Got Fruit ?

Initially (2006-2007) much of my study time was spent in the New Testament as I had questions that seemed more readily answered in Paul’s Epistles, recently though; especially the past 2-3 months; has been spent primarily reading and studying from the Old Testament.

Having gotten a little "winded" on the Major prophets such as Isaiah,Jeremiah and Daniel, I recently opted to take in some lighter reading by checking into Esther (History & Government).  Making my way through the first few chapters of Esther, I wasn’t really blown away.  That outlook changed however, by the time I managed to finish the book which is only 10 chapters in length.

A few things of interest from Esther that I’d like to share for those not in the know, such as I was.  First, Esther is; as confirmed by my pastor; the only book in the Bible where God is not mentioned.  Back the truck up! Yep, nowhere throughout the book is God mentioned.  No one is praising Him, nor calling on Him for help in their afflictions.  No pleading to God, nor complaining to Him about one’s knuckle-headed adulterous countrymen (and women).  No condemnation or prophetic words spoken in the name of the Lord; just a story about a King named Xerxes (Uh? I don’t think he’s quite the same 13 foot tall dude as portrayed in Frank Miler’s graphic novel "300", adapted for the Silver screen) his rebellious queen Vashti, her replacement Esther, Esther’s cousin Mordecai and a scum bag named Haman.  "Oh!",… and just desserts.

Another interesting perspective that I took from reading the book of Esther is that though God isn’t mentioned in the text, by the time you complete the book you can see God’s hand all over the situation that’s depicted. From the New Testament Book of Matthew I’m reminded of these words from Jesus:

Matthew 23:12
12 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

(See also: Luke 18:14 & 1st Samuel 2:7)

For those not familiar, I hope you , take take do take some time to read Esther and that you too enjoy the reading as I did.

Grace and peace be with you.

This past Sunday morning we kicked off a new study and discussion series in the Adult Sunday School class that I have been asked to "lead".  A few months back the book "20 Compelling Evidences That God Exists" was used for the Wednesday evening Young Adults class that I "lead" as well.

The initial stab at 20 CETGE was a rather bumpy road with the young adults, with many meetings resulting in the youngins staring back at me with a deer caught in the headlights look and the uncomfortable non-sound of crickets chirping in an open field.  Upon completion of the book with the young adults, I realized that part if not a major problem with the class was that the participants didn’t have their own books to read prior to our meetings; so we spent the bulk of the time reading what we were hoping to draw discussion from.   That coupled with first timers teaching inexperience and yours truly just flat out not "getting it".

This second time go around with 20 CETGE in the Adult Sunday School class should be much more promising in terms of discussion and growth for us all however as we’re taking a different approach.  Instead of relying on passive absorption of knowledge, we’ve refocused our efforts to take these evidences from the book, and apply the ideas from the perspective of:

• becoming more aware of objections to Christianity
• seeking better understanding from a skeptic’s perception
• learning how to address objections

More time for preparation is required as I have to make copies of each chapter to be read, however the group as a whole is very receptive to this series.  In fact a few members have even explained that in their work environments they have co-workers that are skeptics, so hopefully the class will be of benefit to them in witnessing to their respective peers.  Just hearing that on Sunday was enough to let me know that choosing not to so readily abort the book is probably the right thing to do.

A few thoughts have already been impressed upon me from the introductory pep talk on Sunday.  As Christians called to preach the Gospel, we need to continually check our own attitudes when engaging in conversations that have a twinge of skepticism, hostility or objection.  Instead of taking these things as personal attacks we need to remember that we are ambassadors of Christ and welcome the opportunity regardless of objections.  Instead of making it a personal agenda to be right we ought to simply share the truth of God’s desire for all to come to repentance and to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior.

Romans 5:6-8
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Another thought is that "just because" isn’t an answer.  Sure, there are tough questions that we don’t have an answer for, such as "Where did God come from?" or one that someone from church actually proposed this week: "If God knows all, and knew that man would sin, why create him?", to which I’d say at times, "I don’t know.", is an acceptable answer and also that not knowing the answer to those questions in no way disproves God’s existence nor His love for us.

Romans 1:20
20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

Grace and peace be with you.