Biblical history «KennethBow's Blog » Page 3 KennethBow's Blog

Bara, the divine fiat of creation. Tuesday, Jun 1 2010

Biblical history and Motivational kennethbow 6:52 am

In the beginning, God created.

There is great debate about how long the creative process was. There are advocates for each creative day being 7,000 years long. There are others who contend for each day being 1,000 years long. Finally there are some who say no, each day was a 24-hour period.

Regardless of which position you take, as a Christian I certainly hope you take the position that God created all things. Christians do not embrace evolution in any form. We reject it wholesale!

Creation is one of the bedrocks of Christianity! It is impossible to believe in God and not believe in creation.

In the act of creation Almighty God did many wonderful things. The Hebrew word used in creation is bara. This word means to create by divine fiat. It signals that God had no help and no material to work with! (Fiat: origin: 1384, from fiat lux, “let there be light” in Genesis)

God did not remake, or re-design. Almighty God stepped out on nothing in the inky blackness of eternity and simply spoke!

God created out of darkness! When there was not so much as an angel’s wing disturbing the air, when there was nothing but God himself, God spoke. There was no light but God himself!

One of the attributes of God that is His essence, is light. John tells us that God is light. It is what He is and who He is.

God opened his mouth and said, let there be light. Suddenly all of creation blazed with blinding brilliant light. Suns appeared, and stars spangled the night sky. It happened in a nano second.

The speed of light was created by God in His original word and still confounds man today! Every thing astronomers measure they measure by the first word out of God’s mouth!

God created light at the speed of light, and light maintains that speed today.

Is there darkness in your life right now?

Fear not! God is the same yesterday, today, and forever! He can create light in your dark world by His divine fiat! He longs to speak light into your world.

God also created from deadness. When God opened His mouth and spoke there was no life anywhere. When God spoke, when God Bara-ed, the amazing world of flora and fauna sprang for.

The incredible world of flowers, and birds, oceans, quasars, animals, and ultimately man sprang forth with prodigiality. It staggers our finite mind at the completeness of creation.

Every form of life on earth today sprang from deadness. There was no life!

Does your life feel dead and pointless?

Take courage, in one word God can and will speak life into your deadness and things will spring forth! People will be amazed at the abundance of your life, because of your God!

God created from chaos and disorder! When God finished days one through three, He then repeats the cycle, and perfects on days four through six what He had created on days one through three.

When light was undefined, God created the sun, moon, and stars. When the atmosphere above was empty and unpopulated, God created every bird of the air and every fish of the sea. When the dry land was uninhabited God made every beast, creature, and Man.

Don’t despair when your world seems like everything is disconnected and in pieces! Wait on God. God will complete the work He began in your life.

Because our God is the same yesterday, today and forever, He still creates by divine fiat! If you are in darkness, or in deadness, or in disorder, take heart! He will create things in you and in your life that will astound the experts.

They will look at you and shake their learned heads and wonder how in the world did this ever come to pass!

Thanks for reading today!

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You can live for God anywhere! Thursday, May 20 2010

Biblical history and Biographical and Motivational and Old Testament kennethbow 9:44 am

You can live for God anywhere!

He lived in the bulls-eye center of one of the worst times of history. Every man was doing that which was right in his own eyes! There was no King in Israel.

Less than 10 miles from his ancestral home where he still lived, idolatry had just been introduced to Israel.

Idolatry would dominate every facet of Israeli life for the next one thousand years. It would take a seventy year exile in Babylon to purge the southern nation, and a permanent exile of the northern kingdom to finally get rid of idolatry.

He was there to see the birth of Idolatry!

About five miles from his home one of the tribes had just forced a priest to become the priest of their tribe. They were dissatisfied with their land along the coast, and their tribe was looking to expand their boundaries beyond what God had allocated their tribe.

He had a ring side seat to watch a tribe lose its place forever in Israel. Dan’s heritage disappeared before his eyes.

He was right in the midst of a controversy that eventually cost the nation 65,000 fighting men. He saw the results of infighting among tribes and saw the results.

He saw the grisly piece of evidence sent to his tribe and was close enough to hear the battle cries over three days that finally left only four hundred men to the tribe of Benjamin. To see a piece of a mutilated woman and the war that erupted among the people of God was no small issue!

