God's promises are as good as done - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Joshua 12:7,24,

"Here is a list of the kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered on the west side of the Jordan... thirty-one kings in all."

Thirty-one kings west of the Jordan river. Add to this the kings on the east side of the river Moses conquered as he led Israel: Sihon, king of the Amorites and Og, king of Bashan. Thirty-three kings in total.

Thirty-three kings Israel vanquished, thirty-three kings Israel defeated. There was still further land, more kings Israel needed to conquer to full take possession of all the land promised them, but at this point they had defeated thirty-three kings.

At the beginning of the book of Joshua, the Lord told him, "I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life." The Lord promised to bring victory to the Israelites. All Israel had to do was to follow her Lord.

Thirty-three kings could not stop Israel. God had promised, therefore the defeat of all kings in the land promised Israel was a fait accompli as long as Israel followed her Lord. When the Lord gives his promise, something very important needs to be recognized: God is faithful and God is more than capable of delivering on all his promises.

Paul places faith in God's promises as well as his power to fulfill them as the unique kind of faith God looks for in all of us. In considering Abraham, Paul says, "Yet he [Abraham] did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why 'it was credited to him as righteousness.'" Romans 4:20-22. It is this kind of faith that brings us a righteousness from God, just as it did Abraham.

Something important to keep in mind as we consider God's promises -- to those of us who have embraced Jesus Christ in faith -- of our coming resurrection, and the blessings that will be ours, "you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." Psalm 16:11.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Our dreadful God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Joshua 8:1-2,

"Then the Lord said to Joshua, 'Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.'"

Following the victory of the Israelites over Jericho, and an initial rout at Ai, the Lord gives Joshua and the Israelites the direction to destroy Ai. After this was completed, using a masterful military strategy employed by the Israelites given them by God, here is the summary provided us: "When Israel had finished killing all the men of Ai in the fields and in the wilderness where they had chased them, and when every one of them had been put to the sword, all the Israelites returned to Ai and killed those who were in it. Twelve thousand men and women fell that day—all the people of Ai. For Joshua did not draw back the hand that held out his javelin until he had destroyed all who lived in Ai. But Israel did carry off for themselves the livestock and plunder of this city, as the Lord had instructed Joshua. So Joshua burned Ai and made it a permanent heap of ruins, a desolate place to this day. He impaled the body of the king of Ai on a pole and left it there until evening. At sunset, Joshua ordered them to take the body from the pole and throw it down at the entrance of the city gate. And they raised a large pile of rocks over it, which remains to this day." Joshua 8:24-29.

The entire city was annihilated and its king impaled on a pole till evening... thousands killed in a genocidal attack that left all dead. While we may find such an account shocking and at-odds with our concept of our loving God who commanded it, we really don't have a full account of what these people from Ai were culpable for. However, we do know the inhabitants of Palestine were given to idol worship, Numbers 33:52. They did not worship God, but false deities, whose worship included child sacrifice as well as other abominations.

God didn't ask the folks from Ai how they might feel about being annihilated. He didn't take a survey and didn't conduct a poll. These people had turned from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, our Creator God, and turned to the abominations of idol worship. They did not served any purpose for the roll out of God's plan of redemption, and, in fact, by possessing a portion of the promised land, their presence impeded what God intended to do. Thus, they fell into the cross-hairs of God's judgment.

A cautionary tale, it helps remind us that, "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31. It also helps us to understand that God's perspective on life in this age, as well as the next, is different from ours. We recoil at the thought of destroying a whole city of people, we recoil at the notion of genocide.

Shall I insist that God begin seeing things my way, or should I work on seeing things his way?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

National identity in the resurrection - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Numbers 36:7-9,

"No inheritance in Israel is to pass from one tribe to another, for every Israelite shall keep the tribal inheritance of their ancestors. Every daughter who inherits land in any Israelite tribe must marry someone in her father's tribal clan, so that every Israelite will possess the inheritance of their ancestors. No inheritance may pass from one tribe to another, for each Israelite tribe is to keep the land it inherits."

