Reading From Monday, July 19

Good Lord, I am behind. I think this is the farthest behind I've been since I started - it's been a bit of a rough week, so please forgive me for not updating this thing as much as I should be. Jilly is away for the next three nights so I'll have nothing to do but blog, so hopefully I can do some catch up.

Reading for July 19
1 Chronicles 28:1-29:30
The first half of this reading focuses on the building plans for the Temple. It is revealed here in 1 Chronicles that even though Solomon was the one who ultimately oversaw it's construction, David was the one who actually had drawn up all the plans and blueprints. It was David's vision, and his son carried it out.

Parallel!

OK follow me here, because I'm kinda making this up as I go along:
In the same way that David had a beautiful vision for a temple dedicated to God, God had a beautiful vision for humanity. And in the same way that David could not actually carry out that vision because he had too much blood on his hands, God could not bring his vision for humanity to fruition. In both cases, the son took on the task, and both tasks were designed to glorify God. And both of the end results were successful.

The second half of the reading focuses on Israel's wealth at the time when the plans were being drawn up. The plans for the Temple called for gold, silver, copper and fine wood - all things Israel had in abundance. David takes note of this in a song-like prayer to God. This is the line that stuck out to me:

¹⁴ "But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.

I think that's a really interesting way of looking at one's own wealth. They should be so lucky that they have this surplus of materials and money and land and wealth much to give back to God. If we as a country - myself included - could adopt that mindset I think we would be much better off for it. And I don't mean specifically to give money to the Christian God, but just to give it away. Give it to people who need it, give it to organizations that could use it to improve the world or improve the lives of children. Technically, if I'm gonna be turbo literal about it, giving money to those people would be giving our money to God based on Jesus' "whatever you do for the least of these you do for me."

And also based on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' timeless classic "Give it away now." Although I think that was about something naughty.

Romans 5:6-21
Yes. Romans.

OK, this is a section that I am very familiar with. Usually, when I would sit down and just randomly open the Bible, I would settle on Romans, and this is sorta in the middle so I read this part a lot. What Paul is talking about here is the correlation of two men - sin entered the world through one and was defeated by the other. Those men were Adam and Jesus, I think you can figure out which one did what.

Paul really pounds this idea into the readers' heads here - stating and restating his point over and over; and he just harps on this idea alone for these sixteen verses. It is a remarkable thing, indeed. Maybe I'm just jaded because I've read it so many times, but there are some distinct new things that stuck out to me here.

1. ¹⁴Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who was a pattern of the one to come.
   
   It's interesting to think about the time between creation and Moses when there really was no rule book for God's people to abide by. What's more interesting is to look at Leviticus and realize that there are seventy bajillion rules that the Jews had to follow, and how many did Adam and Eve have? One. "Don't eat from that tree." One rule, and they couldn't do it. So because of that, thousands upon thousands of rules were made an consequently broken over and over which resulted in millions of violent deaths.
    
2.  ²⁰The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, ²¹so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
   This one's a little harder to swallow. Paul is saying here that God created the law so that people would be punished more. This is something I guess I kinda knew already when God did things like put darkness in people's hearts, or when God "gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another."
   
   I mean please correct me if I'm wrong, but this seems like completely backwards logic. I've said this probably half a dozen times before, but if you want your creation to love you and worship you, why make it so difficult to do so? I suppose sin had a more profound effect on the whole picture than I realized.
   
   Now, the point Paul is making here is once again comparative. So just as sin increased, grace increased all the more. But then does that mean that God made it so easy to sin so his people would be awful and then need a savior so we would all have a nice story to read and be inspired to be good people? I mean thank God I don't live in a time before Christ, but what were those people? Sacrifices so future generations could succeed? I mean I guess I'm thankful for that but again, my and God's morals don't line up here.
   
   I'm probably way off here - who's got some knowledge to drop on me?

Psalm 15:1-5
I don't know if David was being prophetic when he wrote this psalm, but check it out:
 ¹ LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
       Who may live on your holy hill?
 ² He whose walk is blameless
       and who does what is righteous,
       who speaks the truth from his heart
 ³ and has no slander on his tongue,
       who does his neighbor no wrong
       and casts no slur on his fellowman,
 ⁴ who despises a vile man
       but honors those who fear the LORD,
       who keeps his oath
       even when it hurts,
 ⁵ who lends his money without usury
       and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
       He who does these things
       will never be shaken.

I mean I only know one person in the history of ever who was blameless - Jesus. David certainly could have been speaking about his turbo-great grandson, but I think this could also be viewed in a sarcastic light. David could be pointing about the absolute impossibility of living in harmony with God. Living in God's presence on his "holy hill." He could have written all these things in jest as if saying, "there is absolutely no one who could ever meet these standards."

Someone did.

Boom.

In your face Grandpa.

Proverbs 19:18-19
 ¹⁸ Discipline your son, for in that there is hope;
       do not be a willing party to his death.
 ¹⁹ A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty;
       if you rescue him, you will have to do it again.

Sweet yo - one down.