities? The fall leaves made me think of the verses which speak about us being transformed and conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
Romans 8:29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Chlorophyll which gives the leaf its green color masks the real color of the leaves. In a similar way, once we are a new creature in Christ (a new leaf), our old way of doing things (the chlorophyll) has to be striped away until our actions are truly indicative of who we are (colorful leaf). Isn’t it interesting that this happens at the end of the year, the end of the growing season - almost as if God’s reminding us that we spend our entire lives seeking Him and being changed into the image of His Son. The colorful fall leaves also make me think of the Feast of Tabernacles - a time when we are living in Christ - which happens as we are conformed to His image.
It also makes me think of 1John 3:2, Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
Our true colors won't be seen 'til then.
***Invention By Observation
But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; Job 12:7
Materials: glow stick, velcro, suction cup, scotch tape, photo of St. Louis arch, paper airplane, sponge, candle, alligator clip, bird-nose pliers
Do you know what each of these things has in common? They were all inspired by nature, or more precisely, an inventor saw something in nature which he copied to create something we use. For instance,
Glow sticks were inspired by fireflies.
Velcro was inspired by the thistle burdock.
Sonar was inspired by bats’ and dolphins’ use of echolocation.
Flight was inspired by watching birds, how they are formed and how they achieve lift.
Bullet trains were improved by watching the kingfisher.
Suction cups were inspired by octopus, but aren’t nearly as effective as the octopus’ suction cups which have ridges and can grasp things which have uneven surfaces.
Scotch tape was inspired by geckos whose feet are covered by tiny hairs.
Flippers were inspired by ducks’ webbed feet.
Submarines were inspired by studying whales.
St. Louis arch (and similar architecture) were inspired by the design of an egg shell.
How amazing it is that our God created the world around us to be so detailed and incredible! And then He created us with brains to use, to observe, to mimic and create. And when we do “create” something new, we realize the truth that there’s nothing new under the sun. God has already created it; we’re just building with His building blocks, using His creation as inspiration. So . . . keep an eye out. See what you can see in His creation. Be inspired! And remember to praise God for Who He is and what He’s done!!
Check out these links for more information:
https://www.businessinsider.com/6-man-made-inventions-that-already-exist-in-nature-biomimicry-2016-5#shinkansen-bullet-train--you-can-thank-the-kingfisher-4
https://www.dawn.com/news/1297127
God’s Sovereignty
He makes nations great, and he destroys them; he enlarges nations, and leads them away. Job 12:23
As we study ancient history, we talk about the ebb and flow of different nations. They become dominant, and then sometimes they disappear from history. But we study history from the archaeological evidence left behind, perhaps some scrolls or cuneiform tablets, and from stories which have been passed down through the centuries. We don’t have a lot of details about the decisions they made or their attitude towards God. The supposition for the eventual fall of the Egyptian empire was their lack of iron. But Job says that it is God who makes nations great. It is God who destroys them. Likewise, Paul says, “For their is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1).
Can you think of any nations which were destroyed, or lead away, by God? The obvious one is found in Exodus 5 - 14. It is the deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. The Hebrews did not fight their way out of Egypt with swords and spears. Egypt drove them out after the nation, and its gods, had been destroyed by ten plagues from God.
The other nation was Israel. Because of their apostasy towards God, God sent them into captivity at the hands of the Assyrians. 2 Kings 18:11 says that the king of Assyria led the Israelites away, but he was merely the tool God used to execute judgment on His faithless people.
So, if nations are in God’s hand, if He controls their destiny, then what should we do? Some take a fatalistic view; they shrug and figure that God’s going to work things out the way He wants them to anyway. They figure it doesn’t really matter what they do. But that’s not Biblical. Deuteronomy 17:14-20 talks specifically about when the Israelites would go into the promised land and eventually would want a king. They were not to choose a king who was a foreigner. Furthermore, the king was not to acquire many horses, many wives, or excessive silver and gold. The king had to write for himself a copy of the law, approved by the Levitical priests, and he was to read it all the days of his life. He was to obey God - if he wanted to continue long in his kingdom.
There are many interesting details here. First, it matters who you put over you. If you have the ability to choose, if you don’t live in a dictatorship, then you have a responsibility to choose wisely. A wise choice starts with not choosing to put a foreigner over you. Someone who is not of your country is definitely not going to have your best interest at heart! Implicit in this directive is the idea that you have to choose the best person for the job. You don’t choose the most popular guy or the one you think can win. You don’t even choose the one who sounds like he’s going to give you the most money - because politicians will do that. You choose the one who loves God and follows Him. Yes! You have to look at the values and actions of a person and judge how they line up against what God says is right and wrong. God has the right to set the standard. Deuteronomy 17:20 says that if the ruler doesn’t love God and doesn’t obey God, his reign will not continue.
Secondly, the ruler over you is not to acquire many horses - which is like amassing war machines to depend upon his own strength in battle instead of depending upon God. He is not to acquire many wives because they can lead his heart away from serving God. Thirdly, the ruler was not to accumulate much wealth for himself. He’s not supposed to be in that position for himself, for what he can get, to show people how important he is; he’s supposed to be the ruler of God’s people to lead them in a godly way.
If the ruler doesn’t follow God with all of his heart, Deuteronomy 17 says, then his kingdom will not continue long. Think about that. If the ruler is deposed, many times it means someone has to depose him. Whether it’s internal revolt or external conflict, it causes trouble for the people who live in that nation. There’s going to be unrest, economic turmoil, and problems for everyone who lives in that nation (2 Kings 21:10-15). There can be a lot of turmoil involved in a nation’s decline: Egypt is Exhibit A. So it matters enormously who the leader of the country is!
Another point to glean from this verse in Job is the concept that God is in control. If you live in an ungodly nation, you are fighting against the ungodliness around you, you are seeking God with all of your heart and what is right in His sight, then you can take heart. The ungodly rule over you will not last long. Now we know that the definition of “long” can vary. For instance, the son of Hezekiah, Manasseh, was the worst king in Judah (at least until the end), and he reigned for 55 years. He was so bad that God had him captured with hooks, bound in chains, and taken captive to Assyria. But once in Assyria, Manasseh repented and God restored him to his throne in Judah (2 Chronicles 33:10-17).
What you do matters. What a country’s leader does matters. But ultimately, God is in control. He is sovereign. God has a plan, and He working things out for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
Our Witness is Jesus Christ
Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven, and he who testifies for me is on high. Job 16:19
Job has been accused of doing something wrong. In fact, for nine chapters, his friends insist that he has sinned, and has sinned grievously! The chapter titles in my ESV say: The Innocent Prosper, You’ve Done Wrong, God Punishes the Wicked, the Wicked Suffer, and my favorite is Zophar’s accusation: You Deserve Worse. Wow! These are supposed to be Job’s friends.
Job responds that his witness that he hasn’t done wrong is in heaven. He’s talking about Jesus Christ. That word witness means “a person giving legal evidence.” It’s the same word that is used in Psalm 89:37 of the moon being a faithful witness. This is a dependable witness that will hold up in court! It’s the idea portrayed in Romans 1:9: “For God is my witness. . .”
Jesus Christ is our witness, who stands at the right hand of God. In the stoning of Stephen, Stephen saw Jesus - His witness - standing at the right hand of God, watching the injustice. Acts 7:54
As our witness, Jesus doesn’t just stand by and do nothing. He is also our advocate. He’s our lawyer. He’s our intercessor, intervening with God on our behalf. Hebrews 7:25 says that Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost . . . since he always lives to make intercession for them.”
If you’ve ever been falsely accused, you know that it is very hard to take. Sometimes it’s never resolved. Sometimes you can’t prove to your accuser that you are innocent - like Job - and you just have to live with the injustice. Sometimes, the injustice means that you die, falsely accused, like Stephen and Jesus.
What did Jesus do when He was falsely accused? Isaiah 53:7 and Matthew 26:63 record that “like a lamb before shearers is silent” so he opened not His mouth. Jesus didn’t answer them, except when the High Priest strongly compelled him to. It wasn’t going to change the outcome. And in Job’s case, all of his protestations didn’t change the mind of his friends.
So when you are accused, what should you do? You can try to defend yourself, but if that doesn’t work, remember that your witness is in heaven, and He who testifies for you is on high. God knows.
I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.” Job 19:25
Do you know this hymn: Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it!
We sing this song joyfully, triumphantly - at least that’s the mood, the emotion, portrayed by the music. But why? Why are we joyful? What does it mean to be redeemed?