An issue arose in Israel as they anticipated taking possession of the land promised them. You recall that the promised land was divided among the tribes of Israel. What about land inherited by daughters, if they should marry outside their tribe? Would the land allotted a tribe transfer to another if the daughters married outside their clan? Tribal identity was very important and the thought of one tribe losing portions of the land allotted to them to another tribe, and possibly significantly so over years, became a concern.

This passage is the resolution the Lord provided for the concern and gave to Moses.Tribal identity and tribal presence with its footprint in the land was to be observed and maintained. The nation of Israel was not to be "homogenized" in the promised land. Every person's tribal identity was to remain intact.

Although this is an historical account of what was to happen within the nation of Israel in the land of Palestine as they took possession of it, it brings to mind something fascinating to me about life in the resurrection. In Revelation 21 we read of "the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God" to earth, verse 10. A bit later we read, "The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it." Revelation 21:24-26.

Note that "the nations" will walk by its light (provided by the glory of God). Not simply people, but "the nations". Also, "kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it", indicating, again, leaders of nations. We are told the glory of "the nations" will be brought into the New Jerusalem. It is my understanding that "nations" is not simply a synonym for "people", but, a reference to countries, to nations as we understand them.

Just as Israel was to maintain tribal distinctions, tribal presence and tribal dentity, so we find in the resurrection we will continue to have a form of national identity. All mankind will not be "homogenized" by removal of national distinction, but we will be the people of God, God's family, his kingdom, represented as individuals that retain some form of national identity.

How this identity works out in the resurrection, I have no clue. Some nations collapse into other nations, some nations arise out of others in this life, as we all know. Whether the nations in the resurrection reflect the national identities of this life - again, I don't have a clue. But, here it is. Nations in the resurrection!

How else would we count medals in the Olympic games in the resurrection if we had no national identity? ;o)

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

What are you in touch with? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Numbers 19:22a,

"Anything that an unclean person touches becomes unclean..."

The law God gave Moses included a number of regulations regarding "clean" and "unclean" things. These clean and unclean things (and people) appear to be either of a health/hygiene nature or a ceremonial nature, and sometimes both. Failure to follow through on the regulations regarding an unclean man who had touched "a human bone or a grave or anyone who has been killed or anyone who has died a natural death", verse 18, defiled the sanctuary of the Lord, verse 20, and were to be cut off from the community. That which is unclean and not dealt with properly results in a sinful condition.

The observation that "Anything that an unclean person touches becomes unclean...", brings to my mind the realization that the touch of sin taints, the touch of sin corrupts, the touch of sin propagates through casual contact.

We are all born in sin. We live in a lost and fallen world and we find ourselves in this life to be controlled by a sinful nature.

What excites me about Jesus Christ is that he provides us freedom from sin. In Romans 6 we are told that believers are no longer enslaved to sin but have been set free.

And, not just that!! When we embrace Jesus Christ in faith, his embrace of us makes us holy. "Jesus also suffered... to make the people holy through his own blood." Hebrews 13:12. "... we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Hebrews 10:10.

What this means is that where sin once corrupted us, now, by the touch of our Lord, we are found holy and blameless! "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight." Ephesians 1:4. As a result, on the day we all appear before God, we will be presented without fault and with great joy! Jude 24.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

The cost of breaking a vow - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Leviticus 27:14-15,

"If anyone dedicates their house as something holy to the Lord, the priest will judge its quality as good or bad. Whatever value the priest then sets, so it will remain. If the one who dedicates their house wishes to redeem it, they must add a fifth to its value, and the house will again become theirs."

Bob Deffinbaugh, at "bible.org", describes the "vows" discussed in Leviticus 27 as "a kind of 'credit card' act of worship." A promise to worship God at a future time by giving something as a person, an animal, a house, an inheritance, land, etc. Something promised to God, to be provided in the future. The reason for the delay in delivering on what was offered is that the worshiper, motivated by gratitude for something God had done or provided them, was unable to provide what was offered at the time and so makes a vow to provide it later. What is discussed in this chapter refers to voluntary gifts folks promised to God and now have reconsidered.

