Podcast Delayed
But Blogging Here for Now. I attempted my first recording, but I had issues with the length of my first episode. So, while I do intend to work on this, I have several other irons in the fire. I guess my desire was to share things in the Bible people don’t talk about and don’t live by. There are Christians today that don’t read the Bible, go to church, pray or anything else. We call that nominal Christianity. Christianity only in name.
Verses like “If a man will not work, he shall not eat,” What, you’re telling me if someone is able to work but refuses to work, we shouldn’t just give them free housing and food and some pocket money and a free phone? Now, pay attention, the verse only applies to men. For other context on work, male and female, as always, read the Book for yourself.
We have more Bibles in America than we know what to do with. But it’s not okay to never read your Bible if you’re a Christian. There are apps on your cell phone with more resources at your disposal than most laypeople had even in the 1950s. And it’s really not okay not to read it. Because the Bible requires you to ‘live it.’ To apply to your life what you are reading. How can you obey that when you don’t own a Bible (heck, even a PDF, not hard), and never read it?
What about Matthew 5 where Jesus says not to remarry after divorce? “Whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery,” etc. Now, I know there are a lot of complicated situations. I’m not telling you to divorce your second wife because you remarried. But sin is sin whether we’re aware we’re doing it or not right? Isn’t the Tanakh, specifically full of ways to get sin forgiven ‘if committed in ignorance’? Much of the animal sacrifice and temple worship were about offerings for sins etc. God expected his people not to willfully sin, and that’s true of believers today.
How about this one? The Greek word we use for ‘church’ is ekklesia, means ‘body’ so not only does it apply to Chrisitans but also believing Jews. The whole anti-Semitism is crazy, but particularly from people who claim a Jewish Messiah, who should read Jeremiah and Romans about how God is not abandoning His People Israel. He’s letting the full number of the Gentiles come in, and then the events in Revelation will happen like the final moves of a chess game (in which Jesus and God are undisputed victors) and all Israel (all Jews regardless of where they live, but especially those that possess the land they won by conquest from the Canaanites, promised by God through Abraham through his son Isaac) They will be Redeemed.
Wow, that was kind of a lot. I think for most people this blog/podcast to be is not going to make a lot of people feel good or get their ears scratched. But there’s a lot of the Bible that makes me uncomfortable, that the Holy Spirit uses daily and hourly to convict me of sin.
Thank you for your patience.
-Monkeyton
P.S. Blue Letter Bible is great, many great apps and websites, and bibles are pretty reasonable if you don’t get something fancy. Which version should you get? Research it online, ask your local pastor, join a bible study! Small group Bible studies are great for learning about the bible and fellowshiping with other believers. Don’t like fellowship with other believers? Too bad. Christians will be spending a lot of time in eternity together. You might as well spend significant time and get to know each other now.