You can redeem stamps at the store. One of the area grocery stores is doing a stamp collection/redemption promotion for cookware. Or you can redeem a coupon. If you give them a coupon, the store will take so much off your purchase. Or you can redeem a treasure note. If you take the treasury note to the bank, they’ll redeem it for its current accumulated value from the U.S. government.
Redeem means to buy back. When we’re talking of human beings in a spiritual sense, we’re talking about buying back from sin and from the penalty of sin, death.
Romans 6:16 . . . you are slaves of the one whom you obey . . .
Romans 6:18 . . . having been set free from sin . . .
Romans 6:22 . . . now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God . . .
Titus 2:14 . . . to redeem us from all unrighteousness . . .
Psalm 130: 8 . . . and he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Revelation 1:5 . . . who freed us from our sins . . .
Galatians 3:13 . . . Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law . . .(The law is not the curse!! The penalty of breaking the law is death, which is the curse of the law.)
Still, this spiritual concept can be beyond our ability to grasp and understand. So God, in His mercy, gave us the physical to help us to begin to comprehend what an incredible thing it is that He has done for us. It’s found in Leviticus 25. If a person became very poor, sold their inheritance, but still was so poor that they had to sell themselves, there was still hope. In the year of Jubilee, the 50th year, all debts were canceled; the land inheritance reverted to the original owner (in most cases - see Leviticus 25:29-30), and the people were released from their debts. But if you had to sell yourself at the start of that 50-year cycle, the Jubilee could see like a long ways away! However, there was another way to be released. God provided for the kinsman-redeemer, the relative closest to that person, to have the option to buy him back, to pay his debt - either for the land or for the person - so that he didn’t have to work as a slave.
In Ruth’s case, Boaz acquired, as a kinsman-redeemer, the property of Ruth’s dead husband, his inheritance in Israel, and Ruth as well. It was truly a rescue for Ruth and Naomi because being a poor widow in Israel was often a dire life.
With this physical example to draw on, God tells us that Jesus Christ, the Holy One of Israel, is our Redeemer (Isaiah 54:5) and our Jubilee (Israel 61, Luke 4:18-19), redeeming us with His blood (1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 1 Corinthians 7:22-23; 1 Corinthians 1:31). Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has released us from the penalty we incurred when we sinned. We were slaves to sin, just like the person who sold themselves into bondage. We had to serve our sinful nature because we had no other recourse (Romans 5:12-21). But Jesus Christ bought us back from sin with His blood, that we might consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11). Because of that, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:12).
But think about where this whole discussion started today. It started with Job and his statement to his three friends, those miserable comforters:
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,
yet in my flesh I shall see God. (Job 19:25-26)
Job knew that His Redeemer lives, that he would stand again on the last day on the earth!
Zechariah 14:4 On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives . . . and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two.
1 Thessalonians 1:10 . . . “ wait for his Son from heaven, . . . Jesus who delivers us fromt he wrath to come.
Job knew that after his skin was destroyed, yet in his flesh (at the resurrection) he would see God
1 John 3:2 . . . we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
1 Corinthians 15:42, 51-54 . . .What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. . . We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory.
I love the hymn,
Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.
Redeemed through His infinite mercy.
His child and forever I am.
But there’s another hymn that I love. It speaks of my Redeemer, who ever lives to make intercession for me (Hebrews 7:25), who is seated at the right hand of God (Hebrews 8:1).
I know that my Redeemer liveth
and on the earth again will stand.
I know eternal life He giveth,
that grace and power are in His hand.
I know His promise never faileth,
the word He speaks, it cannot die;
Tho’ cruel death my flesh assaulted,
Yet I shall see Him by and by.
I know my mansion He prepareth,
That where He is there I may be.
O wondrous thought, for me He careth,
And He at last will come for me.
I love knowing that Job had this knowledge. I love knowing that in the face of the suffering he was enduring, he still had the faith to believe, to have that blessed assurance of the Redeemer and the resurrection.
Reflected in Your Life
And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’ Job 28:28
Have you ever done something really dumb? Have you ever felt totally inadequate? Have you ever felt completely stupid, especially when you want to show well? Most people, me included, want to have wisdom and understanding. In this verse, God Himself is telling Job what wisdom and understanding are. Let’s work through the words.
Evil is Strongs #7451 (ra), which means bad, inferior, wicked, evil, unethical, immoral activity against other people in speech or in deed. It depicts a very negative attitude toward God or man. That’s something I want to definitely turn away from.
The phrase “turn away from” is Strongs #5493 and means “to turn aside, to forsake, to put away.”
Understanding, then, is to turn aside from bad behavior. It is something you can do. You have a choice.
In the first phrase, “Lord” is Adonai (Strongs #136), which is a plural noun meaning proprietor, master, Lord, ruler, commander. In this case, we’re talking about both God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ that we’re to fear.
But this word “fear” is not defined as terror, as is commonly used today. Rather, it is yirah (Strongs #3374), which means reverence, awe, piety.
Wisdom, then, is having the proper reverence for God the Father and Jesus Christ.
If you were thinking that God was applying this definition of wisdom and understanding only to Job or only to men, then we need to look at the word “man.” It is Adam (Strongs #120), which means mankind, all humans, in the collective sense.
So, if you want Godly wisdom and understanding, it’s going to be reflected in the way you live your life, when people are watching and when you’re alone. It’s going to be reflected in your attitude and your daily choices. It is the mindset which truly recognizes God as all-powerful and deserving of our devotion, respect, and love.
What’s reflected in your life?
A Song in the Night
But none says,’Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,’
Job 35:10
Materials: Various stemmed glasses, water
Pour some water into a glass. What do you hear? Anything? Nope. That water is pretty quiet.
We are like that glass with water in it. And sometimes there are tough things that happen in our lives. We get really upset because we want things to be different. Sometimes we cry. Sometimes we ask someone to help. Sometimes we plead with someone, anyone, to help us. What this verse in Job points out is that people don’t look to the only One who can help. They don’t go to God for help. He’s the only One who can truly help. No matter how important someone is; no matter how wealthy they are; no matter how smart they are; in the end, it is our Heavenly Father who has the wisdom and authority and power to help us. (Kinda makes you think of a song: “I sing the mighty power of God.”)
If you moisten your finger and run it lightly around the rim you’ll hear the glass start to “sing.” (The friction of your finger around the rim causes the glass to vibrate, causing the sound you hear.) God can make us sing too! When things are going really wrong in our lives and we remember that God is our strength and our help, then we are filled with a sense of hope - knowing that God is in control and will work everything, ultimately, for our good. Knowing that makes us feel better because we have the hope that God will set all things right. That’s what it means to “give songs in the night.”
When you are sure things couldn’t get any worse, we often refer to that as night. And when things are really, really bad, we say that is the darkest part of the night. Have you ever heard your mom tell you to go get a good night’s sleep, that things will look better in the morning? That’s because we feel a correlation between the dark, the nighttime, and things not going well. And that’s not a new concept. Three different psalms talk about God giving songs in the night (42:8; 77:6; 149:5).
But is it the same song to everyone? Think about the different glasses. They are all different shapes and different thicknesses. So they vibrate differently. But they all vibrate when you run your finger over them. So it is with us: God knows what each of us needs to be encouraged. (Kinda reminds you of a song: “I have a song that Jesus gave me.”) Sometimes it’s a hymn from church; for the longest time, I sang “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, tune my heart to sing Thy praise.” When I was thinking of this sabbath lesson, I thought of the song, “A Song in the Night” - “’til the whole world has heard of the soon-coming King, a song in the night I’ll sing.” Sometimes God gives encouragement when you suddenly remember a verse that you memorized. One of my favorites is “For these light and momentary troubles are achieving for us a glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Sometimes God provides encouragement when a friend calls you on the phone, or sends you a text, just to talk to you for a moment. So the glasses can look differently - just as we are all different one from another. But we are all encouraged by God - if we remember to go to Him and ask for that encouragement. And He’ll bring to mind how many reasons to sing praises to Him? 10,000 Reasons!!
There’s one other cool thing to show you with the glasses. What happens to the pitch when I add more water? The pitch gets lower. When God fills our hearts with hope and encouragement, we settle down to a more solid position of praise.
I would encourage each one of you to think of your favorite verse and your favorite song - a verse and a song that you can sing when you need to remember that God is the One who can save you from any trouble.
Remember the story of Paul and Silas in prison. They started singing praises to God at midnight. And He rescued them! (Acts 16:25) So sometimes God rescues us. But sometimes we sing songs at night, like Jesus did the night before he was crucified (Matthew 26:30), because God gives you the song to strengthen you to go through the hard times.