Yet through it all he stayed true to the word of God! When others had no regard for the law, he lived by every letter down to the smallest detail.

The world around him was going to hell in a hand basket, but he never flinched!

Let others fight among themselves. Let others worship idols. Let others lose their inheritance. It never touched him!

If the law said take off your sandal and meet the near kinsman in the gate, that is exactly what he would do!

If the law said another man had first claim to the woman he was interested in, he would honor and defer to the law!

He stands as a silent sentinel to those who make up their mind no matter what others do, I will live by the word of God!

He is a testimony against every excuse maker, and compromiser that says everybody is doing it.

While his nation fell to idolatry, killed itself off, and gave away their inheritance, he stayed true to the law of God!

Is it any wonder his great grandson became the greatest King Israel ever had?

Thank you Boaz, and thanks for reading today!

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Amaziah and the third sermon. Tuesday, May 18 2010

Biblical history and Biographical and Old Testament kennethbow 2:50 pm

In yesterday’s blog I introduced you to the prophet Amos. He was an amazing man who obeyed his God and did a remarkable job. Today I would like to continue with his mission and show you his three sermons.

His clothes were simple and probably homespun. His language was of the simple unlearned people of the south Judean hill country. So when this prophet of God walked into Bethel to deliver his message he started at a disadvantage. The wealthy merchants and landowners were skeptical of this back woods evangelist.

When he delivered his first sermon, all doubts were replaced with satisfied nods of approval. He thundered down God’s disapproval on the surrounding nations that Samaria had recently defeated on the battlefield. Around the coffee shops and gossip centers of Samaria Amos got the nod of approval.

They no doubt said things like, well he hasn’t bathed lately and his language is abominable, but he did say some valuable things! So the balance slowly tilted in his favor and they showed up for his second sermon. This time Amos hit a home run!

In his second sermon he climbed to the top of their preacher charts. He preached how low down, no good, the southern kingdom was! He pointed out how the southern nation was not pleasing God. Suddenly his clothes and language did not matter. Amos was their man! Their preacher was preaching what needed to be heard. Three cheers for Amos!

Then came the third sermon.

As he took the center stage of their rapt attention, it was a sea of smiles. They couldn’t wait for the newest sequel to his last two sermons. They had waited all week wondering how he could ever top the last two weeks.

It started to go downhill when he called the jeweled, proud, over dressed women of Samaria a bunch of cows! The smiles disappeared, replaced by looks of confusion. Side-glances confirmed that there were other unhappy members in the congregation. It erupted full bore when Amaziah the priest stood and called Amos down.

Amaziah informed Amos that his services were no longer needed in Samaria and maybe he should depart now and head south. It was a not too polite “get out”.

Amaziah told King Jeroboam that Amos had committed treason. Amaziah told Amos to get back to his own turf and preach his pretty little sermons.

Amos replied that he was not a prophet, but just a herdsman, and a poor one at that.

Then it happened, the moment that was so incredible.

Amos turned those blazing eyes on the man Amaziah. Amaziah stood there insulated with wealth, position, and power. He was dressed in the finest clothes, educated in the best schools, and had all of society’s approval.

Facing him, was a simple country farmer with raggedy clothes, no schooling, and buried under society’s anger.

However, this country boy was God’s man. When he spoke all the authority of heaven backed up his words. He pointed the long finger of judgment at Amaziah.

He spoke to Amaziah and said your wife will become a harlot in the streets.

Your children will fall by the sword.

This land shall be divided and will go into captivity.

And so it was.

When anyone chooses to openly and publicly withstand God’s man, God always reacts with the same action toward them.

Amaziah made the fatal mistake of rebuking a God called, God sent man.

God have mercy on anyone who is foolish enough to follow the footsteps of Amaziah!

Look beyond his clothes, his grammar, and his education. Look carefully for the touch of God on his life.

And whatever you do, never under any circumstances, lift your voice against a God called, God sent man.

Thanks for reading today!

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When Justice Was For Sale To The Highest Bidder Monday, May 17 2010

Biblical history and Biographical and Motivational and Old Testament kennethbow 9:28 am

It was the most prosperous time in their history.

Money was flowing.

The Northern Kingdom of Israel was being led by the dynamic and charismatic Jeroboam II.

