Oh, Taste and See...

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good."  Psalm 34:8   NIV


God wants us to savor His presence.  When we read His word and meditate and pray and praise,  we are savoring our Savior... Drawing out every bit of flavor with each bite.  The more we savor the Word, the deeper the understanding of Him we will discover.  We can taste His love and His goodness;  we can taste the  unique flavor of God's holiness, sovereignty, and grace.
Do not rush through your Bible reading;  instead, savor each morsel and recognize it as the milk, meat, or manna that it truly is.

II JOHN

"And this is love: that we walk in obedience to His commands.  As you heard from the beginning, His command is that you walk in love."  (II John 1:6 - II John has no "3:16")

The apostle John wrote this short book of the Bible. the second in a series of three letters he wrote to fellow-believers to emphasize truth and love and to warn them about false teachings.  The book of II John is a letter about love.  The love of God.  The Bible is a love story; it is the most intricate, beautiful love story you will ever read.  The more you read and study it, the more details will be revealed to you. It is a love letter from God to you.



Love is what each of us wants and needs. Our world is filled with words about love - greeting cards, popular music,  magazines - they fill us with dreams of love and give us ideas of some sort of perfect romance.  But, this rarely exists.  We long for love.  We yearn to love and be loved,  but see very few examples of real love living in our world today.  Christ is the direct opposite of the world's ways, the opposite of the world's values.  Christ is the opposite of the self-centered world we live in. Believers in Him need to claim His ideals, reflecting love and acting with love toward one another.

In the book of John, the following conversation takes place, revealing just how important love is: "Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.  One of them, an expert in the law, tested Him with this question: 'Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?'  Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.' "   (Matthew 22:34-40

So, the command to walk in love is both old and new.   In the Bible the old foreshadows the new and the new reflects back to the old.  In the above quote, Jesus is referring to the book of Deuteronomy wherein God gave mankind instructions on how to live in love... the Torah and the commandments.

The apostle Paul wrote beautifully of love in his first letter to the Corinthians:

"If I speak in the tongue of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.  If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails...When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.  When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.  Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
And now these three remain:  faith, hope, and love.  But the greatest of these is love."  (I Corinthians 13:1-13)

Love God.  Then, love one another.  This is walking in love.

II TIMOTHY 3:16

    "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good  work."  (II Timothy 3:16-17)

ALL scripture is useful.  ALL. Not just the familiar parts.. not just the easy-to-read portions. Not just the parts that are easy to agree with or comply to.  ALL.  All of the Bible is God's inspired Word. His message, imparted through the Holy Spirit, written by many hands,  yet authored by the One Almighty God.
God wants us to be equipped for every situation that comes our way. He expects us to have a hunger for knowledge; not just so that we can recite the answers to the assigned questions in  Sabbath Class or Sunday School; but, so that we will have knowledge to share with unbelievers and skeptics and fellow-believers.  Knowledge isn't useful unless it's shared and applied.


When should we be prepared to share our knowledge"  The answer is just a few verses away from today's "3:16"
               "Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct and rebuke and encourage - with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."  II Timothy 4:2,3  NIV


Paul wrote the book of II Timothy almost 2,000 years ago, warning of a time when people would be unwilling to listen to the truth. If that isn't the case today, I don't know what is!  PEOPLE  JUST  DON'T  WANT  TO HEAR  IT!   Many preachers nowadays have "compromised" to the point that there is very little Scriptural basis to what they are saying.  Naturally, the itchy-eared people are "happy" because they are being told that whatever they do, it's okay... This, of course, is not true - as evidenced by these same people's attempts at escape  through drugs, alcohol abuse, pornography, etc.

It's not easy being corrected or rebuked. None of us wants to hear that we need to change.  And yet, we all need to improve. There is so VERY much to learn.  The Bible is the Word of God; it contains advice about everything under the heavens.  It gives us advice on every important question we people ca come up with. It gives animated examples of how to live life, with unique and unforgettable characters throughout its' chapters and books.  It's all right there;;; waiting for you...  Read it.

