Bible Reading Challenge Blog

So raise your hand if you are a teacher.  It doesn’t matter what kind of teacher, any kind of a teacher.  Then read vs. 1 with your hand raised.  Oh, oops.  My official title is “teaching elder”.  So I read this verse and I think, Oh.  Not may of us should become teachers because if you are a teacher you will be judged more severely, more harshly than others because it is your responsibility to teach, to guide and direct, to help people along their way in life.  Isn’t it interesting that after this warning we read about how dangerous the tongue is?

The tongue is a fire.  It sets a forest ablaze.  I’m fortunate that I have not been the victim of tongues of fire, of rumor, of negative words directed at a person which in the end hurts not just them but hurts all around them.  But I have seen pastors whose character has been assassinated and brought down simply because they were not willing to tow the line on a certain issue.  It is amazing how one little statement can shade a person to think certain things about certain people even if they aren’t even close to being true.  

James tells us that it is impossible that we can use our same tongue to bless God and to curse people.  I’m writing to those who might use curse words as pretty commonplace vocabulary.  One simple question: why?  What benefit do we get from using those words?  Anyone can line up the negatives, but I really wonder what is the benefit that we get from using words which would scandalize many of us.  I don’t get it.  

The last part of this chapter speaks about how we can see if wisdom is a part of our life.  Listen to the attributes which describe a wise person and you will see that they really do track with someone who is able to tame their tongue.  A wise person is: pure, peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.  Oh, and by the way, they will reap peace because they will be a sower of peace.  I like the concept of being wise.

God has always said show no partiality and we have taken that to mean a whole variety of things in regards to partiality based on race, partiality based on gender, partiality based on religion, partiality based on … you fill in the blank.  But here James is very specific when we talk about partiality dealing with socio-economic class.  Or if we want to say it in a different way, partiality based upon wealth.  Do we treat those who are wealthy any differently from those who are poor?  If a person comes into the church during the week and is a bit disheveled and has a “poor” look about them do we assume that they have come to the church for the food bank?  Or do we relegate them to a one-time service and don’t expect/want them to come back?  

James says that Scripture tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves.  In this day and age it is such an important message for us to hear.  We have to love our neighbors, all of them, as ourselves.  Even if James is addressing economic disparity, we can take that message and apply it to some of the issues which we mentioned before.  

He ends the chapter by saying very clearly that faith without works is dead.  Isn’t it interesting the Scriptural hero that he points out?  He speaks about Rahab who lied to the king’s soldiers so that the Israelite spies would be protected.  It was an act, a work, which may or may not have been paired with faith, but it did provide an opportunity for the people of God to enter the promised land.  It is this concept which made Luther’s skin crawl.  Show me your faith apart from works and I will show you my faith through my works.  To underline this fact the author states: faith without works is dead.

While Luther said that this book does not belong in the Bible,  Bronkema says it is one of the most powerful and motivating books in the Bible.  Luther probably has the clout on this one, but I also see from what angle he is coming.  Remember, Luther was all about salvation by grace through faith.  If there is any hint that we can in any way work to gain our salvation, then he is going to react very negatively to that concept.  The book of James is full of that concept.   Let’s learn a bit about this book of the Bible.

It is generally agreed that James was written by the eldest brother of Jesus.  You can see the list of Jesus’ siblings in Matthew 13:55.  It was thought to have been written in around the year 50 and  was written to the 12 scattered tribes (James 1:1).  Who those scattered tribes are may not be too difficult to figure out.  They are either Christians who were scattered all over the Mediterranean, or Jewish Christians who were living lives of covert worship.  I think it is important to understand that this letter was written not by Paul, but rather by someone who knew Jesus first hand, someone who grew up with Jesus, someone who had not believed that Jesus was whom he said he was (John 7:2-5), someone who eventually took a leadership position in the church and in fact led the Jerusalem council (Acts 15).  James knew Jesus and grew up with him.  Let’s look at chapter 1.