Jeroboam had waged successful war against Israel’s hostile neighbors and won control of the trade routes that poured wealth into Samaria.

The land was fertile, the rains fell, and the bumper crops swelled their barns and their bank accounts. It was a golden age. Public buildings were being built. Private residences were large and expensive. The public worship was now ostentatious and full of pomp.

The rich landowners with total disregard for God’s law, built great personal estates. They did so at the cost of dispossessing their poor neighbors. The poor were further treated badly by the greedy merchants who used unjust weights to buy and sell grain. These dishonest merchants mixed husks with barley kernels.

More and more of the people were being forced to sell themselves and their children into slavery.

Justice was for sale to the highest bidder!

The wives of the rich demanded more and more luxuries. No one seemed to give a thought to those who were cheated to pay the tab of the greedy.

No one that is except God!

Ten miles south of Jerusalem, a poor farmer heard an inner voice speak to him. He was of the poorest part of society. He dealt in Sycamore figs. The modern equivalent of someone who gathers cans along the roadside to get money.

His name was Amos. He left Tekoa to challenge the greatest nation on earth at the zenith of it’s wealth and power.

Has there ever been men like those prophets of old? Fearless men who gave account to no one but God!

When that poor country boy walked into Bethel, don’t you know his eyes were wide? No doubt his mouth was hanging open. He had never seen anything like this in the poor region he lived in.

He walked the streets and saw the luxurious homes of the wealthy. He saw the opulence of the rich and famous. He observed women reclining on ivory inlaid couches, feasting on meats and drinking exotic wines while they listened to the lastest popular music groups (Amos 4.1, 6.4-6).

He saw a nation that was hardened by selfishness and greed. He spoke to them about the need for their hearts to be touched with the needs of the poor and oppressed.

Does any of this sound familiar?

Does God still care about injustice?

Is Justice for sale to the highest bidder in your life?

Thanks for reading today.

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The Gospel Of Luke Thursday, May 13 2010

Biblical history and New Testament kennethbow 9:14 pm

Luke

The third Gospel is the only one written by a gentile. Luke also wrote the book of Acts. His two works comprise 25% of the New Testament.

Luke was a doctor. The flavor of the man always comes out in his writings. In Luke we see more conversation about women, gentiles, and the social outcasts. When a beggar lays at the gate of the rich man, Luke says he was full of sores. Matthew would have said he was broke. Matthew’s perspective as a tax collector was his financial status, while Luke had the perspective of a doctor.

Luke’s gospel is written to the Greek, or Gentile world. He uses Mark as his time line and repeats somewhere around 50% (320 of 661 verses), of the same material Mark provides.

Because he is writing to the Gentile world he begins his genealogy at Adam. Matthew goes back to Abraham, Mark bypasses the genealogy, and Luke goes back to the first man Adam. John, who writes to the church, reaches back to the misty darkness of eternity.

It appears to me that Luke took the time to interview the people of the early church. He states that his book is from the beginning and that he had perfect understanding of it all.

When you read of Jesus’ birth in Luke’s account, you find some tidbits of information no one else includes. One example would be the details of Mary’s song and inner thoughts and feelings.

That causes me to think Luke must have sat down with Mary and spent time talking to her. I can envision him sitting quietly many years later, at the end of her life, recording her words as she softly speaks of those bygone years. As she wistfully remembers, he dutifully records.

Not only does he provide information about people’s feelings and inner thoughts, he also documents his writings with names, offices and titles of over 50 people. This gives his work a credibility the other gospel writers do not have to the world of scholars.

One example of his documentation is the introduction of John the Baptist in chapter 3. Luke places 7 men in the scripture for historical evidence. He mentions an emperor, a governor, three tetrarchs, and two high priests. These are the kind of things that give Luke credibility with the world of scholars. This also gives further credibility by association to the other Gospels who give the same information. For this alone Luke is invaluable.

Another contribution of his is the writing of parables spoken by Jesus. He records 18 parables not recorded anywhere else. We are indebted to him for the famous parable of the good Samaritan, the prodigal son, and many others.