HABAKKUK 3:16

"I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound, decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled.  Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us."  (NIV)

     The prophet Habakkuk wrote this short book of the Bible.  Like so many of the prophets, he had observed corruption, unrest, famine, and violence.  He went to God in prayer with earnest questions:  WHY?  Why, do  the deceitful people seem to get away with their dishonesty?  Will they ever be punished? Why do the righteous suffer and the wicked prosper?  And, WHEN?  When will You rescue us from our enemies?  When will You answer my pleas?

     Habakkuk was honest and direct with God about his concerns.  And God answered, explaining that He would make things right, but that it would be done in His time - not according to man's wishes. (Often, we think we know what's best for us, but only God can see the big picture... His vision extends all the way to eternity)

  

my photo, entitled, "Lone Tree Seeking God", taken in Israel

       This book of the Bible reminds me so much of how I feel. Right now. Today. In a world filled with corruption, violence, and blatant sin... Sometimes it seems as if evil people will prosper forever, while the "little people" struggle to get by from day to day.  I find myself asking God the same questions Habakkuk asked Him thousands of years ago... WHY?   and, WHEN?  I find myself pleading with God to rescue me from the worries of this world... Food prices going up. Utility prices skyrocketing. No end in sight to the apparent political unrest of the world.  "Wars and rumors of wars..."

  

       But, Habakkuk sets the example: He remained faithful and obedient despite the terrible times he was living in.  The  next three verses, following the "3:16" reveal Habakkuk's faith:   17  Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,  18  yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.  19  The sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to go on the heights."  And, that is how the book of Habakkuk ends.  What a nice, uplifting ending!

     Sometimes it seems as if evil will prosper forever.  But this isn't so... God believes in justice.  We are often impatient, unable to see the full picture.  But, trust Him and He will be your strength.

     "In the multitude of my thoughts within me, Thy comforts delight my soul."

                                                         Psalm 94:19  KJV)

NUMBERS 3:16

     " So Moses counted them as he was commanded by the word of God."   (NIV)