I think we have three statements that we need to analyze more closely.  The first is found in vs. 13.  In the verses preceding we see James speak about persecution and how persecution is a blessing from God because it produces faith.  It is the old “builds character” or “what does’t kill you makes you stronger” argument.  He then makes a general statement which for the most part is ignored by Christians.  He says: “No one, when tempted, should say ‘I am tempted by God’ for God cannot be tempted by evil and he tempts no one.”  We are never tempted by God.  It is our own sin which places us in temptation.  It is the sin of others that places us in temptation.  This is a key principle to remember.  We are tempted and we do fall into persecution but it is not God who creates these “opportunities”.  He is able to help us get out of them, but he does not create that.  Remember that the next time you want to ask: “Why is God tempting me?”

Another verse that is rich is vs. 19 where we read: “Let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.”  Are you following the mess that is happening around sports in our country?  I love sports and I think it is a great platform to speak out, until someone tells you that you should be quiet and know your place.  I think those who say that should read vs.19 and be chastised by it.  

The next verse which is crucial to not skip is vs.22 which tells us to be not hearers of the word but doers.  That verse is then matched with what perfection religion is.  It is a religion which does.  Go to vs.27 and you will see what it means to be a doer of the word and not just a hearer.  It is a great chapter with many, many important nuggets to follow.

There are some nice nuggets in this Scripture.  Look at vs.2 and then let me redirect you to Genesis 18:1-15 and you will see that this is the reference to which the author is referring.  

The author tells us that we are called to be hospitable, but even more than that, we are called to welcome strangers in our midst, because you never know, those strangers just might be angels.  So this statement is incredibly controversial today.  It takes us directly to the controversy around immigration.  We can’t surely base national policy on Scripture, can we?  I can’t imagine doing it any other way.  How can a Christian argue that allowing people into our country is wrong?  But it isn’t safe, you would be letting terrorists into the country.  Just in case we are aware of the reality of what it was like to live in the day of Paul and especially in the day of Abraham.  There were no boundaries and you never knew who was friend and foe.  If you invited a stranger in your house they could be foes who only wanted to take your property and claim your wife and children as their own.  It was much more dangerous in the days that this Scripture was written than today.  Yes, we can base immigration policy on Scripture, but it would take a revolution.  That’s what Jesus and the Gospel are all about.

There are more powerful nuggets in this chapter.  Let’s just go down the list of what the author states: 1) remember those who are in prison, 2) hold marriage in honor, 3) keep your lives free from the love of money.  There is nothing controversial in any of these statements.  We can say yes, we should visit prisoners, we should hold marriage in honor, and yes we should not value money as anything more important than a gift from God.  We should always be content with what we have.  What a statement.  

Finally, look at vs.8 which reminds us that Jesus is the same today, yesterday, and forever.  This is to sway us away from any thinking that maybe, just maybe, as times change so does God and so does His holy Word.  No, it is the same just as God has remained the same.  The comfort that we find in vs.6 finds its residence smack dab in vs. 8.  God never changes so His love for us is unfailing.  

The author just laid out for us in chapter 11 the saints that went before us and encouraged us to live up to their faith which is a great marker for us.  He then begins in chapter 12 by encouraging us to run the race with perseverance while looking to Jesus as the one who makes our faith perfect.  But he prefaces that remark with this great statement: “Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses.”  I take comfort in that statement.  Remember, he named those witnesses by name in chapter 11.  But I have other witnesses that I call out and name in my heart and in my mind: Dr. Frederick Bronkema, Rev. Frederick Bronkema, Alice Henry, Marguerite Bronkema, “Big” Al Syversten, Rev. Gus Feather, and others who have influenced me and been significant in my life as witnesses to the faith.  

We all have a cloud of witnesses who were responsible for teaching us the faith and for putting us on the right path to salvation.  Some are still living, others are no longer on this earth.  The author of Hebrews lifts up those who have left the earth.  He goes from speaking strongly and with much hope in regards to these witnesses to describe a life which is one of persecution and oppression.  Those witnesses went through it, so when we go through it, we should be able to shoulder the burden as they did, but with faith.  

