A few months ago I saw a video where Dr. Ben Witherington reminded a crowd that Scripture was written to be read aloud. The original audience would have been hearing the words recited by another. While reading Scripture it’s a good idea to keep this fact in mind. This might be important when reading Jesus’ famous lines in Matthew 11:28-30: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your…

This is not my own analogy. I came across it this past week as I was looking into those first few verses of Genesis 2 where God is pictured as “resting” after 6 intense days of creation. I want to share it because I find it helpful and maybe you will as well. I used to wonder what the Bible was trying to communicate about God here – was He exhausted after all those creative acts?  That didn’t make much sense if God is all powerful. No output of energy on God’s part is going to make Him tired. If…

Starting with God’s rest on the 7th day of creation, the concept of “rest” itself becomes a regular motif in both the Old and New Testaments. Entering into rest with God is often portrayed as the entire point of life: Exodus 33:12-14 – Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and…

Since I have always read the short account of God’s rest on the 7th day of creation fairly literally, it has always puzzled me. Was He worn out? Did he need a tall glass of lemonade to sip while He reclined under one of the trees He created? In reading up on Old Testament background recently, I came across an interpretation that makes a lot more sense to me.  Some scholars take “resting” to be a divine activity reserved for temples. In other words, God creates the earth for the purpose of inhabiting it as a deity inhabits a temple.…

Most people know the Serenity Prayer, which these days is most often associated with Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s the poem about knowing what can and cannot be changed in our lives. If the internet can be trusted, the original Serenity Prayer was written in 1943 by theologian Reinhold Niebuhr and went like this: “O God and Heavenly Father, grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.” For my money, a very similar…

You need to be wary of anyone who talks glibly about “what the Bible says” on any particular topic.  Some time ago I came across a YouTuber who calls himself “Rogue Calvinist”. He likes to pick fights with the Big Dogs and, sadly, has no idea when he is out of his league. He’s a first year Bible student, so obviously he knows a lot of stuff. Rogue made a post today which was a restatement of the old Calvinist accusation that non-Calvinists give themselves something to boast about when they claim faith is the responsibility of humans: Because they…

Here’s another worthwhile aphorism from Dr. John Walton:  Some insist that we read the Bible literally,  but it is better to read the Bible seriously. To read the Bible seriously, we must give thought to which parts of Scripture the original authors meant for their original audience to take literally and which parts were meant to be understood figuratively. The strict literalist never entertains such questioning. To their way of thinking, unless the Scripture on the table is poetry or a parable, it is meant to be taken literally. This is pure ignorance.  Literally.  It is a lack of awareness…