     Uh-oh... There's that pesky obedience thing again!  Moses was out in the desert with all God's people, and God spoke to him, giving Moses the order to count all the Levites  And Moses obeyed!   He could have said, "Well, I'll go and put together a committee, and we'll elect a chairman, and then we'll develop a form as to how to count the men, and then we'll vote on exactly what date we will start counting them..., etc."  Or, he could have asked, "Why me, Lord?"  Or, just, "WHY?"
     Backing up a bit in the story,  we find that Moses came down from the mountain only to find the Israelites worshipping a golden calf in place of God.  He had just left the Presence of Almighty God, only to enter into the vastly disappointing company of his own people.  How quickly they had gone away from the ways of God!  Now, before we start shaking our heads, we might want to examine ourselves a bit... If we looked at our own lives, we would probably see glimpses of the same behavior - on a frequent basis!  And that is why daily prayer and Bible study are essential - to keep us close to God.
     Anyhow,  still in the flashback,  Moses called out to the people, "Who is on the Lord's side?"  And, the tribe of Levi set itself apart from the other eleven tribes, proving  loyalty to God.  In return, God chose the Levites as His own.  The Levites were taken to the tabernacle and blessed by the priests.  They were then honored with lifetime careers maintaining the tabernacle.  They became gatekeepers, musicians, guardians of the sacred treasures. 
     It's interesting, isn't it, how things work out when we stand up for what we believe in?  It sets us apart.  It  probably will make us feel "not part of the crowd".  Are you willing to stand up and be counted when the question is asked, "Who is on the Lord's side?" ?
     But, I digress.  Moses obeyed God, rather than asking, "WHY?".  Those "WHY" questions can be tough, can't they?  I'll bet God gets pretty tired of hearing them...
     I think that  bringing up children is in many ways similar to God's caring for humanity.  We want to teach our children right and wrong, what's best for them,  and we don't always know whether or not we get through to them.  Sometimes we don't realize until years later that a lesson either did or did not sink in...
     Oh,  the "WHY" questions....  When my daughter was about eight years old she constantly asked, "Why?" Not in an unpleasant or disrespectful way; but, rather, in an intelligent and curious manner.  Most of the time I was glad to answer in detail how our hearts pump blood to our bodies, why the sun sets in the evening, or, " Why aren't there red M&M's like there were when you were little, Mommy?"
     But, every now and then I would tire of it - especially when she questioned why she was to do her chores.  Once when I told her to set the table, she asked, "Why?"  Exasperated, I replied, "Melody, some day something  could happen to us where our lives could depend on you listening to me and obeying me. Now, I don't mind answering your questions, but maybe you need to stop questioning everything and start simply obeying the things I tell you to do." (Needless to say, the table got set!)
     Eight years later our house was broken into at about three in the morning.  I heard the noise of the back door being pryed open... and, somehow, I knew exactly what that noise was, even though (obviously) I'd never heard it before.  Then I heard the heavy footsteps of a person walking through the house... through the den, into the kitchen on into the dining room...  I crept through the bathroom that joined our bedrooms, and whispered, "Melody, give me your cordless phone,  get up,  and be ready to run out the door if I tell you to."  Without delay, she did exactly what I told her to do.  I called 911, and the police arrived within minutes.
The intruder got away, but we were safe.  When the police investigation was over, Melody said, "Well, Mommy, I did good, didn't I?  I didn't ask you why.  I just trusted you and did what you told me to do."
After all those years she remembered our conversation!
     I am certain that God must feel that same sense of love and relief when His people apply the scriptures to our lives.  He gave us His Word to protect us from harm.  But, we need to read,  memorize, and apply the scriptures to our lives for them to be of benefit.  "Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee."  Psalm 119:11 KJV
     Oh, by the way, did you wonder how I knew what the noise was when the back door was pryed open?  I am certain that the Holy SPirit told me what the noise was and what actions to take that morning.... So, you see.  my daughter wasn't the only one who needed to listen and obey!

Three Sixteen Thoughts




I painstakingly wrote the ten commandments in Hebrew within the Toral scroll of this watercolor;
 the background is my impression of God's shekinah glory.

        I first got the idea to write on this subject several years ago during a church service.  The pastor told us to open our Bibles to the third chapter of Malachi.  He then read verses sixteen and seventeen:   "Then they that feared the LORD spake often to one another; and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I take up my jewels, and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him." (KJV)  After reading those verses and hearing Pastor Donnie's inspiring sermon, I realized (as I hope you will) that God treaures each of us.  It amazes me that God would consider ME a treasure!
      Later in that same sermon, we turned to I John 3:16, as follows:  "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." (KJV)
     And, then it hit me.  Not only had I received the intended lesson, I also experienced an additional message that morning in church.  I started thinking about the oft-quoted scripture, John 3:16:  "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (KJV)
     At home that afternoon I wondered, "What if I look up all the 3:16 passages in the BIble? Would they all teach as profound a lesson?"  I didn't have time that afternoon to search my Bible.  But, as if in answer, the first scripture reference in the evening Bible study was II Timothy 3:16, which reads: "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." 
     So, I began my search.  The writings on this blog are the result. I will try to remember to include which Bible translation my quotes come from, as I will be using various translations from time to time.  My favorite translations are the King James and  David Stern's translation, The Complete Jewish Bible.  Regardless of the translation I'm reading,  I like to look up the original words in Hebrew or Greek and find the deepest, truest meaning I can possibly discover.  I really don't want this blog to be overly studious.  I'm hoping it will be an enjoyable read for the learned and the unlearned, the saved and the lost,  young and old... anyone who is trying to better understand The Word.
     Each post on this blog will be about one 3:16.  Hmmmm... maybe I should start with Genesis?