Judges 9:22-10:1, John 1:1-28 , Psalms 101:1-8, Proverbs 14:13-14
Today is the 30th day of April. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. And it is great to be here with you today. So, we just got started into a new week. And here we are ending a month. This is going to complete four straight months together moving day by day through the Scriptures and we’ll leaving the month of April behind us after this and move into May. So, it’s great to be here with you today. And not only are we closing a month, we’re opening a book. When we get to the New Testament portion of our reading today, we will launch ourselves into the final gospel, the gospel of John. And we’ll talk about that when we get there. But before all of that, let’s pick up where we left off in the book of Judges. And today we’ll read Judges 11 and 12. We’re reading from the Names of God Bible this week.
Introduction to the book of John:
Okay. So, we concluded the book of Luke, which is the third of the gospels yesterday, which means we have arrived at the book of John, which is the final of the grouping of books known as the gospels. And those books are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. And as we’ve talked about in the past, while we went through Matthew, Mark and Luke, we mentioned that these are known as the synoptic gospels largely because there’s a definite harmony to them. In many ways, they cover very similar ground. And they seem to be sharing the same traditions and stories. Now that we’ve come to the gospel of John, John is quite a bit different. It’s about 90% different in fact. There’s only about 10% of John that refers back to any of the material in the synoptic gospels. John, of course, was one of Jesus disciples and there really isn’t any contention over who wrote the book of John. There are many compelling facts, even in other church histories, that John was the author of the gospel of John, and that he wrote these things down after he moved from Jerusalem to Ephesus during the latter part of his life. After Jesus died and was raised from the dead ascended back to heaven, John went on to be a church leader in Jerusalem. He was known as a pillar of the church in Jerusalem. A core leader. But he did leave Jerusalem somewhere around AD 66. And in AD 70, so four years later, the Romans…I mean, they just had had enough of the uprisings and they came and completed leveled Jerusalem. But it’s believed that John left a few years before that happened and moved to Ephesus where he was a church leader there. And there’s quite a bit of historical evidence to prove this. There were many young disciples of the older John who went on to live lives after he died and wrote stories of his life and of the early church and some of those stories still survive today. John wrote his gospel, then, probably in Ephesus later in his life and he refers to some of the other stories in the synoptic gospels. And, so, it seems that he had knowledge of them. And that this, then, would be the last gospel written. Because, I mean, we can think, Ah, I read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and they kind of all were written at the same time, and, you know, everybody got together and had a writing party and wrote these things down. But that’s not how it happened. Mark would have been the first gospel written. And then it would have been about fifteen years before Matthew and Luke found there place in the story. And then about fifteen years after that is when we get to John. So, John is the final gospel written and he knew the traditions of the gospel. Obviously he was a disciple of Jesus. So, he knew the stories because he was there. But he also knew what had already been written down. And rather than telling the same stories, he, in effect, wrote the rest of the story. This is important because, whereas the other gospels were meant to give the story of Jesus and a compelling reason to believe in Jesus, John wrote his gospel to people who already believed. He wrote it to strengthen, deepen the faith of those who had already come to know Jesus. So, we’ll notice as we go through that John has an interesting writing style. It’s very, very unlike Luke, which is very linear. John is more stream of consciousness in a way. It’s not written in a linear fashion. It’s not A to Z. John may make a point that he comes back to later on. In fact, he does this a lot. So, if we embrace this, we’ll find that the language is conversational and beautiful, rather than just historical account of events. He’s putting his heart, his feeling, his feelings about what he’s saying into the gospel. And we’ll find that the spirit of the book is very passionate and very and very careful. And it’s a beautiful experience following the synoptic gospels. John’s gospel is more intimately written. And reading it gives us the sense of kind of being one of those early followers of John. Maybe sitting at the feet of the old saint and listening to him tell the stories. Stories of his life, stories that he actually witnessed and participated in. Stories that had shaped him and that had grown sweet with age told by a great man who had experienced these fantastic things about this man named Jesus. And so we begin the final gospel. John chapter 1 verses 1 to 28.
