Alive and Well

Make 2014 a year for sharing

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Thousands of years have come and gone, since the time when men put the quill to the parchment and captured the thoughts of God for mankind.  Written mainly in Hebrew (with some Aramaic and Greek), the scriptures have led men and women toward righteousness for generations and generations.  The words of God Almighty captured by scribes, prophets and priests over centuries.  The likes of Moses, David, Ezra, the Prophets – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others, Peter, Paul, John and Luke have captured the inspirations, teachings and words from God to us.  In a place called Qumran, in the Southeast corner of Israel, there is an ongoing archeological project to uncover the city, homes, and history of the scribes who lived here and spent their days writing.  In the hills just outside of Qumran, are the caves, where in the 1950’s, over 900 scrolls were found with references to nearly every book of the Old Testament. Keep in mind that scriptures were numbered and outlined as our modern day texts are, with books, chapters and verses.  It was a steady stream of written text copied by a scribe from the mouth of those inspired by God to speak His word.

More copies of the Holy Bible have been printed than any other book in the history of the world.  Certainly, translations from Hebrew and Greek to English and to nearly every other language may have watered down the original, the word of God remains rich and pure to all mankind.  We often question what God wants from us, what our purpose is, why certain things happen, and what is His plan for the future.  The reality is, that if we spent time in His word every day, and truly studied it for the richness that comes alive on the pages, we would have a better understanding. 

Most of us live in a “Cliff Notes” world though and want the answers without putting in the work of reading, studying and learning.  Many get lost in the heaviness of the scriptures, and others can’t seem to put it into perspective in their own life.  I have found that spending an hour in the morning reading His word and then taking mental notes of what it means in my life has continually strengthened my outlook on life.  Every time I open the scriptures I am learning something I didn’t know before.  There is no short-cut.  It takes time, effort and commitment to grow closer to God, His word and His purpose.  You have to put in the hard work and you have to seek Him, for He is not going anywhere.  He is, has always been and will always be exactly the same. 

The words inscribed on the pages of our Holy Bible are translated from God Almighty and are unchanging.  What He inspired upon the heroes of our faith is still just as important today as it was 4000 years ago.  Many will say that the “Old writings” don’t pertain to today’s world.  I say they are very wrong.  The law passed down from God to Moses for mankind has not changed and will not.

1.      Thou shalt have no other gods before me2.      Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image3.      Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain

4.      Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy

5.      Honor thy father and thy mother

6.      Thou shalt not kill

7.      Thou shalt not commit adultery

8.      Thou shalt not steal

9.      Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor

10.  Thou shalt not covet thy neighbors belongings

Why then, do we have such a hard time following His word as the truth?  Why are we so inclined to attempt and conform His truth to our way of life, rather than conforming our life to abide by His truth.  If we all took a stand to live by the truth’s revealed to us through the scriptures, we could solve 90% of the problems in the world today.  The real problem we face is that people only want the part of the scriptures that benefit them and their lifestyle, rather than the entirety.  As long as there is pride, ego and selfishness in this world, the scriptures will remain a distant record of history rather than a tool for our daily life. 

© Sondove Enterprises, 2014
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What a Throw

Make 2014 a year of Sharing

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.”  – Isaiah 53:3a

He was running through the hills as any young boy would do in that day.  He and his cousin were climbing and rough housing, throwing stones at the small stray goats on the ledge above him and watching as they scampered over the hill.  Being raised in the hills of Southern Israel, he was quite familiar with the footings and careful where he placed his foot as he moved about.  Looking over the edge of the hill, he sees another goat, picking up a stone, he tosses it in that direction.  He is immediately surprised when he hears a crashing noise.  A stone upon other rock or sand would not crash, and if he had hit the goat it would have been a thump.  As the two boys climbed over the edge of the hill, they discovered a cave in the side of the cliff. 

Looking down into the cave they see in the shadows a broken vessel, laying amongst a half dozen other vessels (each standing upright).  Scaling down into the cave, the boys retrieve several scrolls, written upon animal hide and papyrus, written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.  They return to their camp in the lower lands with their treasures.  What they didn’t realize in 1947, was that they held in their hands, the “Great Isaiah Scroll”, which is the complete written word of God as captured in Isaiah 53.  It has been carbon dated by multiple experts to be from the era 200 – 300 years BC.  The single oldest fully complete manuscript found in all of time.  Over the next several years segments from every Old Testament book of the bible (with the exception of Esther) have been discovered in the caves around the Dead Sea city of Qumran. 

The Dead Sea Scrolls have provided a point of reference to the authenticity of the Old Testament.  By looking more closely at the writings though, we find the prophetic messages of Isaiah, Daniel, Jeremiah, Zachariah and Malachi amongst others.  These writings that describe in such detail the life that Jesus Christ would live some 400 years later, were written as if they were a newspaper article post tense.  God’s Holy scriptures were captured on scrolls, written with a simple feather quill, and provided to the Jewish population of the time in order to prepare them for the coming Messiah.  When the Messiah did come, He was not accepted by most for a multitude of reasons. 

Today we have God’s Word which clearly tells us about the return of Jesus Christ and the end of times.  It’s not a story, it is prophetic and intended to prepare us for these days.  If you are looking at the Bible as just another novel on the bookshelf, I implore you to take another look.  History has been played out through the pages and the future will play out just as God has told us through Revelations.  There is no better means of encouragement when we look at the news of this day and age, than to know that our Savior is returning one day and we will be taken home. 

© Sondove Enterprises, 2014
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com
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