I am going to go out on a limb here and state my opinion for what it is worth. I know that Luke traveled with Paul. I am somewhat sure he joined Paul on one of his missionary journeys, because the text of Acts changes from they, to the first person of I and we. So my thought is that somewhere Luke sat and listened to Paul tell his insight into the life of Jesus. My best guess would be this occurred while Paul was being held at Caesarea.

Just like when he started his book by making the journey to see Mary, I can see Luke taking notes at the feet of Paul and then the Holy spirit washing them though the man Luke with his training, his education, and his perspective. From out of that flowed the gospel of Luke.

The gospel written to the Greeks adopts the Greek idea of the perfect man. The Greeks created their Gods by deifying man into a God.

Luke very ably and perfectly adopts their premise and presents them with the perfect man, who was indeed God, Jesus Christ the savior of the world.

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How will YOU die? Tuesday, Apr 27 2010

Biblical history and Biographical and Motivational and New Testament kennethbow 4:33 pm

How will YOU die?

He was cold! He was way beyond the kind of temporary cold that gives you shivers. The cold he felt was way down in his bones, and had been there for weeks. He wished for the thousandth time for the cloak he left in Troas. Life would be easier when Timothy arrived with the books and parchments.

Six feet away, across his cell was a large rat. They eyed each other with measured tolerance. He had long tired of trying to make the rat leave for good. The rat always came back. It was no longer worth the effort to accost the rat. He and the rat certainly weren’t friends, but they had learned to co-exist.

He reached over and picked up his writing instrument and parchment. The voice inside him told him to write. So he dipped his quill in the borrowed ink, and began.

As he formulated the words that were appearing in his mind, another part of his mind began to go back over the years…..

He smiled as he remembered that day on the road. It seemed like just yesterday. Then there was the time in Arabia. The years began to unfold like a novel, like a slow motion reel.

He drifted back through the years, the cities, the trials, the beatings, and the stonings. Once again he asked himself if he had done all his master had asked of him. He honestly could not see any way it could have turned out differently.

The other part of his mind returned back to the parchment, and he began.

For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course. I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness….

He finished the final words of his last letter. He was well aware he would never again pen another syllable.

He heard the jingle of keys. Marcus came into view. Marcus was his most recent convert, albeit secretly. He said to Marcus,”It’s okay, I understand.” Tears began a slow roll down Marcus’ cheeks.

He rose, straightened, and started for the door, and noticed the rat seemed to be smirking.

The stairs seemed steeper than he remembered. The light of day was blinding. He had lost count of the days in the underground cell. Slowly he looked around. Spring had arrived, his last spring of his 67 years.

He saw the executioner waiting. How far? Maybe a hundred steps? He started the final one hundred steps of his earthly journey. He drew up at the chopping block.

With one long last look around the Appian Way, and a smile for Marcus tear stained face, he knelt and placed his head on the block. The Roman official placed a check next to his name on the slate and nodded to the ax man.

In one slow movement, while heaven held it’s breath, the ax was raised. It paused for a fraction of a second, then in blinding speed arched downward. His head, severed from his body rolled over the edge of the block and dropped to the ground and rolled twice. Unseeing eyes on mortal earth stared upward.

In the immeasurable moment when head and body were separated, his spirit was free. He was free of the hardships, free of the privation. He was free and approaching the gates.

The gate was also about one hundred steps. He could see the crowds cheering. It was that great cloud of witnesses he had written about in his letter to the Hebrews.

They were all there. Some were from the highlands of Galatia, others from the sea coasts of Macedonia. There were some from Caesars’ household, and some converted rulers of the synagogue.

They were waiting, cheering, and welcoming him home.

And then there was Jesus for the first time.

He never quite remembers those last few steps, he only remembers falling at Jesus feet. And the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

So Paul, the Christian sage of the ages died.

How will YOU die?

Will you be bitter?

Will you have regrets?

In the prison, Paul called himself “The prisoner of the Lord.” He knew that no mere, mortal Caesar could imprison an apostle without his master’s assent.

Do you see your prison as approved by the master?

How will YOU die?

Thanks for reading today!

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Are You Surviving or Thriving? Friday, Apr 23 2010

Biblical history and Doctrine and Family and Marriage and Motivational kennethbow 1:15 pm

Are the tears you shed for your marriage happy tears or sad tears?

Surviving or Thriving?

