Tag Archives: book

Time for the “Book Review”

The book most recently read was entitiled “The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism” by Jason A. Staples.

I would highly recommend this book for the clarity of the terms for “Israel”,”Jew” and “Hebrew”. I would also recommend any book about this subject, you would be surprised by how some things in the scriptures will clear up for you when reading things.

This is another example, where we can get ourselves going down the wrong road with our ‘asuming’ definition of something and you find out the statement you say, is not factual. There are many things as christians that we mean to go back and do some research on terms, definition, stories, paradigms, allegory,literal, types, metaphors, and parables! I recommend that we all do it!

Staples does a very good job of detailing what the people, inside and outside of ‘Israel’ , What prophets meant by their usage of each word, and when it changed to a subset of one, or vica versa. It was very informative to the understanding of even within the ‘Jewish’ community in which they were apart of. Within these three definitions of this said ‘group’ it would change when an event happened to one or all of the group. Depending on when the word Israel was used in could be meaning just the northern tribe, or it could mean both the northern and southern tribe, Judah. This was used in knowing of the original setup, but also of the reuniting of them both in the eschatology of Israel, and their prophets.

A added bonus of this book, was a subset of a theme that was carried out in the telling of the story of these three terms. It was the underlining story of the “Covenant Theology” laced throughout the telling and believing ‘Israel’ that they would ‘all’ be brought back together as one. It is this, that brought me even more assured on what covenantal Theology of God’s desires for All to be “ONE”.

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An Epistle of Christ

I am always reading books. I have alot of books. I don’t read them to just say that I’ve read them but I read them so that I understand what the author is trying to tell me. After all, this is what every author is trying to do, no matter what the genre you read.

My current book is the “Israel’s law and the Church’s faith” Paul and his recent interpreters. Like most books that I read they are not your average read a book in a day thing. No, they are ones that you have to read, then think and ponder, then reread it again, and to check the notes on the said paragraph and check the references in the bible for clarity. This is a very painstaking way to just read a book but it is the way one should make sure you understand what you are reading. What is really funny to think about is this is the way that Christians should read the bible, in a very systematic way with using the references and notes as guides to ‘see’ what the ‘author’ is really saying.

I say this by the fact that in this latest book I’m reading it mentions 2 Corinthians 3. 4-18 as a verse which backs up the author’s point. It is in this scripture that I see that it includes verses 2-3 which I will write.

2 Corinthians 3.2 Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts know and read of all men: 3. being made manifest that ye are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written no with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God’ not in tables of stone, but in tables that hearts of flesh.

verse v also And such confidence have we through Christ to God-war: 5 not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to account anything as from ourselves: but our sufficiency is from God.

Now this is a very important ideal that we must ‘see’ in today’s paradigm of the christianity that we live in. For it is a very subtle but important thing to know it the setting of God. You see, Paul was talking to the corinthians thru letters, when in his building them up in to continuing what they were doing in their community, He tells them that they have been an a ‘epistle’ to him as a influence of their love of God.

It was because Paul seen and felt the Love of God in them as He himself had that the Spirit of God was with them in the same way. He tells them they are of the same mold because their are both filled with the Spirit of God, making them equal in God.

This insight that I had to stop and look it to it as I was reading, is the reason it takes me awhile to go thru my theology books. I am always stopping to ‘see’ something that is a ‘aha’ moment in my studying. But with no regrets I am always chalking it up to increasing my knowledge of Christ in my life.

To take this a even further in the scheme of things, knowing that we are one in the spirit of God with our spirit of Christ in us, we must ‘see’ that it is and should be Christ leading us,all of us into Christ’s presence of His Kingdom(Heaven). If you didn’t understand the former sentence(I am always hoping that people understand what I am trying to say, in a indirect way,sometimes this is futile, but I try anyway) This should tell us that ALL OF US(no titles included) are the community of God, we will someday be joined with other communities of God to be considered the BODY OF CHRIST!

It is mission to understand this and then to act upon it by being an ‘epistle’ of all of man!

P.S. Still not finished with the book!

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Change

My situation is fluid with some of the things that I am involved in, things are always changing on me, but I have decided to make it even more chaotic on myself.

I have decided to go back and restart the book that I had started three years ago, and see if I can maybe finish it within a year. There is alot of groundwork to be done, but I have the premise and the outline to work off of to get it going. It is the finding the time to squeeze in the time and effort to do this seems to be the missing piece for me.

I am also going to continue blogging with a more urgent need to do this on a daily basis. I, now more than ever see the need to continue my path of ‘God’s Kingdom’ being shared as I see it as really starting to take hold in the world.(It may not look like it, but it is a grass roots effort that is building as we speak)

So bear with me as I push myself to reach the goals and to push the message out to all that will ‘listen’. Please continue to follow me and read the posts that I put out, it is coming from the word of the scriptures. We will journey thru this new ‘Revelation’ to ‘see’ God’s ‘Kingdom’ as we go.

I am planning to work on 3-4 blogs a week with also on the book work. I will give you updates on the book as I go. With some teasors that will keep you interested!

For now, I hope you have a Great day in the Lord and keep your eyes on Him. Doug

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Filed under Kingdom of God