Recognizing the regret that many may have over having rashly vowed something to the Lord in the heat of a moment, direction here is provided as to how what was vowed might be redeemed back by the worshiper. In the above example of a house, a fifth of the value is to be added to the value of the house if the owner wanted to "un-vow" it, to "buy back" his vow to the Lord. In this way the house could be redeemed without harm to the fickle worshiper.

From this I recognize that God knows us all too well. He knows how we can be impulsive. He knows how we can be caught up in a moment we may later reconsider - even a moment of legitimate gratitude. How often I have been blessed by God in some wonderful way, only later to find my appreciation waning...

This, I believe is not good. God certainly deserves better from me. In regard to vows, the Scriptures tell us not to make them lightly. "It is a trap to dedicate something rashly and only later to consider one's vows." Proverbs 20:25. "When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it." Ecclesiastes 5:4-5. Better to not vow, than to make one and not keep it. I find this particularly true with wedding vows, when what is vowed to the spouse is vowed before God. Here in this passage, I note that not following through on a vow is to cost something. In the case of a house, it is 20%.

I find it fascinating that the Lord does provide for our weakness. It is precisely his propensity to do so that we call God our wonderful Lord of Grace. He makes a way... not because we deserve it, but in spite of the fact we don't.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

When we touch God - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Leviticus 15:13-15,

"When a man is cleansed from his discharge, he is to count off seven days for his ceremonial cleansing; he must wash his clothes and bathe himself with fresh water, and he will be clean. On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons and come before the Lord to the entrance to the tent of meeting and give them to the priest. The priest is to sacrifice them, the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement before the Lord for the man because of his discharge."

I'm quite certain there are more tasteful things I could be writing about than the directions provided by the Lord for a man who is unclean because of a bodily discharge. However, there is something here that catches my attention that is quite wonderful concerning the Lord, I'll get to that in a bit.

There is that in the Lord's directions to Israel concerning the health and hygiene for individuals and the community as a whole. What we see in the above verses, however, are directions for a "ceremonial cleansing" that is to follow him being "cleansed from his discharge." Beyond the concern for germs, disease, heath and hygiene, a spiritual cleansing is required.

This need for a "ceremonial cleansing" following a medical issue in the community of God is not difficult to trace. All death, all disease, all infirmity, all the physical, emotional and spiritual maladies that affect all of us is directly attributable to man's fall in the garden of Eden. It was when mankind rebelled and turned his back on God that death, disease, illness, etc. entered into the now fallen human race. In the midst of suffering physically from sin in the garden of Eden as an ultimate cause, it should not be lost that unsaved man in his natural condition is unclean and when visited by the consequences of sin, makes him ceremonially unclean under the law among God's covenant people.

So, there is need in the community of God for direction both in regard to health and hygiene, as well as addressing the ultimate origin of cause for theses infirmities, while under the law. This, a reminder that sin brought devastation to the lives we have here.

Here is something I find interesting and wonderful about God. In a constant concern for potential illness in the community and a ceremonial "unclean-ness" as well, anyone who touched a person who was unclean, became unclean himself. "Whoever touches the man who has a discharge must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening." Leviticus 15:7. When man comes into contact with the "unclean" he become unclean. However, when anything touches God, it becomes clean and healed and made whole. I am reminded of a woman who had an issue of blood for 12 years. She touched just the robe of Jesus Christ and was immediately healed. Luke 8:43-48. Jesus turned to her and said, "your faith has healed you."

The ugly things of this life can destroy us, make us "unclean", but the touch of God through faith overcomes uncleaness, disease, and any other vestige of living in our lost and fallen world.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Why the account of Esau's family line? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Genesis 36:1,

"This is the account of the family line of Esau (that is, Edom)."

Esau was Jacob's twin brother and son of Issac and Rebecca. We are provided various accounts of Esau, especially in relationship to Jacob. I suspect most familiar is the account of when Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of stew. Genesis 36 is devoted to providing the family line of Esau.