Regardless of whether God saves you or strengthens you, you need to look to Him for your song. You don’t want to be like the people who don’t remember that God can save them. You don’t want to fall into Elihu’s category: But none says,’Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,’ Job 35:10
**adapted from: Science and the Bible, 30 Scientific Demonstrations Illustrating Scriptural Truths, Donald B. DeYoung, Baker Books, 1997, ISBN#0-8010-3023-4
***Magnify the LORD
Remember to magnify His work, Of which men have sung. (NKJV) Job 36:24
Materials: paperclip with a small closed circle bent into one end (Source: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B DeYoung, pgs. 82-84), water, glass bottle, plastic bottle (both filled with water)
A couple of weeks ago, one of the students during the sabbath lesson commented that you can use a bottle of water as a magnifying glass. (Of course, he’s homeschooled! 😁 ) But what makes it a magnifier? Is it the curvature of the glass? Does this also work with a plastic bottle? Can it be empty? Or is it the water which acts as the magnifying glass? Well, empty bottles don’t work. But either plastic bottles or glass bottles filled with water will work. It’s the water which acts as the magnifier!!
We can see this using a paper clip. We straighten out one end and then bend it into a circle with a pair of needle-nose pliers. Dip the circle into the water. Surface tension will keep the water in the circle and allow you to use it as a magnifier.
Water is an amazing substance!! It has some unique properties: its polarity, its high boiling point, its less dense solid state vs liquid state, its low freezing point, its high specific heat - to name just a few! Because water boils at a relatively high temperature (given its size) and freezes at a relatively low temperature, water stabilizes life. Not only that but because of water’s high specific heat property, it takes a lot more energy to raise the temperature of water 1º. That’s important because living things are made of such a high percentage of water. (Up to 60% of the human adult body is water. According to H.H. Mitchell, Journal of Biological Chemistry 158, the brain and heart are composed of 73% water, and the lungs are about 83% water. The skin contains 64% water, muscles and kidneys are 79%, and even the bones are watery: 31%. Source: www.usgs.gov)
So water sustains life. Water is essential in getting things to grow. Water protects life. Water can be used as a solvent and a magnifier. We literally could talk about water for weeks and explore its properties. . . . So isn’t it interesting that water is a metaphor for the living water that Jesus referred to in John 4:10 and in John 7:37 - the Holy Spirit!! The Holy Spirit protects us, guides us, is life-giving, affirms to us that we are the children of God, and translates our prayers to God. And the Holy Spirit helps us to magnify God - to see God’s work in our lives, to praise Him for His goodness and provision, to see God’s character, His goodness and love.
The next time you get a drink of water, take a bath, wash the dishes, or water your tomato plants, remember to magnify God for His creation which points us right back to Him.
***Swirling Clouds
Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen. Job 37:13
Materials: jar, water, food coloring
Clouds can be so much fun to watch! Can you remember a time when you saw a formation that reminded you of something? A duck? A dinosaur? A cat wearing a top hat? But clouds can also be menacing, threatening, and downright scary. The mystery of how air flows has yet to be unlocked by meteorologists. That’s why they can make weather predictions and be wrong so much of the time! They just haven’t figured out all the variables involved in making air currents move the way they do. Some of the old timers’ and their descriptions of the clouds are more accurate than the meteorologists! My great-grandmother said if there was enough blue sky to make a Dutchman’s britches, the clouds would break up. Every time, I find myself watching the sky to see if it happens that way.
I love watching the clouds. They are so varied. They moved so interestingly. They can be so many different colors. And sometimes they bring much-needed rain. Growing up in a part of the country where rain is a precious commodity, I rarely mind the rain. The longer I’m in Missouri, however, the more I realize there are limits to how much rain is actually beneficial! But I’m always very aware that God is the One who controls the clouds and the rain.
Look at this passage from Job 37 (not just the memory verse).
11He loads the thick cloud with moisture; the clouds scatter his lightning.
12They turn around and around by his guidance,
to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world.
13Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen.
The memory verse indicates that sometimes God can send storms, not not send rain, as a punishment on the land and the people. That’s scary! Having seen the destruction of a tornado and hurricanes, I’m quite sure I don’t want God’s punishment in the form of a storm. But it also indicates that God send rain for the land because He loves the inhabitants. He knows they need the life-giving moisture in the clouds.
The next time you find yourself watching the clouds, remember the One who made them. Praise Him for His love. Thank Him for His provision. And pray that He doesn’t send the storms in His wrath, but that He is merciful to those who love Him and seek Him wholeheartedly.
Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B. De Young, pgs. 85-87.
Darken Counsel
“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” Job 38:2
From “Kids Say the Darndest Things” (buzzfeed.com):
Q: Who was George Washington’s wife? A. Miss America
Q: Whatever happened to Adam and Eve? A. He sent them to Hell and then transferred them to Los Angeles.
Q: What do we learn from the story of Jesus turning the water into wine? A: The more wine we get, the better the wedding is.
From “Advice on Marriage from Kids” (wilk4.com):
"Marriage is when you get to keep your girl and don't have to give her back to her parents." -Eric, Age 6
How Does a Person Decide Whom to Marry??
"You flip a nickel, and heads means you stay with him and tails means you try the next one." -Kelly, Age 9
"No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with." -Kirsten, age 10
Concerning the Proper Age to Get Married
"Once I'm done with kindergarten, I'm going to find me a wife." -Bert, Age 5
"No age is good to get married at. You got to be a fool to get married." -Freddie, age 6
What Do Most People do on a Date?
"On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date." -Martin, Age 10
"Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough. -Lynnette, age 8.
When is it OK to Kiss Someone?
"You should never kiss a girl unless you have enough bucks to buy her a ring and her own VCR, cause she'll want to have videos of the wedding." -Allan, Age 10
"It's never okay to kiss a boy. They always slobber all over you...that's why I stopped doing it." -Jean, Age 10
"The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that." -Curt, age 7
The Great Debate: Is it Better to be Single or Married?
"It gives me a headache to think about that stuff. I'm just a kid. I don't need that kind of trouble." -Will, Age 7
Concerning why Love Happens Between Two Particular People:
"No one is sure why it happens, but I heard it has something to do with how you smell. That's why perfume and deodorant are so popular." -Jan, Age 9
"I think you're supposed to get shot with an arrow or something, but the rest of it isn't supposed to be so painful." -Harlen, Age 8
How Can a Stranger Tell If Two People are Married?
"Married people usually look happy to talk to other people." -Eddie, 6
"You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids." -Derrick, age 8
What Do You Think Your Mom and Dad Have in Common?
"Both don't want no more kids." -Lori, age 8
What Would You Do on a First Date That Was Turning Sour?
"I'd run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers to make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns." -Craig, age 9
On What Falling in Love is Like:
"Like an avalanche where you have to run for your life." -Roger, Age 9
"If falling in love is anything like learning how to spell, I don't want to do it. It takes too long." -Leo, Age 7
Concerning Why Lovers Often Hold Hands:
"They want to make sure their rings don't fall off because they paid good money for them." -Dave, Age 8
Confidential Opinions About Love:
"I'm in favor of love as long as it doesn't happen when The Simpsons' is on television." -Anita, Age 6
"Love will find you, even if you are trying to hide from it. I have been trying to hide from it since I was five, but the girls keep finding me." -Bobby, Age 8
"I'm not rushing into being in love. I'm finding fourth grade hard enough." -Regina, Age 10
The Personal Qualities Necessary to be a Good Lover:
"One of you should know how to write a check. Because even if you have tons of love, there is still going to be a lot of bills." -Ava, Age 8
Some Surefire ways to Make a Person Fall in Love with You:
"Tell them that you own a whole bunch of candy stores." -Del, Age 6
"Don't do things like have smelly, green sneakers. You might get attention, but attention ain't the same thing as love." -Alonzo, Age 9
"One way is to take the girl out to eat. Make sure it's something she likes to eat. French fries usually work for me." -Bart, Age 9
How can You Tell if Two Adults Eating Dinner at a Restaurant are in Love?
"Just see if the man picks up the check. That's how you can tell if he's in love." -John, Age 9
"Lovers will just be staring at each other and their food will get cold. Other people care more about the food." -Brad, Age 8
"It's love if they order one of those desserts that are on fire. They like to order those because it's just like how their hearts are on fire." -Christine, Age 9
What Most People Are Thinking When They Say "I Love You"
"The person is thinking, Yeah, I really do love him. But I hope he showers at least once a day." -Michelle, Age 9
How a Person Learns to Kiss:
"You learn it right on the spot when the gooshy feelings get the best of you." -Doug, Age 7
"It might help to watch soap operas all day." -Carin, Age 9
How to Make Love Endure:
"Tell your wife that she looks pretty even if she looks like a truck." -Ricky, age 10
"Be a good kisser. It might make your wife forget that you never take out the trash." -Randy, Age 8
We laugh at the funny things that kids say and their perspective on life. The really funny thing is that sometimes we adults say things that are incredibly ridiculous and likewise showcase our limited perspective on life. But while the misguided confidence of a small child can be so cute, the same misguided confidence in an adult is viewed as disgusting arrogant ignorance.
