12/09/2019 DAB Transcript

Joel 1:1-3:21, Revelation 1:1-20, Psalms 128:1-6, Proverbs 29:18

Today is the 9th day of December. Welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian. It’s great to be here with you, of course, at the threshold of a shiny, sparkly, new week, but this also happens to be the second Sunday in the season of Advent. Of course, Advent is the season that leads us into Christmas but gives us the opportunity to contemplate the implications of God…God…our God…the Almighty Creator of all things seen and unseen, right, the Creator of the universe condescending himself and becoming a human being to rescue humanity. That is something to contemplate. And on this second Sunday of Advent, and if you’re lighting the Advent wreath at your church or at home, lighting the second candle, the Bethlehem candle and this week we contemplate the faith that it took this couple, Mary and Joseph to become a part of the story, and we contemplate how it requires faith on our part to enter this story.

Song:

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Phil Keaggy

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray

Oh, whoa
Tidings of comfort and joy

From God our heavenly Father
A blessed angel came
And unto certain shepherds
Brought tidings to the same
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by name

Whoa, tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Whoa, tidings of comfort and joy

Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day

Whoa, tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
Whoa, tidings of comfort and joy

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
(Comfort and joy)
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day 

So, we’ve got a brand-new week out in front of us as we move forward in this month, as we move toward the end of this year, as we move deeper into the Christmas season. And in terms of being shiny and sparkly and new we’re beginning new books in the Old and in the new Testaments today. So, we’ll talk about that as we as we get there, but we are there in terms of the Old Testament. As we continue through our journey that is the final push through the minor prophets in the Old Testament we’ll read the entire book of Joel in its entirety today. This will become a theme. We will be reading books in their entirety often as we continue the journey in the steps forward each day into the end of the year.

Introduction to the book of Joel:

The irony about Joel is that nobody really knows who Joel was. I mean there are other people in the Bible with the same name, but biblical scholars don’t believe any of those people are the author of this prophetic book and the text itself doesn’t help. There are no historical clues within the text, which makes dating Joel very difficult for biblical scholars and biblical historians, which has led many to come to different conclusions over the centuries. But in very general terms, Joel is probably dated somewhere between 500 and 800 B.C., you know, but dating the book, although it’s helpful for context, it’s not unnecessary for the text to retain its impact. And it’s been observed that Joel shares a similar language style with some of the other prophets like Ezekiel or Jeremiah our Amos or Micah or Zephaniah and that’s led some scholars to argue that Joel may be the work of more than one prophet. But on the other hand, others consider that the similarities are a byproduct of the shared culture and tradition of the prophets, that they knew each other and they kind of spoke a common language or had a vocabulary that was understood to be prophetic in nature. Joel wrote of a vast horde of locusts that invaded the land and obliterated everything that was living, every green thing, including the crops and a great famine followed the plague of locusts. And Joel uses natural disasters as a backdrop to call the children of Israel to repentance. And most biblical scholars consider the event, the locust invasion, to be to be an actual event, not an allegory or a symbol, even though Joel used the event to speak an apocalyptic message of judgment. That as it is the case with so much of the Bible, Joel’s words were intended to reveal that a fork in the road had been reached where a choice must be made and the path of repentance, if they were to take that fork, that would lead to blessing and restoration. Continuing to reject God and take the other fork would lead to, what Joel calls, the great and terrible day of the Lord. And even though the judgment that’s described in Joel would certainly be great, the path of repentance would lead to an even greater restoration. Some of the most well-known and beautiful passages of restoration are found in the book of Joel. So, for example, Joel tells us, “I will pour out my spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” So, obviously very, very famous portions of Scripture. So, let’s dive in and embrace the message of the book of Joel and consider how we are invariably and continually brought to forks in the road where a decision has to be made. And let’s remember from the book of Joel that, no matter what the locusts have eaten in the past, there is always a path to restoration. And, so, we begin. We’re reading from the new International version this week. Joel chapter 1 verse 1 through 3 verse 21 today.

Introduction to the book of Revelation:

Okay. So, that concludes the book of Joel in its entirety, which brings us now to, obviously, our New Testament portion, which brings us also into new territory, the final book of the Bible, the final book of the New Testament, the book of Revelation. And Revelation…oh…come on…the book of Revelation has captured the fascination of readers in ways that really no other book has and it’s been interpreted through many lenses over thousands of years, some of them fantastic, and some of them pragmatic. The book of revelations self identifies the author as John and, unfortunately, which John isn’t clearly specified. So, traditionally the accepted author’s been the apostle John who obviously wrote the gospel of John as well as some of the territory we just walked through, first, second and third John. But the reality is that this has been questioned since at least the third century and it continues all the way until today, but there is no clear evidence in any other direction. So, based on the evidence, most hold to the tradition of the apostle John was probably the author. If this is the case, then the apostle John had been banished to the island of Patmos where Revelation was written. And it’s believed that Patmos was…I’ve got to learn how to talk…Patmos was a Roman…like a prison colony…like an island where you would be dropped off to do your time and criminals and political prisoners were exiled there. And the island exists. It sits out in the ocean between modern-day Greece and Turkey in the Aegean Sea and it’s not that far from Ephesus where it’s thought that John spent his elderly years. So, here’s the deal about Revelation. Revelation is considered a work of a specific literary genre called apocalyptic literature. And this is one of the reasons for such intrigue because that genre is highly symbolic. So, fantastic things. If we think of Ezekiel with the wheel within the wheel and the spirits moving back and forth, forward and backward, up and down, with…you know…like remember that story…or some of the things that we saw and in the book of Daniel. This is apocalyptic literature, highly symbolic. And, so, the reader has to discern what it is that is to be taken literally and at what is to be considered allegoric or symbolic. So, what makes Revelation is so intriguing in this regard is because of the subject matter, right? It appears that the subject matter is the end of the world as we know it and the beginning of a new era for humanity. So, intriguing to say the least and yet highly symbolic apocalyptic literature. So, interpreting Revelation can lead to widely diverse conclusions and this has literally been the case for the last couple thousand years. Some view the work from an entirely first century perspective, from the time that it was written and conclude that the events spoken of in Revelation are events that have already taken place while others see the book outlining the chain of events beginning in the first century and lasting all the way until the end of the world. And then still others believe that the symbolism found in Revelation is timeless, it describes the cosmic struggle between good and evil. And the truth is, any of these views are legitimate but getting overly intrigued by the details and then then trying to overlay them with the current time, trying to smash them in and make them all fit, that might prove unfulfilling because that’s been the custom of nearly every generation since this was written and everybody’s been incorrect up until now. One thing is certain though, the theme that we have been working toward that we have been noticing, as we moved into the autumn, as the seasons changed, the theme of endurance that has followed us through the New Testament is a fundamental, primary theme in the book of Revelation. It’s really almost as if we we’ve been following the theme all the way to Revelation so that we can see that endurance is irreplaceable in the ultimate battle between darkness and light. And Revelation ultimately tells us that those who stay faithful to the testimony of Jesus and endure until the end, right, “by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony”, those people will be eternally victorious. And one of the things, if we’re looking for it, we’ll find in Revelation is that endurance, it’s not a passive thing. Like, we think of it that way, “I’m can just enduring”, which means I’m putting up with something. So, “I’m passively just stuffing it inside and in dealing with it.” Or we treat it like a defensive posture, like, “I just gotta get through this.” But endurance isn’t passive or defensive. To remain true in the context we’re talking about here, when the entire world is against you, if you’re staying true, if you’re standing true when everything is against you, then you are absolutely making a defining, powerful statement. And in this case, those who endure are making a statement against deception. And deception has always been the greatest force set against mankind and Revelation will show us that. We are to remain true and be a witness to the truth and a light in the darkness until the very end. And that very end, according to the book of Revelation, is a new beginning. And, so, we begin the final book of the Bible, Revelation, chapter 1.

Prayer:

Father, we thank You for Your word. We thank You for this brand-new week out in front of us. We think You for this season of contemplation and the true rejoicing in Your arrival to rescue and save us. So, come Holy Spirit into this week and everything that we do and everything that we hear and everything that we say. Plant Your word deep in our lives, transforming us from within. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudibible.com is the website, its home base, its where you find out what’s going on around here.

And there’s something new going on around here starting right now. So, here we are its December 9th, the second Sunday in the season of Advent and we have another tradition here in the Daily Audio Bible family and that is our family Christmas episode. And that happens every year. We do a reading of the entire Christmas story, my family. We read the Christmas story together, but this is your opportunity to call in your holiday greetings to your brothers and sisters all over the world, those who have traveled with you, whether silently or whether you’ve met in person at an event or whether you just know them by voice. This is the opportunity to send your holiday greetings to the Daily Audio Bible family and the way that you do that is that you call into the prayer line and wish everybody a happy holiday, whatever it is that you want to say. There’s only really…there’s two rules about this. One, I mean all the calls have a two-minute limit, but the other rule is, if you have a prayer request don’t call that in combined with a holiday greeting. Like, it’s one time that you can actually make two calls back to back if that’s what you need to do. Just make sure that your holiday greetings are all on their own call and your prayer requests are all on their own call otherwise neither one of them are going to get where they need to go because there’s just too many and there’s no way chop that all up and put it where it needs to go. So, that’s the rule for this week. So, from today all the way until Saturday we’ll be taking those calls, your Daily Audio Bible family…it’s like our Christmas party, like our community Christmas party that happens here every year and I love it since we’ve done it and we’ve been doing it a long time, over a decade. I never…I’m always in tears…I’m note an outwardly emotional person. I have deep feelings but I’m an introvert but these…this just brings me to tears because just to hear the stories coming together…the journey and holiday wishes and all of the familiar voices and just centered around this beautiful season of Christmas is a wonderful thing. So, call in your Christmas greetings this week. The numbers to use are 877-942-4253 if you’re if you’re in the United States. In the UK or Europe, 44-20-3608-8078 or if you’re in Australia, 61-3-8820-5459 is the number to call. So, do and don’t procrastinate. I know there’s procrastinators out there because your calls over the years have kind of come in late and that’s sad because they don’t get included in the family Christmas. But…well…don’t procrastinate. Pick up that line, dial it, and off you go. And we’ll look forward to our Daily Audio Bible family Christmas coming up a little later in the month.

