All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others

Come on, let's be honest about something . . .

Come on, let's be honest about something... THE BIBLE- 1 of 2

podcast function unavailable today - heading for Apple tomorrow,

O, I mean you want to, but let's be honest, it really isn't easy to love...at first. Since I am a book lover, I cannot, will not, be converted to reading the Bible on my phone except if I am checking a reference or have no other option.

I like the feel of the pages, especially in my oldest Bibles. I like to underline and take notes in my Bible, dating and even marking where I got a profound download of some sort or another. (One of my treasures is my mother's Bible which has her underlining and notes in her beautiful scripted penmanship. Will your children get your well-read, personalized Bible someday?)

Another reason I like holding my Bible in my hands is that I like to see the context--the surrounding verses, and look up supporting scriptures as well.. Yes, today I genuinely love my Bible, but I didn't always. For years, I read it because I felt like that's what I was supposed to do. One thing I've noticed: having a working understanding of what is in the Bible has helped a lot, and so has asking God to give me a love for his Word.

So...

let's take a look at what is between the cover of your Bible

When you hold a Bible in your hands, your left hand grasps the Old Testament, and your right hand, the New Testament.

The Old Testament spans more than a thousand years, while the New Testament just 80 - 90 years, with 400 years of silence from God in between.

It is important to remember the Bible is not ordered chronologically.

Step a little closer, please as we look first at the Old Bible, as my mama called it. The Old Testament is a written record of the history of Israel, written between 1440 b.c. and about 400 b.c.

-There are 39 books in the Old Testament which can be broken down into several categories:

The Pentateuch (meaning five books), also called the Torah. These first five books of the Bible are also known as the books of the law because they contain the laws and instruction the Lord gave Moses for the people of Israel-except for the last portion of Deuteronomy because it covers the death of Moses.1

The Historical Books include Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah and Esther, covering about 800 years of Israel's story-from the life of the nation as they possess the land of Canaan through two exiles and loss of land because of their unbelief and disobedience.2

The books of Poetry lend greater insight to Israel's spiritual life and include Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. In them, we see expressions of praise and prayer, wisdom writings, growth through suffering, and precepts for living.

The books of Prophecy are divided between the Major Prophets and Minor Prophets. The Major Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel; they deal with Israel's history with a prophetic bent. They include messages God gave these men to deliver to his people. The Minor Prophets make up the rest of the O.T. books including Jonah, Micah, Habakkuk etc.; they were dubbed 'Minor' by Augustine in the late fourth century, because they are smaller books. They include words of direction from God--judgment to the people of Israel as well as exhortation and salvation messages.

The Protestant church accepts identically the same Old Testament books as the Jewish people and as Jesus and the apostles accepted. The Roman Catholic Church, since the Council of Trent in 1546, includes 14 books of the Apocrypha as well.

So now when you take a look at the pages of the Old Bible, you have an idea of what is involved. Traveling to Israel has made the stories of the Old Testament come alive for me! Seeing Mt. Carmel where Elijah called forth a miracle, Gideon Springs where God gave Gideon a new name, seeing the caves of Ein Gedi where David hid from Saul anchors scripture to real places ... totally awe-inspiring!

Don't be put off by the Old Testament; it is so rich. Start with the Psalms, read Proverbs, and then dig a little deeper. Why Psalms? It encompasses every human emotion - from joy, grief, fear, despair, doubt, great sorrow, repentance, gratitude and more. David and the other authors convey the truth that God can handle our total honesty; in fact, that is how he wants us to come to him-in authentic honesty. 'And Proverbs? Well, there is a lot of wisdom to apprehend, and since there are 31 chapters, there is one for each day of the month. Now come on, let's be honest ~ you're a little more ready to explore, aren't you?

Christine

PastorWoman.net

1 - https://bible.org/seriespage/3-law-first-five-books

2 - https://bible.org/seriespage/4-historical-books

1 member likes this