Imagine how Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu felt when God started His discourse to them by saying: “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” (Job 38:2) Theologians have debated and disagreed over just whom God is addressing. But the reality is: No one has the understanding, knowledge, and wisdom of our God. No one can even approach it.
It’s a good thing to keep in mind the next time you find yourself embroiled in a controversial discussion.
James 3:1 says that we are not to be many teachers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.
Proverbs 18:7 says, a fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.
Psalm 64:8 [The wicked] are brought to ruin, with their own tongues turned against them;
Proverbs 17:28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. (It’s the foundation for the contemporary maxim: it’s better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.)
But, in my opinion, Ecclesiastes 5:2 says it best: Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
I don’t want to be considered a fool. I don’t want to be brought to ruin by my words. I certainly don’t want to be on the receiving end when God says, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” I think I will try to do a better job of not being hasty with my mouth. I’m not seven years old, and it’s not cute.
**Our Creator God
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Job 38:4
Materials: apple, cutting board, butcher knife, pinecones, pine needles, pineapple, tea boxes
There is a series of numbers called the Fibonacci sequence: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 897, 1597 etc. The number is found by adding the previous two numbers together. (Jonathan can rattle off the first dozen or two without taking a breath!) Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this set of numbers from observing nature, and subsequently came up with the formula for finding this sequence. For instance, flower petals often come in clusters of 5 or 8, i.e. asters often have 21 petals, buttercups have 5, iris have 3. You can find them in 4 or 9, but they are less common. Pine needle clusters almost always grow in clusters of twos, threes, or fives. The center of an apple has five points. Pinecones likely have distinct spirals of 5, 8, or 13. It’s not just nature!
The ratio of the fibonacci numbers (especially as they get larger) approaches what is called the golden ratio. For example, you get a ratio if one side is 5 and the other is eight. In the case of a box of tea bags, one side is 3 and the other is 5. This ratio is extremely pleasing to the eye and is used as a marketing tool. But that this is pleasing is not a new awareness; it was widely used in Renaissance architecture, but was also used as far back as the Acropolis of Athens and the Greek Pantheon. In fact, the fibonacci numbers are seen all around us in art and in science. For example, there are 8 notes in an octave, with five black keys and eight white keys.
It is very cool that Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this pattern (although he’s not the first. It’s documented in Sanskrit). But it’s even more amazing that God chose to put His fingerprint on creation in this way. There’s no way this could have happened by chance. It’s another example of what happens when you begin to really examine what can be seen in nature: you are left with the indisputable evidence of the Creator. Keep your eyes open for the fibonacci sequence - and then praise the One who displays His fingerprint in what He has made.
Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, by Donald B. DeYoung, 2013, pg. 88-92.
“Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem.” ~Ezra 1:5
When Judah had been taken captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, they were eager to get back to Jerusalem. But Jeremiah told them they would be in captivity for 70 years. So they might as well settle down. In Jeremiah 29:4-14, he tells them to build houses, plant gardens, take wives and have children, and take spouses for their children so that they will have children. One additional thing Jeremiah told them: pray for the place where you’re living, because if the place is prosperous, you also will prosper. Eventually the people did settle down and put down roots.
After 70 years, God stirred the spirits of the people that He wanted to go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. But they’d settled down in Babylon. They’d gotten comfortable. Who would have been willing to go back to Jerusalem for work hard, to face opposition? It wasn’t an easy task facing them. But God would help them and King Cyrus was willing to finance the rebuilding out of the royal treasuries. (Note: not everyone was supposed to go back to Jerusalem; Esther is a book about those who stayed in Babylon.)
Here, today, we are not in captivity, but we are strangers in a foreign land. We are sojourners here, looking for God’s kingdom. This is not our home; we just a-passin’ through. But our God tells us in Luke 19:13 to “occupy until I come.” So we get comfortable. We build houses and plant gardens and get married. And there’s nothing wrong with that - as long we don’t so comfortable that we’re not willing to have our spirits stirred by God to do His will. Regardless of the work or the opposition, our goal should be to serve God in whatever capacity He desires. The lesson from Ezra is that, if it’s God’s will, then regardless of the difficulty or the opposition, God will be with us.
How willing are you to have your spirit stirred by God?
The Joy of the LORD
for the joy of the LORD is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10b
This is one of those Biblical phrases which finds it way onto coffee mugs, wall hangings, and embroidered pillows. But over the years, I’ve looked at it and thought, “What does it mean? What is the joy of the LORD?”
Why were the people grieved? They had assembled to celebrate the Feast of Trumpets. Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites were reading the Book of the Law to them and explaining its meaning. The people were so convicted of their sin. They, as a people, had just come back from captivity because of their sin. They must have felt that there were so many things in God’s law that they were not doing; it was overwhelming. And they wept.
But Ezra, Nehemiah, and the Levites told the people not to weep, not to grieve. Why? Was their sin no big deal? Were they just to shrug it off as of no account? No. Nehemiah 9:1 completely repudiates that idea. Just as soon as the holy days were over, the people assembled in sackcloth, fasting because of their sins. So why were they not to weep and grieve at this time? The people were told, “This day is holy to the Lord your God” and “the joy of the LORD is your strength.”
What is the joy of the LORD?
Zephaniah 3:17 is a great companion scripture to Nehemiah 3:17:
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
We are given a parable, a picture, of what this might look like in the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-21. Specifically in verse 20, we see the father having compassion on his approaching prodigal, running to greet him, embracing him, and kissing him. So with that picture in mind, read Zephaniah 3:17 again.
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
God is mighty to save - but save from what? God will quiet you by his love - how did God show His love for us? God saved us from our sin - because He so loved us that He gave His Son for us (John 3:16).
And we look forward to that day, when our faith that God has saved us is made sight. What day is that? It is when Jesus Christ returns. What day will He return? The Feast of Trumpets.
Wait a minute! What day is it in Nehemiah 8:10 that they were no to grieve on because it was a day holy to the Lord? It was the first day of the seventh month, the Feast of Trumpets. They were no to grieve on this day because it foreshadows the Feast of Trumpets when Jesus comes back to save once and for all those who are His. On that day, according to 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, we’re changed from this carnal, perishable nature to spiritual, imperishable life, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump.
And then, on that day, we will say:
The LORD your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
and we will weep and grieve no more. Our sin is gone. Our God has saved us. The joy of the LORD is our strength.
I Love to Tell the Story
“Forty years you sustained them in the wilderness, and they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell.” ~ Nehemiah 9:21
I love the hymn, “I Love to Tell the Story!” It’s a great hymn. But what story is it that the song is talking about? Is it about dogs digging tunnels and chasing squirrels? Is it about our summer vacation? No, it’s about Jesus and his love. That story, the one about Jesus and his love, that story starts in Genesis, not in Matthew. It starts when God the Father and God the Son created the world and made man in their image. It is shown when God called Abram, when God sent Moses to rescue his people from Egypt, when God anointed David king over Israel, and when God brought the captives back from Babylon.
So look at Nehemiah 9:21. Why is this verse here? We might expect it to be in Exodus or in the Psalms or in Joshua. But why is it in Nehemiah?
Nehemiah is retelling the story of God’s love and long-suffering with His people. He’s encouraging them to renew their covenant with God. He’s exhorting them to be steadfast against adversity and difficulties. So he’s reciting God’s provision to those who love Him and who are called by His name.
You, too, need to recite God’s provision in your life personally. You need to remind yourself of what God has done for you, how He has blessed you, how He has guided you. It builds your faith and the faith of those you tell. When the going gets tough, it encourages you to persevere and it encourages others who hear you. It honors and glorifies God.
You may be building a wall with opposition and with difficulty all around you. You need to tell the story of Jesus and His love. As for me, I love to tell the story.
Survive or Thrive
“. . . And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
My mom had a hoya vine as far back as I can remember. It was in a pot in the corner, with its own trellis to climb. Then, in the summer of 1976, my dad took out the wall between the garage and the living room, more than doubling the size of the living room. He built a huge, beautiful fireplace in one corner and in the opposite end, with the leftover bricks, he built a planter for the hoya vine. That vine loved it. Not only did it spread out, it started blooming. The hoya vine has the most beautiful flower clusters. It really responded to being planted in a new place.
