Category Archives: Bible Study

The Bible and Science – Plastic

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But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Jeremiah 18:4 (NIV)ID-10032284

The clay here is plastic, meaning it can be molded. (See http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plastic) Many things are plastic or at least partially plastic; metals, layers of rock/dirt, and flesh are examples, and they can bend and return to their original shape.  Clay, like concrete, is very plastic when it is wet but when they harden it is another story; they can bend (some) just not very much.

I see four different “forms” in the text that may apply to us as the House of Israel.

  • Form – Everyone starts on the workbench, we have shape but we are nowhere near a finished project.
  • Conform – It is a great when you are taking shape and it is clear what you will become.  You are pushed and turned, thinned or thickened as needed and you are allowed to dry.
  • Deform – Sometimes things happen and what you thought would be the final shape does not happen. The clay is pushed too thin, gravel or sand was not taken out, or material fatigue occurs and you just collapse.
  • Transform – Notice that nothing is wasted or thrown away; the potter just keeps working until the clay is something useful.  Whether you were a “conform” or a “deform” you certainly are not the original lump of clay any more but something brand new and different.

To be fair to the analogy clay vessels are put on shelves and air-dried before they are put into an oven and baked.  (Go anywhere you want with that addition to the story.)

∞Jesus thanks for shaping me into something useful. Amen.

Picture is from http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Manual_Jobs_g397-Potter_p32284.html 

God’s Will, Has Made Your Will

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Ok, this study will not make much sense if you do not have a NIV (mine is copyrighted 1990) or even a Holman Study Bible, mine is a 2006 copyright.  King James and several other popular versions use the word “shall” instead of the word “will.”

From Isaiah 59:15 to 62:12 the word “will” is used 86 times. (All scriptures are NIV.) The majority of the “wills” however is God stating what will happen for us or at least to our “enemies.”  When you see the word “will,” you think of inheritance; this is found in 61:7 it talks of the “double portion” which is the part that belongs to the first-born son of the family.  I will give an example form 60:10 of the promises that are found in this section of scripture – Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. 

The section addresses these promises to two different things, the first is Zion and the second His people.  Zion refers to the hills that Jerusalem is built on but it has become synonymous with Jerusalem.  The way the promises are worded it seems that God is concerned about the physical land/city but they also apply to Jerusalem the “people of the city.”

Inside of these verses are some very popular scriptures; Isaiah 61:1-3 is a great example.  I can image the Apostle Paul reading/thinking about 59:17 when he wrote Ephesians 6:14 – the breastplate of righteousness, helmet of salvation, garments of vengeance, and the cloak of zeal.  Isaiah 59: 21 is a great promise – “This is my covenant with them”, says the Lord. “My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth.”  Have you ever prayed for guidance and wondered how you would know what to follow look at 60:17 – I will make peace your governor and righteousness your ruler.  The first part of verse 17 is another example of the will of God making your will – Instead of bronze I will bring you gold, and silver in place of iron.  (See my blogs on metals – bronze, gold, silver, iron, these go to separate blogs.)

Another theme in these verses is “righteousness,” it is mentioned nine times. According to my concordance righteousness carries with it the idea of prosperity, this is from the concordance that has Vine’s Dictionary incorporated into it. (OK, it is a small part but it is there.)

Two verse that connect are 60:21b and 61:3b – (21b) They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor.  (3b) They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. 

God has a lot of “wills” for you in this couple of pages; take a look and find His will for you. I want to leave with 60: 22b – I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.

Nehushtan – Numbers 21:4-9

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The old generation has passed away and it is now time for the “children” to enter the Promised Land. (See Timeline) Miriam and Aaron have died so it is now Moses, Joshua and Eleazar (Aaron’s son) are leading the people. Israel, not Moses, has cried out about Arad, a Canaanite king, has come out against them and Israel has completely destroyed them. They now must go around their cousins, Edom, because God will not let them have their land. (See Edom) So what do they do?

  1. Grow impatient
  2. Speak against God
  3. Speak against Moses
  4. Bring out the ubiquitous complaints no water, bad food, no bread and are we to die in the desert.

I know this cycle is old and you think they would have learned but they have not; makes you think about our complaining. In verse 6 God sends venomous snakes; these are Saw_Scaled_Viper_Echis_carinatusprobably the Carpet or Saw-scaled Viper. People start to die so they once again confess their sins to Moses and he prays for them and God gives them a way out. The thing that really stands out here is God did not remove the snakes; He requires an act of faith before they can be healed. They must look at a brass snake (See copper) on a pole.

In John 3:14-15 this act of faith is explained as a type and shadow of Jesus and the salvation He would bring because of the cross. And just as John 3:16 is next, so the people went on to get water and defeat Sihon and Og.

But the story of the brass/bronze serpent apparently does not end when they moved on and camped at Oboth. They kept it and it became an object of worship because in 2 Kings 18:4 Hezekiah breaks it up because they were burning incense to it. It seems to be human nature to get stuck on something that works; God used that for a time but He moved on and did other great things and used other things to deliver the people. They seemed to miss the point – Worship God and not things. (See Superstitious)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Saw_Scaled_Viper_Echis_carinatus.jpg

Psalm 84:5-7

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Psalm 84: 5-7 – New American Standard (NASB)

5 How blessed (happy) is the man whose strength (oz – force, security, majesty, praise) is in You, in whose heart (lebab – heart, mind, understanding) path 4a for blogare the highways (mesillaw – “lifestyle”, main road, pilgrimage) to Zion!

Monument Valley-Dry Wash-016 Passing through the valley of Baca (weeping, balsam, mulberry) they make it aspring (pools, blessings, fountain); the early rain (Autumn) also covers it with blessings (pools).mill_run_spring_small

7 They go from strength to strength (chayil – “force” an army, wealth, virtue, valor, strength), every one of them appears before God (Elohim) in Zion.

There is no definable place called the Valley of Baca; one Bible atlas did ID a city by that name but it is not by Jerusalem.

All of the words in blue are added into the NASB translation and these come from a variety of sources that include several translations and concordances.

New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

Dry Valley pic is from http://www.hsipro.com/Picture%20Album.htm 

Mill Run Spring http://www.deq.state.va.us/Programs/Water/WaterSupplyWaterQuantity/GroundwaterCharacterization/SpringDatabase.aspx

Holy Week – Saturday

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Matthew 27:62 – 66, Ephesians 4: 7-10

see Holy Week -2014 – Jesus Preached

The Guard at the Tomb

Matthew 27: 62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” (NIV)

Ephesians 4: 7-10 7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”

9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) (NIV)

We often forget that Jesus had unfinished business when He was taken off of that Cross. His work for us was done but there was a little matter of keys for Death and Hades (Revelation 1:18). He went in for a “victory lap” and came out with EVERYTHING under His feet.

I would like to thank the founder of this “Holy Week Calendar” study. His name is Johnny Driscoll and he was an inspiration for all who knew him. He died of a heart attack while running for a plane that was to take him on a mission trip. Johnny, you have been missed.

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