Somewhere around 3000 years ago a giant named Goliath walked out on the battlefield and challenged the armies of Israel. The gauntlet was thrown down and the challenge was bellowed. The terms of conflict were clear for everyone.

It was winner take all and no survivors!

I am convinced today there is another challenge, on yet another battlefield. Satan struts out on the battlefield of America and throws his challenge. The battle in 2010 is for our homes. Satan attacks with technology, with Hollywood, with busyness and time constraints, and stress.

One of his most effective attacks is on marriages. He has rolled out the big artillery the last few years. He is after the family values in America.

In 2009 there were 2,162,000 marriages in America. The marriage rate was 7.1 per 1000 people. The divorce rate was 3.5 per 1000 people.

In the 1996 presidential election 50% of the electorate said moral values were one of the most important issues. In the 2004 presidential election, that percentage stood at 34 %. In 8 years 16% of support had eroded.

From the 2000 election to the 2004 election, support for gay marriages increased 50% in America.

For the last 30 years moral values have been some of the most important factors in elections.

In 2005, 11 of 17 states amended their state constitutions to prohibit gay unions or gay marriages. Satan is attacking the Biblical ideal of marriage between a man and a woman.

But he does not stop there. Satan also attacks the marriages of Christians.

Some statistics say the divorce rate for conservative Christians is higher than the rate for atheists and agnostics. Others say the opposite. Tom Ellis, Chairman of the Southern Baptist convention’s council on the family says the true fact is 1 in 39,000 marriages, end among conservative Christians. That is 0.00256%.

The question in your marriage is, are you surviving or thriving?

Are you and your spouse meeting each others personal needs?

Here we are in mainstream America where prayer is illegal, and abortion is encouraged.

Where, if you resist the gay marriage deluge, you practice hate speech, and you are homophobic!

Where our kids walk through metal detectors to get on the school ground and are handed condoms.

Does anybody believe me when I scream….the battle is raging?

If anyone is naïve enough to think you can ignore your marriage, and it will thrive on it’s own, by simple church attendance, you are sadly mistaken!

On January 31, 1996, I ended a journey of 9048 days of marriage. Over 25 years. I dated in the church, I married in the church, and was finally divorced in the church. On that January day in 1996, I started a journey that has now stretched to 5,192 days, over 14 years of living alone.

If I could help even one person to not go down that road, it would be worth it all. But even more, what if I could I help those still in the marriage, to make that marriage all God intended it to be?

I was driving down the road with Martyn Ballestero a few weeks ago. We were on main street in Sumner Washington, right in front of McDonalds, in the left turn lane.

God spoke to me. God said “What did the children say of their mother in Proverbs chapter 31?” In my mind I answered, they called her blessed. And God said, “What did her husband do?”. I answered he praised her. God told me to look it up and see what kind of praise the man gave his wife. I did, and Brother Ballestero wrote a wonderful blog on it.

I hope you will click on the link, go to his blog site and read the blog on how to have the best wife in the world!

http://martynballestero.com/

Thanks for reading today!

7 Responses »

The Book Of Acts, The Bridge. Sunday, Apr 11 2010

Biblical history and Doctrine and New Testament kennethbow 6:53 am

Acts

Oft times I have wondered about certain books of the Bible. I have thought, what if we did not have this book in our Bible? How would that affect the whole? When I place the book of Acts on that pedestal, and consider, I am certain of the answer.

Only Acts and Genesis seem to hold the place of absolute. Without them we simply could not survive. They are both irreplaceable.

The book of Acts was written by Luke. Luke is the only Gentile writer in the Bible. It is interesting to me that Luke is responsible for 25% of the New Testament. His two books equal one fourth of the volume of the New Testament.

I am not positive, but it appears to me that Luke wrote at the bequest of a wealthy patron named Theopholis. His two books address this individual. This was a common practice that carried well into the middle ages. A wealthy patron would sponsor someone to write a book or thesis. This is how men like Voltaire and Rousseau were supported financially.

To me, Acts is about three men. Those men are Simon (Peter), Saul (Paul), and Stephen. The book is evenly devoted to the ministry of Peter and Paul with Stephen being the bridge from one to the other.