I couldn’t help thinking about Mom’s hoya vine as we read through the book of Esther this week. Because of Esther’s natural beauty she was given the opportunity to be queen. Because of her graciousness and sweetness, she won the favor of the people around her. But it was because of God’s grace that she actually became queen. Once in that position, she was faced with a choice. When Haman’s plot to destroy the Jews became known, she could have stayed quiet. No one knew her ancestry. But Mordacai pointed out that it could have been just for this reason that God made her queen. “. . . And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)
What incredible implications this has! There were enemies of the Jews. The Jews were in danger of being destroyed in the Persian kingdom. Nevertheless, our Sovereign God had made a way for them to be saved - through Esther’s position as queen. But she still had to step out in faith and say something. It wasn’t enough that she was queen; she had to take action.
The ramifications of this reverberate in our lives as well. Like Esther, some of the people around us may not know what we believe about God. Again like Esther, it might be more advantageous to us in the short term to be quiet about those beliefs. It might mean that we’re accepted by our peers; we keep our job; we are promoted; it could even mean that we save our lives. But that’s all short term. In the long run, it may be that we’ll find out that God put us where we are so that we could take a stand for Him, so that we could be a light in a darkened world, so that we could witness to someone who needs to know Christ and be saved. Who knows why we were put into the position we now occupy? Perhaps it was for such a time as this.
There’s a song Casting Crowns sings called “Thrive.”
Here in this worn and weary land
Where many a dream has died
Like a tree planted by the water
We never will run dry (chorus)
So living water flowing through
God we thirst for more of You
Fill our hearts and flood our souls
With one desire
Just to know You and
To make You known
We lift Your name on High
Shine like the sun, make darkness run and hide
We know we were made for so much more
Than ordinary lives
It's time for us to more than just survive
We were made to thrive
Into Your word we're digging deep
To know our Father's heart
Into the world we're reaching out
To show them who You are (chorus)
Joy Unspeakable, Faith Unsinkable, Love Unstoppable, Anything is possible (chorus)
We were planted in a worn and weary land, much like Esther was. Because of her relationship to God, she was in a position to save her people. She was like Mom’s hoya vine that bloomed where it was planted. Esther had the option of being quiet and just surviving the danger. She had the courage and faith in God to step forward and do more than just survive. She thrived.
What about us? God has planted you in a special place. Are you blooming, or are you just quietly killing time until Jesus returns? As Casting Crowns sings, “It’s time for us to more than just survive; we were made to thrive.”
How Do You React to Disaster?
But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. ~ Job 2:10
If you look up “foolish” for Job 2:10, you’ll find that this is the only time this word is used in the Bible. But it’s closely related to a word that is used more frequently. That’s because “foolish,” as used here, is the feminine form of nabal (#5036) which means stupid, folly, vile, especially impious. It also just happens to be the name of a stupid man who repaid David’s kindness with arrogance and foolishness. Nabal was appropriately named, it would seem! (1 Samuel 25)
So, Job’s wife tells Job to curse God and die. And he tells her that she’s speaking foolishly. Contrast her actions with Job’s: he’s commended in James 5:7-11 as an example of steadfastness and patience. It’s because of his attitude. He’s willing to trust God regardless of whether God sends good or evil.
What? Evil!? Well, not evil in the sense that we normally think of it. This word evil is the opposite of good, pleasant, prosperity. It means calamity or disaster. And we see it used in Isaiah 45:7 where the context helps to define what it means. God says he forms light and creates darkness; He makes peace and creates evil. It’s the opposite of peace. It’s calamity.
Similarly in Jeremiah 29:11 God says He knows the plans He has for His people - plans for welfare and not for evil, to give them hope and a future. The opposite of welfare, hope, and a future is calamity or disaster.
So why does God send calamity or disaster into our lives? Maybe, as Job’s friends are telling him, it’s because of the sin in our lives. Or, it could be for our growth. To get us out of our comfort zone, to get us to stretch ourselves, sometimes God sends some stress. They are not called growing pains for no reason! A third reason might be because God knows we can handle the adversity just fine, but our neighbor needs us to be God’s hands ministering to them when they go through the same adversity down the road. Or maybe it’s like what was happening to Job - to prove that I will praise God regardless of what happens in my life. I will trust Him always. I will view Him as my God, not as my genie in the bottle who exists only to serve my needs.
But in the end, like Job, we may never know why adversity comes into our lives. Also like Job, we just need to trust God. Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Perhaps we just need to be quiet and trust that He’s got the reins. Psalm 37:7 tells us to trust in the Lord and to wait patiently for Him.
When calamity comes, trust God. Don’t be a nabal!
**Wonders Without Number
the One who does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.
Job 5:9
Materials needed: leaves, coffee filters, jars, rubbing alcohol
https://www.123homeschool4me.com/why-do-leaves-change-color-science_52/
God’s creation is amazing! This time of year we are often amazed at the changing colors of the trees. But do you know why this happens? During the growing season, carbon dioxide and water combines with chlorophyll to produce oxygen and glucose. We use the oxygen (and breathe out carbon dioxide). The tree uses the glucose to grow. As the autumnal equinox approaches, the decreasing sunlight and temperatures causes the trees to move into a resting period. The leaves use up the chlorophyll which is the chemical which is used in photosynthesis and which gives them their green color. Once the chlorophyll is used up, the color of the leaves is revealed - it actually was there all the time. And you can prove that by doing the same experiment with green leaves instead of the colorful fall leaves.
You know how God gives us object lessons - things all around us which help us to understand spiritual realities? The fall leaves made me think of the verses which speak about us being transformed and conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
Romans 8:29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Chlorophyll which gives the leaf its green color masks the real color of the leaves. In a similar way, once we are a new creature in Christ (a new leaf), our old way of doing things (the chlorophyll) has to be striped away until our actions are truly indicative of who we are (colorful leaf). Isn’t it interesting that this happens at the end of the year, the end of the growing season - almost as if God’s reminding us that we spend our entire lives seeking Him and being changed into the image of His Son. The colorful fall leaves also make me think of the Feast of Tabernacles - a time when we are living in Christ - which happens as we are conformed to His image.
It also makes me think of 1John 3:2, Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
Our true colors won't be seen 'til then.
***Invention By Observation
But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; Job 12:7
Materials: glow stick, velcro, suction cup, scotch tape, photo of St. Louis arch, paper airplane, sponge, candle, alligator clip, bird-nose pliers
Do you know what each of these things has in common? They were all inspired by nature, or more precisely, an inventor saw something in nature which he copied to create something we use. For instance,
Glow sticks were inspired by fireflies.
Velcro was inspired by the thistle burdock.
Sonar was inspired by bats’ and dolphins’ use of echolocation.
Flight was inspired by watching birds, how they are formed and how they achieve lift.
Bullet trains were improved by watching the kingfisher.
Suction cups were inspired by octopus, but aren’t nearly as effective as the octopus’ suction cups which have ridges and can grasp things which have uneven surfaces.
Scotch tape was inspired by geckos whose feet are covered by tiny hairs.
Flippers were inspired by ducks’ webbed feet.
Submarines were inspired by studying whales.
St. Louis arch (and similar architecture) were inspired by the design of an egg shell.
How amazing it is that our God created the world around us to be so detailed and incredible! And then He created us with brains to use, to observe, to mimic and create. And when we do “create” something new, we realize the truth that there’s nothing new under the sun. God has already created it; we’re just building with His building blocks, using His creation as inspiration. So . . . keep an eye out. See what you can see in His creation. Be inspired! And remember to praise God for Who He is and what He’s done!!
Check out these links for more information:
https://www.businessinsider.com/6-man-made-inventions-that-already-exist-in-nature-biomimicry-2016-5#shinkansen-bullet-train--you-can-thank-the-kingfisher-4
https://www.dawn.com/news/1297127
God’s Sovereignty
He makes nations great, and he destroys them; he enlarges nations, and leads them away. Job 12:23
As we study ancient history, we talk about the ebb and flow of different nations. They become dominant, and then sometimes they disappear from history. But we study history from the archaeological evidence left behind, perhaps some scrolls or cuneiform tablets, and from stories which have been passed down through the centuries. We don’t have a lot of details about the decisions they made or their attitude towards God. The supposition for the eventual fall of the Egyptian empire was their lack of iron. But Job says that it is God who makes nations great. It is God who destroys them. Likewise, Paul says, “For their is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1).
Can you think of any nations which were destroyed, or lead away, by God? The obvious one is found in Exodus 5 - 14. It is the deliverance of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt. The Hebrews did not fight their way out of Egypt with swords and spears. Egypt drove them out after the nation, and its gods, had been destroyed by ten plagues from God.
