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.
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upper right-hand corner or, if you prefer, the mailing address is PO Box 1996
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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…