David Embodies God’s Justice (07/08/2012)

Background Scripture: 2 Samuel 22:1 – 23:7; 1 Chronicles 18:14 Lesson Passage: 2 Samuel 23:1 –7; 1 Chronicles 18:14 David embodies God’s justice. What does that really mean? What does it mean to embody anything? In a highly spiritual sense, the word “embody” means to personify or incarnate. It literally means to take that which is spiritual and to make it physical or concrete. It is to give physical expression to something that is otherwise imperceptible or not capable of being perceived. For David—or anyone for that matter—to embody a characteristic that is of God is truly phenomenal. This can only happen when a person has experienced and come to know God in a way that they can reflect a part of God’s glory to others. The background scripture shows that this is indeed the case with David. Chapter 22 of 2 Samuel is a psalm that David wrote in praise of God for the great deliverance God had provided him. David’s life reflects that God had truly delivered him out of some tough situations. But God didn’t stop there. He went further and elevated David to be king over all of God’s people and other nations were made to serve David as well. David had much to be thankful for and as a result, he expressed his thanksgiving in the form of praise. His praise described the attributes of God that were seen through His mighty works. David related God’s faithfulness to him in the language of the covenant that God made with Israel during the time of Moses. David embraced his blessings because he could see that they resulted from his being obedient to God’s covenant. Love for God can only be expressed through obedience to Him. David declared that this was indeed the case with him. Although David declared his obedience to God as being in line with God’s requirement of him, he did not take credit for any deliverance. When he was delivered, he acknowledged that it was only because of God’s grace. David spent many years on the run from King Saul but he did not attribute his own cunningness to his survivor. He hid in the caves and rocks of the mountain sides but he understood that his true protection came from the Rock that is above all, that is God. His psalm was a celebration of God preserving his life. As we turn our attention to the final words that David uttered, we again see that he speaks of God’s covenant. Here, it is much more personal. He does not speak of God’s covenant with Israel but God’s covenant with him. This covenant was relayed to David by the prophet of God named Nathan. Nathan informed David that God was going to establish a covenant with him that would last into eternity. Yes, even after David’s death, God’s covenant would be in effect because of His relationship with David. God was going to establish David’s throne to be an everlasting throne. God would place David’s descendant on the throne and no power in Heaven or in earth would be able to overthrow him. This knowledge provided security for David well beyond the grave. For such an unmerited gift, David’s proper response was to embody God’s justice while he sat on the throne so that others would see the reflected glory David had experienced. Robert C. Hudson June 26, 2012

Samuel Administers Justice (07/01/2012)

July 1, 2012 Background Scripture: 1 Samuel 4 – 7 Lesson Passage: 1 Samuel 7:3 – 17 Samuel holds a very unique place in the history of Israel. He served as prophet, priest, and judge over Israel. It was during his tenure as judge that the nation petitioned to have a king like the other nations around them. Moses had warned their forefathers in the wilderness not to mimic the nations of Canaan by seeking a king. Throughout Israel’s history, God had warned them to avoid trying to be like the nations that were around them. In fact, God warned them that the reason he was displacing those nations and giving the land to Israel was because of the unrighteousness and abominations committed by those nations over a period of centuries. Yet and still, Israel wanted to fit in with her neighbors rather than stand out from them. This was a heartbreaking reality for Samuel. Through what is sometimes referred to as His permissive will, God allowed Israel to have a king although it was not in line with His perfect will for them. As Israel’s official civil and religious leader, it was Samuel’s duty to lead them through this transition. Prior to this transition, Samuel administered justice by serving as Israel’s last judge. Our lesson today gives the background that led to Samuel becoming Israel’s judge and to Israel’s subsequent historic transition from theocracy (God as leader) to monarchy (a king as leader). For years, Israel had been drifting towards idolatry in two ways. On the one hand, they secretly served the pagan gods of their neighbors and on the other hand they began to look towards the Ark of the Covenant as an idol god rather than look at its deeper meaning. The presence of the Ark of the Covenant in their midst was to serve as a reminder that the only true and living God was among them. God was the one to be revered and followed and not the ark. However, this was not Israel’s attitude. Israel’s attitude led them to take the ark into battle along with the two sons of Eli. They were not acting according to God’s directions but according to their own desire. They were attempting to use the ark that God had declared as holy to serve their own sinful wills. Because of their attitude towards the ark, God allowed the ark to be captured by the Philistines and Israel was routed in battle as well. This was a dual embarrassment for them. The news of it caused despair throughout Israel and resulted in Eli falling and breaking his neck and dying upon hearing the distressing news concerning the ark. Note that it was not the news concerning the death of his sons but rather the loss of the ark that led to Eli’s death. This led to Samuel’s rise to replace Eli as Israel’s leader. Afterwards, God allowed the ark to be returned to Israel. Samuel led the nation to get rid of their idols and repent before God and Israel was once again given victory over the Philistines. Israel was able to receive again all of the cities that had been captured by the Philistines and the nation enjoyed peace. During this time of peace, Samuel traveled a circuit through the land of Israel and judged them as God’s appointed leader. Robert C. Hudson June 16, 2012