The writer of Hebrews observes that Esau was a godless man, Hebrews 12:16. In Romans 9:13, Paul quotes Malachi 1:2-3 where it is written, "'Was not Esau Jacob's brother?' declares the Lord. 'Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.'"

Since Esau was viewed as a godless man, a man whom the Lord hated (in Malachi it is not just Esau, but also the descendants of Esau that God claimed to hate, while he loved Israel) and that the progeny of Esau became bitter enemies of the nation of Israel in succeeding generations, why does the Bible spend time on his family line? It is precisely these kinds of observations and questions that provide me with the absolute certainty that the Bible is not what its critics claim it to be. It is heard on occasion that the Bible was written by men who intended to subjugate people to "the elites" of the day, to invent or reinvent religion,  to bring about revivals and reforms, etc. Such criticism is best aimed at the Qur'an and other false religious literature.

It seems to me that no one would showcase the "bad guys" as Genesis 36 does if the Bible had such an origin. And, not just that, but, not only are we presented with the account of Esau's family line in Genesis, which demonstrates the Genesis accounts are not spun out of thin air - but historically well-documented, it also presents us with the failings of the "good guys." Abraham's lying and deception, Jacob's lying and deception, Judah's procurement of temple prostitutes, and on and on.

The authenticating material of historical documentation is one of the Scripture's very strong points, and lays to rest the many attacks by less-informed critics.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

The deadly radiance of God's majestic splendor - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 40:34-35,

"Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle."

The majestic splendor of God radiates in a visible glory that can be see and felt. How astonishing the Creator enters into his creation to make his presence among his people! Following the assembly of the tabernacle, God manifested his presence with his glory filling it, resulting in Moses no longer being able to enter.

There was a curtain in the tabernacle behind which God's glory radiated. I suspect this made it possible for God to commune with mankind here on earth in a way that was survivable by man. Earlier, when asked by Moses that God would show him his glory, the Lord said "'I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence...  But,' he said, 'you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.'" Exodus 33:19-20.

Paul made an interesting observation about this physical manifestation of the radiance of God's glory, "...God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see." 1 Timothy 6:15-16. This radiance of God's glory is something that is apparently fatal for sinful mankind if encountered.

In something of a humorous account (from our perspective, not theirs), after having spent time with the Lord on Mt. Sinai, when Moses came down to the people with the second set of tablets of the law, this glory was reflected in Moses' face and sent his brother and the other leaders of Israel off in a panic, "When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the Lord had given him on Mount Sinai." Exodus 34:29-32.

This resulted in Moses needing to use a veil for a period of time, "When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. But whenever he entered the Lord's presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord." Exodus 34:33-35.

All of this speaks to me of the transcendence of God over his creation, manifested in a physical glory of his majestic splendor that radiates in a deadly wavelength of light - an unapproachable light. How awesome our God!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

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God creates beauty - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 38:21,

"These are the amounts of the materials used for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the covenant law, which were recorded at Moses' command by the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest."

How much in metals used? An astonishing amount! Over 1 ton of gold, 3 3/4 tons of silver, and 2 1/2 tons of bronze! The tabernacle was lavish and extravagant!

It must have been something to behold. The craftsmanship of engravers, designers, embroiderers and weavers was beyond anything ever seen, as these craftsmen had been endowed by the Holy Spirit to produce what mere mortals on their own could not. Exodus 35:30-35.

The construction of the tabernacle was a joint venture of sorts. It was designed by God, built according to God's specifications by craftsmen he endowed with beyond-human skill and ability. Without a doubt, it was one of the great wonders of the world in Moses' day.

To me, the tabernacle stood as a testimony to the beauty of something God can create in this lost and fallen world. Today, I see this in brothers and sisters God has conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ, carefully crafting each one, Romans 8:29. God builds things like love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control into believers lives, Galatians 5:22-23.

The most wonderful people I have met have been those who have been shaped by the handiwork of God himself. Folks who are a joy to be around, an inspiration to get to know, and a great and wonderful encouragement to spend time with.