If you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com. There is a link. It’s on the homepage. Thank you profoundly and humbly for your partnership. That’s no joke. It’s no joke. This would all be gone. We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t do this together. So, thank you. There’s a link on the homepage at dailyaudiobible.com. If you’re using the Daily Audio Bible app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996 Spring Hill Tennessee 37174.

And, as always, if you have a prayer request or comment 877-942-4253 is the number to dial.

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:

Hi, I’m calling for Margaret May from Syracuse. My name is Carla and I just wanted to say that your call touched me very deeply and I know what it’s like to feel like I don’t know how to pray. And I’m like I’m overcome by fear and loss and sorrow. And I’ve also felt just such a deep agony in my spirit that at times I didn’t even want to live. And I know how horrible loneliness can be and it can feel like you’re dead inside. And I’d actually discovered that my pain was not just a spiritual attack from demons but also mental health issues. And I’m not saying demonic spirits and principalities don’t move in this world but also as easily as Satan may afflict a man with arthritis or a woman with kidney stones, he can afflict our minds and our brains with deep depression and anxiety, which is my story. And your fears sound like they might be as well. And God in my life has used good Christian therapists and psychiatrists blessed with skills to help me heal and it’s improve my relationship with Him and improved my life all around. And I just encourage you to open your mind and your heart to the possibility that God may be leading you to seek healing for the mind and brain as well as for the spirit. And God I just thank You so much for Margaret May and just surround her with Your love and with our love from the DAB and with the love people in her community. Please build her with community and friends and family with a church because we aren’t meant to be alone. And also, help her with her pain and healing. Lead her down that path and remind her that You look on her with only love and no anger at all. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Hi, good morning, I’m Denise from Canada and this is my first time calling for prayer. So, I wrote it out so that I don’t ramble. I would like to thank you for being willing to pray and especially for those for people you don’t know. I’m asking for prayer this morning for my sister and her daughter, my niece. They’re in great need. There’s trauma, anxiety, depression, isolation, hopelessness and fear. Mostly they need Jesus. Trying to make it in this life without Him is ludicrous. So, I’m asking you if you’d please pray for them. I really appreciated and thank you so so much. And I hope you have a wonderful day and thank you again. Bye.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family, Happy December. I hope you are having a good day. I was just listening to the Daily Audio Bible this morning and I just heard the call from Margaret May in Syracuse New York. And I heard her fear, her isolation, her loneliness and I am so thankful that she reached out, that she called us to let us know that she needs us to pray for her. And Margaret, I wanted you to know that I am praying for the Holy Spirit to comfort you, to fill you, to give you peace, to give you a sound mind and to give you the strength that you need to return to living, to reach out, to expect friendship, and to be able to eat, and to drink, and to go about your daily life. I would love to hear from you. I will leave my email, but I just want you to know that I understand. I understand that loneliness, that fear, that deep dark hole that you’re in. And I am praying for you. I’m praying that you, that will be healed. Please contact me and we can be friends even though I live in Illinois. My name is Nancy and my email addresses nancygolian@gmail.com. I love you Margaret. You take care. Have a good day. Bye.

Good morning all my Daily Audio Bible friends, this is Diane Olive Brown calling you from Newburgh Indiana. It is 9:14 in the morning on December the 6th, Thursday. And I got my Christmas Box and I sent when I was a gift and I love it, love it, love it. I love being in this community. I love feeling like I just put a great big log on the campfire and gathered around together with the Scriptures and I love the Scriptures, the reading today. Today’ December the 6th was just really amazing and the Lord is just warming of my heart, warming my heart. I had some pretty big disappointments this year, but it was all good because, you know, where most disappointments come and you just got set back and you feel like the rug got pulled right out from under you then…boom…you get back with the Lord and you start all over again. It doesn’t matter if you start all over again. Shalom, shalom. Nothing is missing, nothing is broken. And I want to first call out to a girl who called. I don’t know your name, but you called and you’re a first-time caller and you’re in desperate desperate, desperate need of a friend, you don’t have a friend, you don’t have a church. You’ve been in a room, it seems like a room, just by yourself and when you got so desperate and I just want to let you know that I’m praying for you. You have a friend in me…and I’m your friend…