He speaks to these persecutions as discipline from a parent to a child.  We are the child and God is the parent.  What is crucial to me is that he states in the midst of describing the fact that persecution is inevitable, that even while we are being persecuted…look at vs. 14: “Pursue peace with everyone.”  That is a goal after which we ought to move forward.  Let us make our goal one of pursuing peace with everyone.

I also like the words of vs.28 especially in these days when worship has become a topic of conversation at session: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks, by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe.”  It is our responsibility to offer God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe.

Let’s rest for a minute in verse 1.  Have you ever wondered what faith is?  If you have, vs.1 gives us the answer.  Listen to it again: “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  Skip then to vs.3 and you will see that it is by faith that we believe that God created the heavens and the earth.  We are not going to get into a creationist vs. evolution debate, but let’s just say that I believe that God created the heaven’s and the earth.  It is much less important in how many literal days and if God created in such a way so that the earth and its inhabitants would evolve.  I believe all of that is true.  The earth is more than a few dozen thousands of years old, and it is proven that species do evolve.  But the primary point, which vs.3 addresses, is that God created.  

From here we have a listing of men of faith.  Actually, strike that.  Look at vs.23 and you will find that it was by faith that Moses was hidden in the bulrushes by his parents.  They trusted that God would take care of him.  God did.  Wait, strike the men part again.  We find Rahab who is mentioned as a pillar of the faith.  

We come to the end of this chapter, again, another long one, thanks for hanging in there, and the author gives us a summary.  Look at vs. 39, all of these people who are mentioned between verses 3-39 were faithful to God, and yet they did not receive the final prize which is promised to all of us while they were still living on this earth.  They would not inherit eternal life until they were passed from this earth to the next. They were not able to taste the new covenant until the day that Jesus walked upon the earth.  

The encouragement that we receive from this chapter is that we are able to receive and understand the definition of faith.  But another encouragement is that in the next chapter we hear that these men and women of faith serve as a model for each one of us.  Let’s hold onto that thought until we get to the next chapter.

Okay, that was a long chapter.  I want to be sure that you are aware of the many verses from the Old Testament which are quoted by the author.  He is not merely writing extemporaneously, but rather quoting Scripture which would have been very familiar to the readers of that day.  Feel free to read the Scripture that is quoted. 

vs. 4: Psalm 40:6-8

vs. 8: I Samuel 15:22, Psalm 50:8-12, Isaiah 1:10-17, Jeremiah 7:21-26, Hosea 6:6

vss. 12-13: Psalm 110:1

vss. 15-18: Jeremiah 31:33-34

vs. 28: Deuteronomy 17:2-6

vs. 30: Deuteronomy 32:35-36, Psalm 135:14

vs. 37: Isaiah 26:20

vs. 38: Habakkuk 2:3-4

So, not only is this chapter long…now I just made it longer.  Happy reading!

You have to spend some time in this chapter and focus specifically on these verses: 15, 22, 26b, 28.  Let’s break them down starting with a general overview of the chapter.  The author speaks about an old covenant which was established under Moses and how important it was for this covenant to be established with blood.  It was the blood of the animals which were sacrificed on behalf of the people and on behalf of the priest who was offering the sacrifice for the people.  He gives the details of what was in the ark of the covenant: Aaron’s budding staff, golden urn holding the manna, and the tablets of stone on which were written the Ten Commandments.  It is really fascinating stuff, but then we move into the new covenant.  

Verse 15 gives us the first taste of Jesus described as a mediator of the new covenant.  It is Jesus who mediates, Jesus who is in between us and God, it is Jesus who steps in the chasm and in the breech that has occurred because of our sin.  His role as mediator cannot be understated.  As a mediator he has died himself which allows those of us in the new covenant to receive eternal life.  The mediator made that happen.

Verse 22 reminds us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.  This is true for both the old and the new covenant.  The old covenant had the shedding of blood of the animals.  In the new covenant the shedding of blood was that of Jesus himself.  As a result of the shedding of Jesus’ blood our sins are forgiven.  Can we get any more basic and fundamental than that?  This is at the root of what we believe.  But we go on.