The other nation was Israel. Because of their apostasy towards God, God sent them into captivity at the hands of the Assyrians. 2 Kings 18:11 says that the king of Assyria led the Israelites away, but he was merely the tool God used to execute judgment on His faithless people.
So, if nations are in God’s hand, if He controls their destiny, then what should we do? Some take a fatalistic view; they shrug and figure that God’s going to work things out the way He wants them to anyway. They figure it doesn’t really matter what they do. But that’s not Biblical. Deuteronomy 17:14-20 talks specifically about when the Israelites would go into the promised land and eventually would want a king. They were not to choose a king who was a foreigner. Furthermore, the king was not to acquire many horses, many wives, or excessive silver and gold. The king had to write for himself a copy of the law, approved by the Levitical priests, and he was to read it all the days of his life. He was to obey God - if he wanted to continue long in his kingdom.
There are many interesting details here. First, it matters who you put over you. If you have the ability to choose, if you don’t live in a dictatorship, then you have a responsibility to choose wisely. A wise choice starts with not choosing to put a foreigner over you. Someone who is not of your country is definitely not going to have your best interest at heart! Implicit in this directive is the idea that you have to choose the best person for the job. You don’t choose the most popular guy or the one you think can win. You don’t even choose the one who sounds like he’s going to give you the most money - because politicians will do that. You choose the one who loves God and follows Him. Yes! You have to look at the values and actions of a person and judge how they line up against what God says is right and wrong. God has the right to set the standard. Deuteronomy 17:20 says that if the ruler doesn’t love God and doesn’t obey God, his reign will not continue.
Secondly, the ruler over you is not to acquire many horses - which is like amassing war machines to depend upon his own strength in battle instead of depending upon God. He is not to acquire many wives because they can lead his heart away from serving God. Thirdly, the ruler was not to accumulate much wealth for himself. He’s not supposed to be in that position for himself, for what he can get, to show people how important he is; he’s supposed to be the ruler of God’s people to lead them in a godly way.
If the ruler doesn’t follow God with all of his heart, Deuteronomy 17 says, then his kingdom will not continue long. Think about that. If the ruler is deposed, many times it means someone has to depose him. Whether it’s internal revolt or external conflict, it causes trouble for the people who live in that nation. There’s going to be unrest, economic turmoil, and problems for everyone who lives in that nation (2 Kings 21:10-15). There can be a lot of turmoil involved in a nation’s decline: Egypt is Exhibit A. So it matters enormously who the leader of the country is!
Another point to glean from this verse in Job is the concept that God is in control. If you live in an ungodly nation, you are fighting against the ungodliness around you, you are seeking God with all of your heart and what is right in His sight, then you can take heart. The ungodly rule over you will not last long. Now we know that the definition of “long” can vary. For instance, the son of Hezekiah, Manasseh, was the worst king in Judah (at least until the end), and he reigned for 55 years. He was so bad that God had him captured with hooks, bound in chains, and taken captive to Assyria. But once in Assyria, Manasseh repented and God restored him to his throne in Judah (2 Chronicles 33:10-17).
What you do matters. What a country’s leader does matters. But ultimately, God is in control. He is sovereign. God has a plan, and He working things out for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
Our Witness is Jesus Christ
Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven, and he who testifies for me is on high. Job 16:19
Job has been accused of doing something wrong. In fact, for nine chapters, his friends insist that he has sinned, and has sinned grievously! The chapter titles in my ESV say: The Innocent Prosper, You’ve Done Wrong, God Punishes the Wicked, the Wicked Suffer, and my favorite is Zophar’s accusation: You Deserve Worse. Wow! These are supposed to be Job’s friends.
Job responds that his witness that he hasn’t done wrong is in heaven. He’s talking about Jesus Christ. That word witness means “a person giving legal evidence.” It’s the same word that is used in Psalm 89:37 of the moon being a faithful witness. This is a dependable witness that will hold up in court! It’s the idea portrayed in Romans 1:9: “For God is my witness. . .”
Jesus Christ is our witness, who stands at the right hand of God. In the stoning of Stephen, Stephen saw Jesus - His witness - standing at the right hand of God, watching the injustice. Acts 7:54
As our witness, Jesus doesn’t just stand by and do nothing. He is also our advocate. He’s our lawyer. He’s our intercessor, intervening with God on our behalf. Hebrews 7:25 says that Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost . . . since he always lives to make intercession for them.”
If you’ve ever been falsely accused, you know that it is very hard to take. Sometimes it’s never resolved. Sometimes you can’t prove to your accuser that you are innocent - like Job - and you just have to live with the injustice. Sometimes, the injustice means that you die, falsely accused, like Stephen and Jesus.
What did Jesus do when He was falsely accused? Isaiah 53:7 and Matthew 26:63 record that “like a lamb before shearers is silent” so he opened not His mouth. Jesus didn’t answer them, except when the High Priest strongly compelled him to. It wasn’t going to change the outcome. And in Job’s case, all of his protestations didn’t change the mind of his friends.
So when you are accused, what should you do? You can try to defend yourself, but if that doesn’t work, remember that your witness is in heaven, and He who testifies for you is on high. God knows.
I Know That My Redeemer Liveth
For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.” Job 19:25
Do you know this hymn: Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it!
We sing this song joyfully, triumphantly - at least that’s the mood, the emotion, portrayed by the music. But why? Why are we joyful? What does it mean to be redeemed?
You can redeem stamps at the store. One of the area grocery stores is doing a stamp collection/redemption promotion for cookware. Or you can redeem a coupon. If you give them a coupon, the store will take so much off your purchase. Or you can redeem a treasure note. If you take the treasury note to the bank, they’ll redeem it for its current accumulated value from the U.S. government.
Redeem means to buy back. When we’re talking of human beings in a spiritual sense, we’re talking about buying back from sin and from the penalty of sin, death.
Romans 6:16 . . . you are slaves of the one whom you obey . . .
Romans 6:18 . . . having been set free from sin . . .
Romans 6:22 . . . now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God . . .
Titus 2:14 . . . to redeem us from all unrighteousness . . .
Psalm 130: 8 . . . and he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Revelation 1:5 . . . who freed us from our sins . . .
Galatians 3:13 . . . Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law . . .(The law is not the curse!! The penalty of breaking the law is death, which is the curse of the law.)
Still, this spiritual concept can be beyond our ability to grasp and understand. So God, in His mercy, gave us the physical to help us to begin to comprehend what an incredible thing it is that He has done for us. It’s found in Leviticus 25. If a person became very poor, sold their inheritance, but still was so poor that they had to sell themselves, there was still hope. In the year of Jubilee, the 50th year, all debts were canceled; the land inheritance reverted to the original owner (in most cases - see Leviticus 25:29-30), and the people were released from their debts. But if you had to sell yourself at the start of that 50-year cycle, the Jubilee could see like a long ways away! However, there was another way to be released. God provided for the kinsman-redeemer, the relative closest to that person, to have the option to buy him back, to pay his debt - either for the land or for the person - so that he didn’t have to work as a slave.
In Ruth’s case, Boaz acquired, as a kinsman-redeemer, the property of Ruth’s dead husband, his inheritance in Israel, and Ruth as well. It was truly a rescue for Ruth and Naomi because being a poor widow in Israel was often a dire life.
With this physical example to draw on, God tells us that Jesus Christ, the Holy One of Israel, is our Redeemer (Isaiah 54:5) and our Jubilee (Israel 61, Luke 4:18-19), redeeming us with His blood (1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 1 Corinthians 7:22-23; 1 Corinthians 1:31). Jesus, through His death and resurrection, has released us from the penalty we incurred when we sinned. We were slaves to sin, just like the person who sold themselves into bondage. We had to serve our sinful nature because we had no other recourse (Romans 5:12-21). But Jesus Christ bought us back from sin with His blood, that we might consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11). Because of that, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:12).
But think about where this whole discussion started today. It started with Job and his statement to his three friends, those miserable comforters:
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,
yet in my flesh I shall see God. (Job 19:25-26)
Job knew that His Redeemer lives, that he would stand again on the last day on the earth!
Zechariah 14:4 On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives . . . and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two.
1 Thessalonians 1:10 . . . “ wait for his Son from heaven, . . . Jesus who delivers us fromt he wrath to come.
Job knew that after his skin was destroyed, yet in his flesh (at the resurrection) he would see God
1 John 3:2 . . . we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.
1 Corinthians 15:42, 51-54 . . .What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. . . We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory.
I love the hymn,
Redeemed! How I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.
Redeemed through His infinite mercy.
His child and forever I am.
But there’s another hymn that I love. It speaks of my Redeemer, who ever lives to make intercession for me (Hebrews 7:25), who is seated at the right hand of God (Hebrews 8:1).