Commentary:
Okay. So, we are ending a month. We have also begun the book of John. And we’ve already spent some time talking about that. But it’s hard to just blow by what’s going on in the book of Judges with the judge Jephthah because it’s like he sacrifices his daughter to God, right? So, what’s that all about? And each year when we come to these particular passages we talk about them for a second rather than just kind of tip-toeing, you know, beyond like they don’t exist. There are some stories in the Bible where you’re like, wait a minute. What in the world is happening? It’s very easy to just read through the story and go like, this doesn’t work. Like, why is this in the Bible, why is God condoning this? And it kind of leaves us uneasy. So, rather than just dancing around it, we need to just go there for a second and talk about it. We’re in the book of Judges, so we’re watching generation after generation after Joshua in the Promised Land. And we’re watching what the people are doing. And we’re seeing that they’re doing everything they were warned not to do. And we’re seeing the repercussions of that. So, the people have not obeyed Moses teachings. They have not obeyed Joshua’s leadership. They have strayed as they were warned and they are chasing after other gods, they are chasing after other people. They are mingling and they are becoming something different than what they were designed to be. And so they’re mixing the worship of Yahweh, the worship of God with the Baals, the Asherah’s and it’s becoming something else. So,me hybrid thing. And there’s definitely archaeological evidence to this fact that still exists today. People worshipping Yahweh while worshipping a goddess of some sort, usually Asherah, at the same time. So, as we go through the book of Judges, we can safely say the train has come off the tracks and we are in a season where God is still around, certainly, but the people have largely abandoned relationship with him. So, this Jephthah story that we just read. You know, he’s sent away because he’s the son of a prostitute and he’s brought back so he can fight a battle. And we can see that his upbringing hasn’t… He hasn’t been raised in the ways of the Lord. He’s been raised in the ways of the culture that he’s in. And the Bible describes the culture that he’s in as one in which people were doing what they pleased. Whatever was right in their own eyes. So, when Jephthah makes this interesting vow, whatever comes out my front door when I come back as I’m victorious in battle, I’ll sacrifice that to the Lord. I mean, what kind of a vow is that, right? What are you hoping comes out your front door? A goat? The family dog? But as it turns out, it’s his only child who happens to be a daughter. And when he realizes what he’s done, he’s made this vow to God and now his daughter is the one that he’s promised to God he’s gonna sacrifice, he doesn’t know how to get out of that and so he is heartbroken. His daughter goes away for a couple months, comes back. And I’ve studied this. I’ve gone through this passage extensively just to see is that really what happened? And, I mean, it seems like that’s really what happened. He sacrificed his daughter. She willingly gave herself up. So, we can be revolted cause that’s a revolving thing. And then we can have questions about why God wanted this or why he let this happen. And that’s also very very problematic, if not revolting, right? So, then we have to go back to the text and try to find God in it. And then we find out, oh, he didn’t tell Jephthah to do this. He didn’t ask for it. He didn’t make any promises over it, he has nothing to do with this. And, in fact, although God is not giving any instructions to Jephthah in this whole scenario, he does have some thoughts about human sacrifice. And on multiple occasions, God speaks about that. And he says, that isn’t something that even ever crossed my mind. I didn’t invent this. In fact, it’s one of the behaviors that were happening in the Promised Land that God was trying to eradicate by allowing Israel to come into and take over the Promised Land. So, now what we have is a look at how sideways things have gotten for the culture, for the people in the book of Judges. They’re doing things to honor God that God has already declared he despises. This is how backwards things have gotten for the children of Israel after Joshua and the generations that follow, the centuries that follow. But this is how sideways we can get in our mixed culture and our mixed religious beliefs. And when we get trapped in our religion and forget that what we’re actually here to be is in a relationship. So, we can go back to the story of Jephthah and realize there were no angels instructing any of this. God wasn’t present in any way asking for this. And it’s a heartbreaking story that never needed to happen. And then all of the sudden, well then all of the sudden things can bubble up out of our own heart. Because there’s a lot of things that we thought we should do or? be done or whatever that didn’t need to happen. And there is no point trying to blame God for what he had nothing to do with. And our lives are in the story that we read today.
Prayer:
And, so, Father, we thank You for Your word. And we thank You for the things that it brings up. sometimes it tears the scab off. sometimes it pricks us. sometimes it comforts and soothes us. But it is always pulling us forward. It’s always inviting us deeper into relationship with You. And, so, we invite You, Lord, to plant the words spoken today from the Scriptures in our hearts and lead us into all truth as You’ve promised. We ask this in Jesus name. Amen.
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And that’s it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here tomorrow.
