Category Archives: Opening the Bible

The Law, the Land, and the Lord

Land is of monumental importance in the Scripture. God chose to make man from the earth, so we have an innate relationship with the land. It is literally in our bones! He placed him not just anywhere, but on a special plot of land to take care of it and when he rebelled his banishment from thatContinue reading “The Law, the Land, and the Lord”

Something You Can Always Ask For

Israel is in the process of unraveling in Numbers 13. After being marvelously responsive to God during their time at Sinai (post golden calf incident), they began to break down. The hardships of their circumstances were wearing on them. They became bored with their blessings (read: manna) and began to complain. It started on theContinue reading “Something You Can Always Ask For”

Prayer and Humility

Before there was an internet with an Amazon Wish List and other wish list sites, there was the Sears-Roebuck catalog. For people growing up in my time, this functioned as our wish list. (In fact, I think the Christmas catalog was even called The Wish Book). My father was an engineer—a man given to practicality.Continue reading “Prayer and Humility”

Hearing the Message of Numbers

I watched a little bit of a show once called Major League Fishing. It followed a professional fishing circuit of the same name and this particular show featured a tournament at Lake Fork Reservoir in Texas. In the few minutes I watched, they caught one big fish after another! No one went more than a fewContinue reading “Hearing the Message of Numbers”

Numbers and Organized Religion

It wouldn’t have occurred to a Jewish person to think there was anything other than organized religion! And for the enlightened follower of Yahweh, that such a structure was oppressive wouldn’t even have moved the needle for them (I rejoiced with those who said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’Continue reading “Numbers and Organized Religion”

The Value of the Book of Numbers

I remember teaching a Wednesday night class years ago. It wasn’t very big—15, many 20 people—mostly 30-somethings in age. I don’t remember what the class was about, but we got off on a tangent about how the church of the previous generation didn’t know grace like we did. The discussion went on for a little whileContinue reading “The Value of the Book of Numbers”

C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (1)

One of the bigger challenges in getting some traction in the Scripture and its story has to do with understanding its chronology. The books in the Bible are arranged only in a general way according to the history they contain.  This means that if you started in Genesis and read all the way through to Revelation, you wouldContinue reading “C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (1)”

C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (2)

1.  Creation  (Genesis 1-5) Genesis means “origin” or “beginning”—so that’s what we find in these chapters: the beginning of the universe, humanity, sin and rebellion, and redemption. God speaks the universe into existence—but it is human beings that He makes in His image and gives dominion to (Genesis 1:26-28). Other Scriptures inform us that before the creation of theContinue reading “C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (2)”

C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (3)

7.  Crown (Judges-1 Kings 11/1 Chronicles 1-2 Chronicles 9; Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon) Joshua dies and the nation lapses into a loose confederation of tribes characterized by infighting and the failure to come to the aid of each other when one of the tribes is under attack (see the book of Judges). This continues until theContinue reading “C-ing Your Way Through the Bible (3)”