I know that my Redeemer liveth
and on the earth again will stand.
I know eternal life He giveth,
that grace and power are in His hand.
I know His promise never faileth,
the word He speaks, it cannot die;
Tho’ cruel death my flesh assaulted,
Yet I shall see Him by and by.
I know my mansion He prepareth,
That where He is there I may be.
O wondrous thought, for me He careth,
And He at last will come for me.
I love knowing that Job had this knowledge. I love knowing that in the face of the suffering he was enduring, he still had the faith to believe, to have that blessed assurance of the Redeemer and the resurrection.
Reflected in Your Life
And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’ Job 28:28
Have you ever done something really dumb? Have you ever felt totally inadequate? Have you ever felt completely stupid, especially when you want to show well? Most people, me included, want to have wisdom and understanding. In this verse, God Himself is telling Job what wisdom and understanding are. Let’s work through the words.
Evil is Strongs #7451 (ra), which means bad, inferior, wicked, evil, unethical, immoral activity against other people in speech or in deed. It depicts a very negative attitude toward God or man. That’s something I want to definitely turn away from.
The phrase “turn away from” is Strongs #5493 and means “to turn aside, to forsake, to put away.”
Understanding, then, is to turn aside from bad behavior. It is something you can do. You have a choice.
In the first phrase, “Lord” is Adonai (Strongs #136), which is a plural noun meaning proprietor, master, Lord, ruler, commander. In this case, we’re talking about both God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ that we’re to fear.
But this word “fear” is not defined as terror, as is commonly used today. Rather, it is yirah (Strongs #3374), which means reverence, awe, piety.
Wisdom, then, is having the proper reverence for God the Father and Jesus Christ.
If you were thinking that God was applying this definition of wisdom and understanding only to Job or only to men, then we need to look at the word “man.” It is Adam (Strongs #120), which means mankind, all humans, in the collective sense.
So, if you want Godly wisdom and understanding, it’s going to be reflected in the way you live your life, when people are watching and when you’re alone. It’s going to be reflected in your attitude and your daily choices. It is the mindset which truly recognizes God as all-powerful and deserving of our devotion, respect, and love.
What’s reflected in your life?
A Song in the Night
But none says,’Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,’
Job 35:10
Materials: Various stemmed glasses, water
Pour some water into a glass. What do you hear? Anything? Nope. That water is pretty quiet.
We are like that glass with water in it. And sometimes there are tough things that happen in our lives. We get really upset because we want things to be different. Sometimes we cry. Sometimes we ask someone to help. Sometimes we plead with someone, anyone, to help us. What this verse in Job points out is that people don’t look to the only One who can help. They don’t go to God for help. He’s the only One who can truly help. No matter how important someone is; no matter how wealthy they are; no matter how smart they are; in the end, it is our Heavenly Father who has the wisdom and authority and power to help us. (Kinda makes you think of a song: “I sing the mighty power of God.”)
If you moisten your finger and run it lightly around the rim you’ll hear the glass start to “sing.” (The friction of your finger around the rim causes the glass to vibrate, causing the sound you hear.) God can make us sing too! When things are going really wrong in our lives and we remember that God is our strength and our help, then we are filled with a sense of hope - knowing that God is in control and will work everything, ultimately, for our good. Knowing that makes us feel better because we have the hope that God will set all things right. That’s what it means to “give songs in the night.”
When you are sure things couldn’t get any worse, we often refer to that as night. And when things are really, really bad, we say that is the darkest part of the night. Have you ever heard your mom tell you to go get a good night’s sleep, that things will look better in the morning? That’s because we feel a correlation between the dark, the nighttime, and things not going well. And that’s not a new concept. Three different psalms talk about God giving songs in the night (42:8; 77:6; 149:5).
But is it the same song to everyone? Think about the different glasses. They are all different shapes and different thicknesses. So they vibrate differently. But they all vibrate when you run your finger over them. So it is with us: God knows what each of us needs to be encouraged. (Kinda reminds you of a song: “I have a song that Jesus gave me.”) Sometimes it’s a hymn from church; for the longest time, I sang “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing, tune my heart to sing Thy praise.” When I was thinking of this sabbath lesson, I thought of the song, “A Song in the Night” - “’til the whole world has heard of the soon-coming King, a song in the night I’ll sing.” Sometimes God gives encouragement when you suddenly remember a verse that you memorized. One of my favorites is “For these light and momentary troubles are achieving for us a glory that far outweighs them all” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Sometimes God provides encouragement when a friend calls you on the phone, or sends you a text, just to talk to you for a moment. So the glasses can look differently - just as we are all different one from another. But we are all encouraged by God - if we remember to go to Him and ask for that encouragement. And He’ll bring to mind how many reasons to sing praises to Him? 10,000 Reasons!!
There’s one other cool thing to show you with the glasses. What happens to the pitch when I add more water? The pitch gets lower. When God fills our hearts with hope and encouragement, we settle down to a more solid position of praise.
I would encourage each one of you to think of your favorite verse and your favorite song - a verse and a song that you can sing when you need to remember that God is the One who can save you from any trouble.
Remember the story of Paul and Silas in prison. They started singing praises to God at midnight. And He rescued them! (Acts 16:25) So sometimes God rescues us. But sometimes we sing songs at night, like Jesus did the night before he was crucified (Matthew 26:30), because God gives you the song to strengthen you to go through the hard times.
Regardless of whether God saves you or strengthens you, you need to look to Him for your song. You don’t want to be like the people who don’t remember that God can save them. You don’t want to fall into Elihu’s category: But none says,’Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,’ Job 35:10
**adapted from: Science and the Bible, 30 Scientific Demonstrations Illustrating Scriptural Truths, Donald B. DeYoung, Baker Books, 1997, ISBN#0-8010-3023-4
***Magnify the LORD
Remember to magnify His work, Of which men have sung. (NKJV) Job 36:24
Materials: paperclip with a small closed circle bent into one end (Source: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B DeYoung, pgs. 82-84), water, glass bottle, plastic bottle (both filled with water)
A couple of weeks ago, one of the students during the sabbath lesson commented that you can use a bottle of water as a magnifying glass. (Of course, he’s homeschooled! 😁 ) But what makes it a magnifier? Is it the curvature of the glass? Does this also work with a plastic bottle? Can it be empty? Or is it the water which acts as the magnifying glass? Well, empty bottles don’t work. But either plastic bottles or glass bottles filled with water will work. It’s the water which acts as the magnifier!!
We can see this using a paper clip. We straighten out one end and then bend it into a circle with a pair of needle-nose pliers. Dip the circle into the water. Surface tension will keep the water in the circle and allow you to use it as a magnifier.
Water is an amazing substance!! It has some unique properties: its polarity, its high boiling point, its less dense solid state vs liquid state, its low freezing point, its high specific heat - to name just a few! Because water boils at a relatively high temperature (given its size) and freezes at a relatively low temperature, water stabilizes life. Not only that but because of water’s high specific heat property, it takes a lot more energy to raise the temperature of water 1º. That’s important because living things are made of such a high percentage of water. (Up to 60% of the human adult body is water. According to H.H. Mitchell, Journal of Biological Chemistry 158, the brain and heart are composed of 73% water, and the lungs are about 83% water. The skin contains 64% water, muscles and kidneys are 79%, and even the bones are watery: 31%. Source: www.usgs.gov)
So water sustains life. Water is essential in getting things to grow. Water protects life. Water can be used as a solvent and a magnifier. We literally could talk about water for weeks and explore its properties. . . . So isn’t it interesting that water is a metaphor for the living water that Jesus referred to in John 4:10 and in John 7:37 - the Holy Spirit!! The Holy Spirit protects us, guides us, is life-giving, affirms to us that we are the children of God, and translates our prayers to God. And the Holy Spirit helps us to magnify God - to see God’s work in our lives, to praise Him for His goodness and provision, to see God’s character, His goodness and love.
The next time you get a drink of water, take a bath, wash the dishes, or water your tomato plants, remember to magnify God for His creation which points us right back to Him.
***Swirling Clouds
Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen. Job 37:13
Materials: jar, water, food coloring
Clouds can be so much fun to watch! Can you remember a time when you saw a formation that reminded you of something? A duck? A dinosaur? A cat wearing a top hat? But clouds can also be menacing, threatening, and downright scary. The mystery of how air flows has yet to be unlocked by meteorologists. That’s why they can make weather predictions and be wrong so much of the time! They just haven’t figured out all the variables involved in making air currents move the way they do. Some of the old timers’ and their descriptions of the clouds are more accurate than the meteorologists! My great-grandmother said if there was enough blue sky to make a Dutchman’s britches, the clouds would break up. Every time, I find myself watching the sky to see if it happens that way.