Celebrate Jubilee (06/17/2012)

June 17, 2012 Background Scripture: Leviticus 25 Lesson Passage: Leviticus 25:8 – 12, 25, 35 – 40, 47, 48, 55 In the midst of the Law’s seemingly austere approach to “do’s and don’ts”, God provided an element whereas national Israel could express the grace of God within its borders. This element is called Jubilee. Jubilee occurred every fifty years, or in other words, at the conclusion of seven Sabbaths of years. Jubilee was a time of freedom and restoration. It was a time of freedom for those who had hired themselves out as indentured servants to survive difficult times. When an individual could not support his family by using the land he owned, it was not unusual for him to indenture himself to one of his Jewish kindred for a specified period of time. However, in the year of Jubilee, they were allowed to return to their family debt free. In fact, during their time of service, the Lord commanded that they be treated as employees rather than slaves. If they were to be considered slaves at all, then God himself claimed them as His slaves because He redeemed the nation of Israel out of Egypt for Himself. Likewise, it was a time of restoration for those who had given up their family property in exchange for some level of economic security. Again, in the year of Jubilee, their possessions had to be returned to them. God demanded that the borders of the land be returned to their original tribal allotments. Israel was warned sternly by the Lord to not use economic oppression against each other. In other words, Israel was not to become a society driven by capitalism at the expense of human interests and values. The year of Jubilee was the primary method that protected the average citizen from this. Jubilee also represented a time when the nation had to place its welfare squarely in the hands of God since they were commanded to let the land rest and not to plant or harvest anything. In exchange for their faith in God, God promised to bless them threefold in the sixth year so that there would be no need to work the land or harvest it in the seventh year. As is typical, God’s blessings far outweighed man’s simple sacrifice of faith. God promised to supply twice as much to sustain them during their year of no labor (sowing nor reaping) than their own labor normally produced. All of this was done in exchange for their obedience and trust. This was truly a no lose offer that only the most faithless would consider rejecting. Depending on your perspective, this could sound too good to be true. If you are in the group that has either hired himself out or mortgaged the land, Jubilee was a blessing beyond blessings. On the other hand, if you were a person intent on gaining at the expense of others, Jubilee destroyed all of your ill-gotten gain. For one group, Jubilee was a time for spontaneous celebration of the experience of God’s grace. For the other group, Jubilee was a time to be recognized and its principles adhered to. Regardless of which group you were in, it was recognized that God had provided Jubilee to Israel and He intended for it to be celebrated. Robert C. Hudson May 31, 2012

Live as God’s Just People (06/10/2012)

June 10, 2012 Background Scripture: Leviticus 19 Lesson Passage: Leviticus 19:9 – 18, 33 – 37 The book of Leviticus hardly makes for a good bible study as a stand-alone book in its entirety. Much of its language reads like a cross between a legal guide and book of ritualistic worship. The book does not present a timeline in Israel’s history as much as it adds details to the timeline in Exodus and Numbers. Therefore, its contents are often referenced in other books of the bible. For example, whereas the book of Numbers presents the calendar event, the Day of Atonement, with its need for a lamb to be used as a sin offering, the book of Leviticus details the entire ritual including the appropriate dress and cleansing of the priests who will participate in the offering. On the other hand, there are passages within the book of Leviticus that convey the word of God in a fashion that is rather unique and do well standing on their own. Such is the case with the background scripture of our lesson today. This scripture presents the expected personal conduct of God’s people that would convey an understanding of the holiness they have been called into. Part of this conduct involved the civic responsibility to care for the poor and the foreigners that dwelled among them. Note that it was not suggesting that everything needed by the poor and foreigners be given to them. Rather, it outlines the proper actions by God’s covenant people that would create an opportunity for the poor and foreigners to work for what they needed. God’s people were commanded to deal fairly and ethically with each other. Even then it was recognized that some were living from one payday to the next. Therefore, those who employed workers were admonished to pay them daily as was expected rather than hold their wages overnight seeing that there were working poor who needed their wages as soon as the work was done. Deuteronomy takes this command a step further and suggests that the withholding of the wages could cause emotional distress in the worker who had set his heart upon receiving the income. God stated that this could lead to sin in the one withholding the wages if the worker, in his state of distress, cries out to the Lord against the person. Likewise, no one was to bring harm to those who had physical impairment among them such as the deaf and blind. Although this seems obvious because of its cruelty, there are those who seem to derive pleasure from abusing the less fortunate. When the legal process has to be employed, nothing short of justice is acceptable. The poor and the rich must be treated the same and afforded a fair trial in a court of law. Hatred for God’s people is not tolerated but must always be replaced by an empathy that causes one to love his neighbor as himself. This attitude was to be expanded to include any foreigners that were living among the people of God as well. All should be blessed by living in the presence of God’s people. All who live among God’s people should readily recognize that God’s people live so as to reflect the knowledge and reverence of God in their lives. Robert C. Hudson May 30, 2012