God creates beauty.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

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A thought on building God's kingdom - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 37:1-5,

"Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood—two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. He overlaid it with pure gold, both inside and out, and made a gold molding around it. He cast four gold rings for it and fastened them to its four feet, with two rings on one side and two rings on the other. Then he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. And he inserted the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it."

The account of the construction of the tabernacle, the ark, the table, the lamp stand, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offering, the basin for washing and the courtyard are all provided with interesting detail. The materials used, some information on design and on the construction are provided us.

Where this passage may be that which many folks skim through to get to the other accounts found within Exodus, it is interesting from a few perspectives. The one perspective I have as I read through these accounts is the recognition that these things were constructed by individuals who were "filled ... with the Spirit of God" and enabled by the Spirit "to do all kinds of work..." Exodus 35:31-35. These folks were enabled by the Lord himself for the work,"every skilled person to whom the Lord has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work..." Exodus 36:1.

This tabernacle is to be the place where God meets with man. It is the place where man can approach God with his worship. It is the place where the priests, who will represent the Israelites before the Lord will do their work. It is the place where the glory of God will rest and become the "nerve-center" of the community. It is here where the people of God will be set apart from all other nations on earth.

Due to the role the tabernacle, with its equipment and furnishings, all of it is to be constructed from the materials the Lord dictated. It is to be constructed according to the design the Lord dictated. It is to be constructed with the divinely inspired skills and abilities the Lord provided the Israelites.

I don't see much here about "winging it", "gettin 'er done the best we can", or "throwing it together" to get it finished by the end of the day. This was an important effort, one that would result in the acceptable place for God to meet with man. The shear thought of having a place where God met with man is an amazing thought to me.

All this has bearing on my understanding of what may be important and what may not be important as we commit ourselves today in joining with the Lord in the building of his kingdom. The Lord can be specific in details, as is evidenced in the construction of the tabernacle. Where he may not be specific, perhaps we inject some distortion to our concept of the things of God when we fill in where God has not. Where God wants things done in a certain way, we see he can communicate that. Where he chooses not to be detailed, perhaps we need to recognized that as well.

Given what we know, how might this influence your thinking about how we go about the building of God's kingdom today? Exactly how has he asked us to participate with him in the effort?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.

Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Only the willing... - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Exodus 36:2,

"Then Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the Lord had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work."

We are told the Lord gave certain Israelites special ability to create and construct the various aspects of the tabernacle, "engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers." Exodus 35:35. Among them two are mentioned by name: Bezalel and Oholiab.

What catches my eye this morning is that when Moses summoned these workers to begin the work, two requirements were required on their resume. The first is they had to have been given "ability" by the Lord for the work, the second being they had to be willing to come and do the work. Enabled and motivated.

While I am certain the Lord is quite capable to motivate any one of us for his purposes, I note here that the willingness to come to do the work was something looked for within these workers. From the context, it appears to me that there may have been those who had been equipped by God for the tasks that needed doing, but also unwilling. In any event, the only ones called to the task where those equipped by God and willing to do the work.

I note the Lord appears to operate in much the same way today. When it comes to the work of building God's kingdom, he equips his people for the things that need doing, "So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." Ephesians 4:11-13.

In addition to equipping the saints for works of service, the Lord also encourages those he has gifted to exploit those gifts he has given. Listen to how Peter puts it, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." 1 Peter 4:10. Apparently, some of us need the encouragement, we must be willing. God's people are not forced to use what God has gifted them with, they must be "willing to come and do the work" just as those who created the furnishings, equipment and the tabernacle itself in Moses day.

It is interesting to me to see how God equips us. We have all been given the ability to do certain things the Lord wants done. The lone question is whether we are willing to show up to use what it is he has given us.

It appears to be to be very rare in the Scriptures where God overrides the volition he has given to each person when he created us in his own image. Interesting, isn't it? What does this tell you about God?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Trevor Fisk

trevor.fisk@gmail.com