I love watching the clouds. They are so varied. They moved so interestingly. They can be so many different colors. And sometimes they bring much-needed rain. Growing up in a part of the country where rain is a precious commodity, I rarely mind the rain. The longer I’m in Missouri, however, the more I realize there are limits to how much rain is actually beneficial! But I’m always very aware that God is the One who controls the clouds and the rain.
Look at this passage from Job 37 (not just the memory verse).
11He loads the thick cloud with moisture; the clouds scatter his lightning.
12They turn around and around by his guidance,
to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world.
13Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen.
The memory verse indicates that sometimes God can send storms, not not send rain, as a punishment on the land and the people. That’s scary! Having seen the destruction of a tornado and hurricanes, I’m quite sure I don’t want God’s punishment in the form of a storm. But it also indicates that God send rain for the land because He loves the inhabitants. He knows they need the life-giving moisture in the clouds.
The next time you find yourself watching the clouds, remember the One who made them. Praise Him for His love. Thank Him for His provision. And pray that He doesn’t send the storms in His wrath, but that He is merciful to those who love Him and seek Him wholeheartedly.
Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B. De Young, pgs. 85-87.
Darken Counsel
“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” Job 38:2
From “Kids Say the Darndest Things” (buzzfeed.com):
Q: Who was George Washington’s wife? A. Miss America
Q: Whatever happened to Adam and Eve? A. He sent them to Hell and then transferred them to Los Angeles.
Q: What do we learn from the story of Jesus turning the water into wine? A: The more wine we get, the better the wedding is.
From “Advice on Marriage from Kids” (wilk4.com):
"Marriage is when you get to keep your girl and don't have to give her back to her parents." -Eric, Age 6
How Does a Person Decide Whom to Marry??
"You flip a nickel, and heads means you stay with him and tails means you try the next one." -Kelly, Age 9
"No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with." -Kirsten, age 10
Concerning the Proper Age to Get Married
"Once I'm done with kindergarten, I'm going to find me a wife." -Bert, Age 5
"No age is good to get married at. You got to be a fool to get married." -Freddie, age 6
What Do Most People do on a Date?
"On the first date, they just tell each other lies, and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date." -Martin, Age 10
"Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough. -Lynnette, age 8.
When is it OK to Kiss Someone?
"You should never kiss a girl unless you have enough bucks to buy her a ring and her own VCR, cause she'll want to have videos of the wedding." -Allan, Age 10
"It's never okay to kiss a boy. They always slobber all over you...that's why I stopped doing it." -Jean, Age 10
"The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that." -Curt, age 7
The Great Debate: Is it Better to be Single or Married?
"It gives me a headache to think about that stuff. I'm just a kid. I don't need that kind of trouble." -Will, Age 7
Concerning why Love Happens Between Two Particular People:
"No one is sure why it happens, but I heard it has something to do with how you smell. That's why perfume and deodorant are so popular." -Jan, Age 9
"I think you're supposed to get shot with an arrow or something, but the rest of it isn't supposed to be so painful." -Harlen, Age 8
How Can a Stranger Tell If Two People are Married?
"Married people usually look happy to talk to other people." -Eddie, 6
"You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids." -Derrick, age 8
What Do You Think Your Mom and Dad Have in Common?
"Both don't want no more kids." -Lori, age 8
What Would You Do on a First Date That Was Turning Sour?
"I'd run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers to make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns." -Craig, age 9
On What Falling in Love is Like:
"Like an avalanche where you have to run for your life." -Roger, Age 9
"If falling in love is anything like learning how to spell, I don't want to do it. It takes too long." -Leo, Age 7
Concerning Why Lovers Often Hold Hands:
"They want to make sure their rings don't fall off because they paid good money for them." -Dave, Age 8
Confidential Opinions About Love:
"I'm in favor of love as long as it doesn't happen when The Simpsons' is on television." -Anita, Age 6
"Love will find you, even if you are trying to hide from it. I have been trying to hide from it since I was five, but the girls keep finding me." -Bobby, Age 8
"I'm not rushing into being in love. I'm finding fourth grade hard enough." -Regina, Age 10
The Personal Qualities Necessary to be a Good Lover:
"One of you should know how to write a check. Because even if you have tons of love, there is still going to be a lot of bills." -Ava, Age 8
Some Surefire ways to Make a Person Fall in Love with You:
"Tell them that you own a whole bunch of candy stores." -Del, Age 6
"Don't do things like have smelly, green sneakers. You might get attention, but attention ain't the same thing as love." -Alonzo, Age 9
"One way is to take the girl out to eat. Make sure it's something she likes to eat. French fries usually work for me." -Bart, Age 9
How can You Tell if Two Adults Eating Dinner at a Restaurant are in Love?
"Just see if the man picks up the check. That's how you can tell if he's in love." -John, Age 9
"Lovers will just be staring at each other and their food will get cold. Other people care more about the food." -Brad, Age 8
"It's love if they order one of those desserts that are on fire. They like to order those because it's just like how their hearts are on fire." -Christine, Age 9
What Most People Are Thinking When They Say "I Love You"
"The person is thinking, Yeah, I really do love him. But I hope he showers at least once a day." -Michelle, Age 9
How a Person Learns to Kiss:
"You learn it right on the spot when the gooshy feelings get the best of you." -Doug, Age 7
"It might help to watch soap operas all day." -Carin, Age 9
How to Make Love Endure:
"Tell your wife that she looks pretty even if she looks like a truck." -Ricky, age 10
"Be a good kisser. It might make your wife forget that you never take out the trash." -Randy, Age 8
We laugh at the funny things that kids say and their perspective on life. The really funny thing is that sometimes we adults say things that are incredibly ridiculous and likewise showcase our limited perspective on life. But while the misguided confidence of a small child can be so cute, the same misguided confidence in an adult is viewed as disgusting arrogant ignorance.
Imagine how Job, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, and Elihu felt when God started His discourse to them by saying: “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” (Job 38:2) Theologians have debated and disagreed over just whom God is addressing. But the reality is: No one has the understanding, knowledge, and wisdom of our God. No one can even approach it.
It’s a good thing to keep in mind the next time you find yourself embroiled in a controversial discussion.
James 3:1 says that we are not to be many teachers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.
Proverbs 18:7 says, a fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.
Psalm 64:8 [The wicked] are brought to ruin, with their own tongues turned against them;
Proverbs 17:28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. (It’s the foundation for the contemporary maxim: it’s better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.)
But, in my opinion, Ecclesiastes 5:2 says it best: Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.
I don’t want to be considered a fool. I don’t want to be brought to ruin by my words. I certainly don’t want to be on the receiving end when God says, “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?” I think I will try to do a better job of not being hasty with my mouth. I’m not seven years old, and it’s not cute.
**Our Creator God
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Job 38:4
Materials: apple, cutting board, butcher knife, pinecones, pine needles, pineapple, tea boxes
There is a series of numbers called the Fibonacci sequence: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 897, 1597 etc. The number is found by adding the previous two numbers together. (Jonathan can rattle off the first dozen or two without taking a breath!) Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this set of numbers from observing nature, and subsequently came up with the formula for finding this sequence. For instance, flower petals often come in clusters of 5 or 8, i.e. asters often have 21 petals, buttercups have 5, iris have 3. You can find them in 4 or 9, but they are less common. Pine needle clusters almost always grow in clusters of twos, threes, or fives. The center of an apple has five points. Pinecones likely have distinct spirals of 5, 8, or 13. It’s not just nature!
The ratio of the fibonacci numbers (especially as they get larger) approaches what is called the golden ratio. For example, you get a ratio if one side is 5 and the other is eight. In the case of a box of tea bags, one side is 3 and the other is 5. This ratio is extremely pleasing to the eye and is used as a marketing tool. But that this is pleasing is not a new awareness; it was widely used in Renaissance architecture, but was also used as far back as the Acropolis of Athens and the Greek Pantheon. In fact, the fibonacci numbers are seen all around us in art and in science. For example, there are 8 notes in an octave, with five black keys and eight white keys.
It is very cool that Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this pattern (although he’s not the first. It’s documented in Sanskrit). But it’s even more amazing that God chose to put His fingerprint on creation in this way. There’s no way this could have happened by chance. It’s another example of what happens when you begin to really examine what can be seen in nature: you are left with the indisputable evidence of the Creator. Keep your eyes open for the fibonacci sequence - and then praise the One who displays His fingerprint in what He has made.
Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, by Donald B. DeYoung, 2013, pg. 88-92.