Vs.26b, now remember when there is a b after a verse it means that you only read the second part of the verse.  The first part doesn’t really pertain to what we are saying.  So, b tells us that Jesus came one time to save us of our sins.  He didn’t have to do what the priests had to do with the animals which was sacrifice them every single year.  No, Jesus’ act, once in the realm of history, was enough to wash our sins clean.  This is powerful, this is strong, this is important to remember.  When we approach the throne of grace and ask for forgiveness and ask for a personal relationship with Jesus we only need to do that once.  When we do that once, it is over, it is done, Jesus becomes our mediator, our God, our high priest, yes our Savior.  

Finally, vs.28 reaffirms our belief that Jesus is coming back again.  We do not know when he is coming back and these verses don’t address the “when”, but we do know that he is coming back.  This is far more important and absolutely fundamental to our faith knowing that Jesus is coming back again.  When he comes back again it is not to teach, it is not to heal, it is not to deal with sin like he did the first time that he came.  When he comes back again it will simply be to gather his beloved with him, those who are eagerly waiting, to be with him for eternity.  

This may, but probably not, beat out Romans 8 as the most important chapter in Scripture.  Let’s give it a second place.  Powerful stuff.

If you want to understand this verse you have to turn to Jeremiah 31:31-34.  Here we find the foundation of our understanding that Jesus came and established a new covenant.  The old covenant is the one that was based upon the law.  “But Jesus has now obtained a more excellent ministry, and to that degree he is the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted through better promises.”  Did you get that.  The old covenant is no longer the one which draws us closer to God.   There is actually a better covenant.  

That covenant is based upon sacrifice, made by God for us.  That covenant is based on grace, God’s grace which compensates for our sin.  That covenant is based upon faith, not works lest we be deceived.  It is interesting that this covenant that is established by Christ is called a second one.  I firmly believe that God never has a plan A and then when that goes awry He tries out a plan B.  No, this is the second covenant because the first served its purpose.  The second, however, is the one under which we live.  

He calls the old covenant obsolete.  He says that what is obsolete will disappear.  Interesting, the ten commandments are part of the old covenant… 

So, let’s talk about tithing.  The author speaks about Melchizedek, and remember we referred back to him in previous chapters and said this story which is described is found in Genesis 14.   But here we find the emphasis on the fact that Abraham gave the priest a tithe, as it is commanded by the law.  I think this is crucial, and I am saying this not to raise funds for the church, but to give each person a real life example of how God can reveal Himself in your life.  We are commanded to give a tithe of what we bring home in regards to our financial income.  What that means specifically is that we are to give 10% of what we make, of what we bring home financially to the church.  Here are some Scriptures and then I’ll speak about tithing from a personal and, I hope, salutary way.

If you are interested in this topic read these Scriptures.  If you are not, just trust me that the Bible says that we should tithe.  Genesis 14:19-20, Genesis 28:20-22, Leviticus 27:30-34, Numbers 18:21, Numbers 18:26, Deuteronomy 12:5-6, Deuteronomy 14:22-29, II Chronicles 31:4-5, Nehemiah 10:35-37, Amos 4:4-5, Malachi 3:8-12.

We are speaking specifically about financial tithing here.  I have stories of when God provided to the penny for a need that we had and I attribute it directly to the fact that we have tithed.  I say this not as a recognition of righteousness on my part or on any else’s.  I say this as a recognition of God’s faithfulness.  Ever since I can remember my family has tithed.  I remember my grandmother, who was a missionary in the Congo, talk to me about tithing and how important it was.  I remember my mom speak to me about tithing when I got my first job, not even as a teenager.  

I cannot over emphasize the importance of tithing.  Jesus constantly speaks about money issues in the Bible.  But I tend to stay away from it because churches have gotten a reputation that all they care about is money.  So I stay away from that topic more than I speak about it.   But I think I am doing you a disservice as a result of that.  I should talk about it because when we turn over our worries and concerns over finances to the Lord, then so much changes in our life.  I am convinced that if everyone tithed then they would not have to worry about God providing.  God promises to meet our needs.  Notice I did not say that he promises to meet our wants.  He promises to meet our needs.  I trust that because God has met our needs time after time.