Community Prayer and Praise:
Hey everybody. Hey, this is Annette Allison from Oklahoma City. You guys crack me up. Hey, standing out here by the fire. I’ve got some roasty, toasty marshmallows I’m fixing to throw on the campfire. And maybe a nice pot of stew in a big old cast-iron pot with a nice lid all smoked up in the fire. It’s gonna taste great. Hey, I just want to give glory to God today. Woo hoo! All of my project that I’ve been working on for __ and bought by the company, by the Air Force, and by my base, and by my superiors, and the shop is coming in line. And I want to thank all of you people who have maybe thought about that and thought about me and supported me through prayer and nice emails and things like that because it’s been a big situation. So, through God’s help and just helped me out with all of the things that had to be done in the knowledge that I had to learn to even do the job in the first place. That’s great. I am just thankful, thankful, thankful. In the end of…oh…in another week I am going to go see my sons Ricky and Alex up there in Greeley and Loveland Colorado. So, I’m looking forward to that. And the week after that I have a thousand mile ride that I’m going to be completing with my husband. Woo hoo! And we’re going to be doing the four corners area. And, so, what I understand is there’s gonna be like a couple thousand people on the ride. So, hey, pray that maybe I get to talk to Jesus, talk to people about Jesus, and I might get to talk to Jesus. And just pray for everybody’s safety because that’s a lot of people and a lot of coordination. I love you guys. I’ll talk to you all soon.
Hi Brian and Jill hi DAB family. This is Viv from Canada. I’m calling in today because I saw a post from Lisa. And Lisa, my dear sister, I just want to call in and encourage you. Hopefully I can encourage you the way that you have been encouraging so many of us over the past few months. And I just want to let you know that I am really sorry for the loss of Jeff’s dad. And I just want to pray for you and your family right now. So, Father God, Lord Almighty, I lift my sister and husband Jeff and their family to You Lord. And Lord God, I just thank You for being there for them, bringing them through a period of time when they had anxiety for when Jeff’s dad was in the hospital. And now that he’s gone Lord I just pray Father God that You will be there to comfort them Lord to pull them to Your bosom Lord Jesus. I pray Father God that You will bring people alongside them who would help them through this difficult time. Father God You are Savior, You’re a healer, You’re a deliver and I pray Lord God that You will heal and deliver this family through this painful time. Father, I lift them up to You and ask Lord God that You would just shine a light into their life right now, Lord, something that would just let them know that You are there. Father I thank You for what You’re going to do in their life and I pray for healing of their spirit Lord. I lift them up to You Lord Jesus. And I pray Lord God that You’ll just protect them, protect their emotions. And I pray this in Jesus name. Amen.
Hey DAB family this is Sharon in Chicago. I haven’t called in a little while. I just was listening to some of the prayer requests that I heard Mel from, I believe, Central Florida calling and just kind of tugged at my heart. So, it’s pray. God thanks so much for today. Thank you that you are the one that invented sleep and you don’t need sleep but we do and you know that. So, we ask that you would just give Mel the ability to fall asleep, whatever would create that, that you would just do that in her body in her mind and that you give her the energy that she needs to get through the day and for anybody else that struggles with sleep deprivation. I think…I believe her name is my little Sharee that called about that too. So, we ask that You just do a mighty work in their lives. Thank You that You have brought about some healing in that regard for my brother and I ask that You do that for my dad as well. And thank You that You are powerful and that prayer is powerful. Please help my heart be able to remember that and be willing to acknowledge that You are good and that Your plans are best. Please help our hearts not give up hope. And we ask that You would restore to us the joy of our salvation. Greatness __ Spirit. Amen. Thank You for this prayer line. Thank You the words uttered to not only change the course of future but also just encourage and strengthen our hearts. Amen. Bye guys. Have a good day.
Good morning DAB family this is Paula calling from Albuquerque. I hope you guys are doing well. It’s Friday, the 27th of April. I just wanted to call in for couple of things that have really touched my heart this week as I’m listening to the podcast and to community prayer from last weekend. Sharon in California, No Longer Victorious. It sounds like you’ve given up hope. Go read Romans 8:24 and 25 and other Scripture you can find on hope. That’s our word for this year, remember? And I know it’s not an accident that my next journal that I started writing in this year is, ‘Dear God give me hope.’ And, so, all the Scriptures in it are about hope. I hope that encourages you. Also want to lift up all the men that are suffering the consequences of sin in their life, that you all are coming forward and you’re taking that power back from Satan. Praise God for you. For Brian and Jill’s marriage, Jacqueline my sister and family in San Angelo California, Salvation is Mine, continuing to lift you up always. Walta, for your mom and hospice, I could hear the heaviness in your voice. Praying for you. Dwayne in and Wisconsin. Karen in St. Louis, you really touched my heart. I’m 60 and went through a divorce 11 years ago and I have felt those same things even though I have been married before, I have felt those same things. And thank you Sonja for your call today to encourage her because God will do whatever He wants to do in His time. We must remember that it’s according to His will not our own. EZ, thank you for your call of encouragement as well. Terria, when you pray, the Holy Spirit knows what you are trying to say even when you don’t have the words. I hope that enco…