The contrast of these two men is stark. Peter is a country fisherman. Paul is a polished cosmopolitan. Peter was ignorant and unlearned. Paul was a trained rabbi, having studied at the feet of Gamaliel. Peter spoke Aramaic, the common language. Paul could speak that language, as well as Greek. Peter was a country Jew, Paul was a Hellenistic Jew and a Roman Citizen.

The first twelve chapters of Acts are about Peter. In chapter 13 the spotlight shifts to Paul and never moves back to Peter again. Peter, the great apostle fades from view in Acts.

How important is Acts as a book? It is irreplaceable! Without the book of Acts we would go from the Gospels to Romans. We would wonder who is Paul? What is the church? How did it start? Acts is the link to all of the New Testament.

Acts begins with the ascension of Jesus. It moves on to choosing Judas’ replacement. It then tells of Pentecost, the beginning of the church, and eventually documents the church’s emigration to the Roman Empire.

Christianity conquered the Roman Empire, period. The Roman Empire paved roads, established peace and continuity, and through this open door walked the church. The church flourished during the Pax Romana, the empire wide peace. Within 300 years 10% of the Roman Empire was Christian.

The book of Acts documents the beginning of this conquest of the church.

When the spotlight shifts to Paul in chapter 13, Luke begins to relate Paul’ missionary journeys. Paul made three journeys. ( Some scholars say up to five). The dates of these journeys are:

46-48, first journey
49-52, second journey
53-57, third journey

It is simply amazing that in 47AD there were no churches in Asia Minor. In ten years there was a ring of churches that included every major city in Galatia, Macedonia, Asia and Acacia. This remarkable achievement has never been repeated anywhere globally.

On his first journey, when he gains his first convert, the Apostle Paul jettisons his Hebrew name Saul, and forever becomes know as Paul. He was the Apostle to the Gentiles and he bore his Gentile name to his death.

Luke is a gentile, writing a book about the gentile revival by the Apostle to the gentiles. This fact shows up in the book repeatedly. It is very clear in the story of the appointment of the deacons. When the division came and the controversy showed itself, out of the seven men chosen, 5 were Greeks according to their names. Luke makes this point, or rather the Holy Ghost does.

The final chapters of the book of Acts are concerning Paul’s last days. I am left with one of the biggest questions of my life as to why the book ends so inconclusively. With the Holy Ghost inspiring the man called Luke, why no closure?

My only hypothesis is that the book is still being written in heaven. Maybe the final words were something like “to be continued”.

What chapter will you write to add to the book of Acts?

Thanks for reading today!

4 Responses »

Burger King Got It Wrong! Monday, Apr 5 2010

Biblical history and Doctrine and Motivational and Old Testament kennethbow 5:48 am

Burger King got it wrong. They say have it your way. The book of Judges shows me this is not the way to happiness or success!

The book of Judges opens to us one of the darkest times of man’s history. The people of God should have been celebrating victories and conquering a new land.

Judges opens the window into the heart of mankind, and the picture is not pretty!

Seven times in the book the statement is made “Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord”, two times it says “Every man did that which is right in his own eyes”. The result of that environment was catastrophic. It further emphasis that there was no King in those days. So every man was left to follow his own decisions.

This period of time lasted 450 years! This period of time was as long as the entire duration of the monarchy. Because there is one book of Judges, and six books of the Kings (Samuel, Kings, Chronicles), it is natural to feel like the Kings were a longer period of time. Both of these time periods were 450 years. Why?

God gave man 450 years to reveal what happens when man does that which is right in his own eyes.

The result of that time period is so abhorrent and tragic, we scarce can comprehend it. The last five chapters of Judges are as bad and ugly as any period of history, any place on the Globe. From this experiment and experience we can truly agree with God that it is not in man to direct his steps.

It might help to think of these Judges as freedom fighters. The word Judge to us today speaks of courtrooms and juries. These men, (and one woman), were liberators, fighters, leaders of armies! They are renowned for their military campaigns. The following is a list of Judges and their term of time.

Judge Enemy

Othniel/40 years Mesopotamia
Ehud/80 years Moab, Amon, Amalek
Deborah, Barak/40 years Caanan
Gideon/40 years Midian
Abimelech/3 years
Toah/23 years
Jair/22 years
Jeptha/6 years Ammon
Ibzaim/7 years
Elon/10 years
Samson/20 years Philistines
Eli/40 years Philistines
Samuel/20 years Philistines

By my addition there were 111 years of oppression and 339 years of peace for a total of 450 years of the reign of the Judges. This is the same amount of time for the Kings! There was 120 years of the United Kingdom, 200 years of a divided Kingdom with Israel and Judah side by side, and an additional 135 years of Judah.

