Nov 18

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Kiss The Hand That Strikes You
    The depth of Job's faith amazes me: Even if God kills me, all my hope for life is in Him.Wow! How can you say that? If there was a person in a position that had the power of life and death over you, it's easy to understand how viewing them as your only hope could be, and to treat them with respect and fear. But it seems that Job thinks the opposite here - He sees God, joyously if not tenaciously,... Read more »

Nov 2

Oct 19

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Partiality
    Partiality to what? I don't follow the partiality that Job is talking about. For sure, his statements are filled with sarcasm here - Job's friends are putting words in God's mouth, so to speak, and Job identifies the extreme folly of this. Maybe he's referring to the friend's partiality towards God with their words... but the truth is, they're not concerned about defending God, but are about defeating... Read more »

Sep 28

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Thanks a lot, buddy!
    Job is not swayed once by his "friend's" advice. I suppose in Job's situation, it's not hard to imagine that Job is searching for something to blame his calamity on... even if it's just simply to make sense of it all. But Zophar and company do not put forth a solid argument for anything, according to what he knows in his spirit. He is quick to reject convincing words in favor of solid faith. Job... Read more »

Sep 23

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution God is in control
    With this section, Job gives a wonderful description of the fact that God is so far above our world. The happenings that go on here, he could play them to His amusement, if He wanted. Thank God, that kind of power is on my side... or better, I'm on His side. I'd hate to be on the other side. I'm just saying... Read more »

Sep 21

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Job's friend shows his failure
    Zophar indicates one reason why he gives bad advice to Job; he's given up on understanding God. Maybe Zophar hasn't given up - maybe he's just indicating how much bigger God is than us. In either case, he is telling Job that God knows some deep dark secret of his soul, and that he's punishing him for it. But Job isn't working in that paradigm... He's saying he doesn't know of anything, and he's asking... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Pride
    Job knows his place in the universe; his head should always be down in submission - which is either a reason for his being called "blameless, upright, and fearing God" - or it's an indicator of someone who is "blameless, upright, and fearing God." Either way, Job should be a man we should all strive to be. We may be afraid of having the same fate, but wouldn't it be worth it to be called "blameless,... Read more »

Sep 17

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Why, God? Why?
    Job, the righteous one, has a bunch of junk dumped on him. In his heart, you know he's got to be thinking some serious thoughts about why this is happening. His words to God here show it's alright to question God, as long as you don't challenge Him in His sovereignty. I know in our short-sightedness, we often think we know better than God. But the reality is, we're tools of His will, and He's allowed... Read more »

Sep 14

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The Sign of Elijah
    Every once in a long while, God decides to demonstrate his power in a tangible way. In answer to Solomon's prayer, God consumes the sacrifice with fire from Heaven - the same way that He answered Elijah on Mt. Carmel, when all of Israel was watching him duel against the priests of Baal. I think it's awesome how awesome God is. Though I'm glad for the imagination He gave me, it's true I could only... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The Sins of the Fathers
    A mother (assumed) is told to go back to the city - and when she does, her son will die. What kind of torture would that be? She's already been told that she would never be buried when she dies... But to be the trigger that kills her son? That's tragedy. Never mess with God - never get between God and His people. That this kid alone would be the only person of the family to be buried - and that's... Read more »

Sep 12

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution A peek into David's Heart
    After hunting him like an animal and trying to kill him, David writes this ode to Saul... An unbelievable man of God, truly sees things from a different perspective. This must be a characteristic of being a man after God's own heart. Read more »

Sep 11

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution God empowers Samson?
    The Spirit of God clearly enters Samson... but when you read his story, you never get the idea that he has any thoughts about God's will. What you see is time after time, Samson is motivated by his own thoughts and impulses. He definitely isn't a very good role model. I guess this is a classic story of how God can work through even the most selfish of us. Read more »

Sep 3

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The Love of a Father
    After prostituting themselves to other gods, God told Israel He would deliver them no more. But the people repented and turned back to God, and that, well, softened the Father's heart. I love the way NASB puts it: "He could bear the misery of Israel no longer." May I never be found in the same place as Israel was - but if I am, God - please see my repentance in the same way you did them! Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution A Brief Mention
    Poor Shamgar... His work in Israel's history is but a brief footnote amongst all the details and stories of other judges, small and great. It forces me ask the question, why? What caused his time of Judgment to be only a short mention? Killing 600 philistines with an oxgoad doesn't sound like a small feat. And why is the statement "he also saved Israel" kind of tacked on to the end of the verse? Isn't... Read more »

Sep 2

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Prophecy of Dismal Failure
    After giving Israel the law which they are not to violate if they desire to be with God, He turns around and tells them they will fail - it's just a matter of time. He doesn't approach it with an "if" statement or any condition... He simply states the when. I wonder what the Israelites thought when they heard this - Is it me, my generation, or my kids? What's the point in following the laws if He... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Worship The Right Way
    Contrast this verse with verse 8 - The measurement of what is "...good and right" is in "...the sight of the Lord your God" - not in our own eyes (v8) The reason is simple: We're too short-sighted to see beyond ourselves, so everything we attempt to do on our own will always be based around what we want or perceive to need; even in worship. That, ladies and gentlement, is a sad and dangerous truth.... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The Same Ol' Same Ol'
    It's really amazing how dim humanity's eyesight is. From the days of Adam until now, we continually do things our way. In this passage, where the law compares the worship of pagans against that of Israel, God is sure to make it clear that, even in our best attempts, we still don't get it right. Is God displeased at our own attempts to worship Him? Is there really only one way? Where has he established... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The OT Triune God
    Besides the somewhat cryptic mention of "us" in the first book of the Bible, most believers do not recognize the Trinity in the Old Testament. Here's an awesome example of what is apparently the Holy Spirit, who is already directly working in Moses' life, now being imbued upon the elders. The more I read the Bible, the more amazing its cohesiveness is. Read more »

Sep 1

  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution The Unchanging Law
    This verse demonstrates the spiritual law, that set of laws that reality operates upon, is eternal - from the beginning until way after the end - was what Jesus was teaching us. It was a couple of decades into my reading the Bible that I ever caught on to the fact that Jesus was quoting the Old Testament when He responded to the scribes. I don't know why - it's pretty obviously stated along with the... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Nakedness in the Tabernacle
    It seems that God wanted the priests to be cautious about exposing what lay under their robes as they made their way in the tabernacle. This command is obviously not aimed at God's sense of propriety - He knows what we look like without our clothes. What strikes me here is that God is keenly aware of - and intensely interested in - how others think of us, especially as it relates to how we are representing... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution God's plan at work.
    Abram's father Terah, the patriarch of the family, uprooted his family and moved. He intended to go to Canaan, but stopped short. This is apparently before Abram got his call from God. It seems to me that God had intended the whole family move to Canaan, but for some reason Terah did not make it all the way. May God always drive me where He wants me to go - and God forbid that I stop myself from... Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Before and After
    Curious: the intent of man's heart didn't change from before the flood. This, at least in English versions, just seems out of place in the middle of a promise like this. Read more »
  • jhalfast
    jhalfast added a text contribution Noah - From the beginning
    Notice the very first words written about Noah (other than his lineage) - it speaks volumes of his character. Read more »

Aug 26