The conclusion I get is this, God gave man 450 years of man doing what he thought was right on his own. Then he gave man 450 years where a king ruled over his life. Both time periods ended in abject failure. Opening the door for the prophets and God’s voice being the law of man and earth.

The only successful government has proved to be when God himself rules over the affairs of men.

In the first 16 chapters of Judges, it is all about God’s people being attacked from without. The enemy is from the outside. Then the last five chapters are the result when Israel turns upon herself and begins to carnage herself. The result is one of the most terrible times in all of history.

Before it is over Israel will have killed more of her own that any of her attackers ever did from the outside. If fact, she will have killed more of her own that all of the outside attacks combined over the entire 450 year period!

What a statement God leaves on the pages of the Bible about what happens when we forget who our real enemy is and begin to war on our brothers.

In the last five chapters, it begins with the introduction of Idolatry into Israel with the story of Micah and his graven images. The stage is set for idolatry and it takes a thousand years and a dispersion (Israel), and a captivity (Judah), to finally purge Israel of Idolatry!

The story moves on to the tribe of Dan.

This tribe is not satisfied with their inheritance so they look for new territory. They journey east, then north, a total of about 144 miles to conquer Laish. They rename the city “Dan”(hence the term from Dan to Beersheba). This is not the inheritance God assigned to the tribe of Dan.

This story lets us see the terrible result of what happens when you are not satisfied with your inheritance! The tribe of Dan is forever removed from the pages of the Bible. The only mention I find is one descendant worked on Solomon’s temple. Dan is never mentioned again, never included anymore in the list of the tribes all the way to the book of Revelation!

What more would anyone need to illustrate the danger of not being satisfied with our inheritance?

The book of Judges then moves on to the story of the concubine.

The woman was abused and finally dies. Her master cuts her into twelve pieces and sends a piece of the evidence to each tribe. The nation goes to war and the result is horrific. Israel loses 65,000 men in the final chapters of Judges, all because they had a piece of the evidence. The tribe of Benjamin is reduced to 400 men and almost obliterated.

I believe they would have been wiped out if not for a future son of Benjamin that would literally change the world, Saul of Tarsus. God preserved the tribe for Israel’s first king, and Christianity’s first missionary.

The moral of the story is again so stark! It is so dangerous to go to war over a piece of the evidence.

Was all lost for humanity? Not at all. God in his infinite wisdom was letting man work through the slow process of human government to help man self discover for himself his need of God.

All was not lost, for even in this morass, at the bulls eye center of the greatest carnage were faithful people who held on to God. That is why Boaz steps onto the stage. There was in the days of the Judges, Ruth 1.1

We will discuss that in the book of Ruth!

Thanks for reading today!

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I Have Met A Giant! Tuesday, Mar 30 2010

Biblical history and Motivational kennethbow 10:50 am

Genesis 6.4 There were giants in the earth in those days

Archaeology has proven Genesis correct many times. As you can see from the photo, there certainly were giants on the earth as the Bible says there were.

Yes, David really did fight a giant named Goliath. David’s great grandmother was a lady named Ruth. Goliath’s great grandmother was a lady named Orpah. Both David and Goliath had great grandmothers from Moab. When Naomi returned to Israel after the sojourn in Moab, Ruth came also. Orpah returned to Moab and her great grandson eventually challenged Israel and Saul’s armies to a contest. David defeated Goliath in the famous battle, and was crowned the giant slayer by the minstrels of Israel.

Today I want to introduce you to a giant I have personally met, and know quite well. He lives among us. Many of you will know him and be acquainted with him. I wanted to point out his stature today.

His has been an amazing life. His father was also a member of the giants. Men of stature, height, expanse in multiply ways. Men that affect and change an entire generation by their presence and exploits. Men who have been undefeated in spiritual combat. Champions without peer. Acknowledged, acclaimed, and revered by their peers and their future generations. Men who leave behind a trail that others may follow and find bliss.

This giant I know has….