(II) 3 levels of God’s stories

Some people get emotional when they hear a story or watch a show. They laugh when it is hilarious or shed tear when the story touches them. I am one such person. I shed tear easily and can be emotionally entwine and "get" into the story.

The same goes when reading God’s stories. I get emotional when Saul, who is a good king initially ended his life. I was fearful when King David made a heinous act of “borrow sword to kill people” (in Chinese).

Do you feel for the people in God’s stories?

If you are in God’s Kingdom, and want to learn as much as you can from HIS WORD, it would help you to “get” into God’s stories by knowing that actually God’s stories are on effect being told in 3 levels. Knowing these levels help you to integrate into their stories as we share the same heritage in God’s family.

Top Level: Universal plan of God
Each individual story is part of the complete redemption plan of God. This is God’s stories. From these individual stories, we learn of God and His works.

Middle Level: Israel in God’s plan
This level sees the story at the level of the nation of Israel (for OT) and the church (for NT), how the people constituted by a former covenant (OT), then a new covenant (NT), in fulfillment of the top level.

Bottom Level: Individual characters
At this level are the individual narratives that make up the previous two levels. They consist of individual stories and people, like Adam & Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jonah, Esther, etc.

When we read each narratives (bottom level), we must consciously ask ourselves how it is related to other levels. This will also help you to make correct applications and biblical principles.

Let me show some examples:

Example: 1Sam 9-10 Appointment of Saul and first King of Israel

(This message was preached by Pastor Chia Boon Beng on Aug 24 2008, Title: Donkey Work & Excess Baggage in Bethany PCES)

His Outline:
When God Chooses (Top Level Outline)
1. God moves ahead of you (v15-17)
2. God starts with a vision and a dream (v19)
3. God will speak personally to you (v27)
4. God will confirm the call (10:1)
5. God will anoint you ( )
6. There will be opposition ( 10:27 )

Notice here that he uses the top level as his outline, looking at the level to see how God is actually working to bring Saul as king. Using top level is good to understand how God is working in the lives of people. But it is difficult to see how the text can apply to us. That is God’s job, not ours.

By direct reading, my outline (using bottom level):

Title: How to produce a leader (1Sam 9-10)
A. Preparing a leader (9:1-10:2)
1. Testing and training of a person (9:1-4)
2. A teachable person (9:5-14)
3. Guidance from leader (9:15-21)
4. Exposing to leaders (9:22-27)
5. Affirm his leadership (10:1-2)

B. Transforming a leader (10:3-16)
1. Encounter with God (a spirit-filled Christian) (10:3-8)
2. Heart changed person (10:9-13)
3. Personal encounter, keep it to yourself (10:14-16)

C. Reaction to a leader (10:24-27)
1. Some will support and encourage you (10:24, 26).
2. Some will despise you. (10:27a)

By using the bottom level as outline, it is easier now to find the relevance of the passage and applications – how to prepare myself to be a leader.

Notice the difference:
Top level gives us a glimpse of what God is doing to prepare a leader (God’s job)
Bottom level helps me to prepare myself as a leader (my job)
So choosing and appointing Christian leader is both my job and God’s job

Practice Passages:
(1) Judges 16 – Samson & Delilah, (try this yourself)

(2) Jonah 1-4 Book of Jonah (try this yourself)

(3) Ruth 1-4: Story of Ruth - discuss the top level, middle level, bottom level

Ok, let me show you what I have for Ruth 1-4:

Top level: God redemption to all mankind (kinsman-redeemer)

Middle level: the ancestors of David, King of Israel (the Book of Ruth could be an official document in the courts of King David), it qualifies how David can be King and in the lineage of Judah

Bottom level: the righteousness of people of Bethlehem in the time of Judges (obedient to the Leviticus laws) when everyone does right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25)
The Book of Ruth is like a contrast appendix to the Book of Judges.

Reference: Gordon Fee & Douglas Stuart; How to read the Bible for all its Worth; Chapter 5 – The Old Testament Narratives; Zondervan @2003

Note: Most of the time, we tend to ignore the top level. That is OK if we are just studying for ourselves. But when we are teaching Sunday school or leading BS, it is important to know that God is ultimately at work in the lives of the students and the members.

(I) God gave us stories

Everyone likes stories.

I remember back in those good old days when there was no television, no computer, and my house had no radio (just a rediffusion), we children would gather around the older folks and hears stories - stories of our grandparents, stories of the Japanese in Singapore, stories of our neighborhoods.

About 40% of the Old Testament of the Bible is in story form or narratives. Perhaps, these stories are passed on centuries through centuries orally like my parents to us. Then came a time when God inspired learned men, like Moses, to write it all down for future generations (like us).

Also, other civilizations like the Egyptians and Sumerians had their stories. And the stories are also quite similar, although not exactly similar. Every civilization had their creation stories. They also had the flood story like the one in the Bible about Noah and the Ark. So to set the record straight, the Bible also recorded these stories to counter error and falsehood. Hence Bible stories are also about truth.

When you want somebody to know you, you reveal yourselves by telling your stories. Maybe you tell it orally, or you write a memoir. You can also create a blog. Well, God wants us to know Him. So HE tells us HIS stories.

Let’s look at the two most familiar stories – Creation and the Flood.

Creation Story
The first story in the Bible is Creation of heavens and earth.

To fully appreciate this story, we also have to know something about the early civilization concept of creation. There are many, but I will just talk about the most famous one – Mesopotamia’s creation found in the writing called Enuma Elish

The Enuma Elish is a Babylonian or Mesopotamian myth of creation recounting the struggle between cosmic order and chaos written in the 12th Century BC (Genesis is written in 15th Century BC). The story is all about gods and they are at war with one another.

The various gods represent aspects of the physical world. Apsu is the god of fresh water and thus male fertility. Tiamat, wife of Apsu, is the goddess of the sea and thus chaos and threat.

Tiamat gives birth to Anshar and Kishar, gods who represented the boundary between the earth and sky (the horizon). To Anshar and Kishar is born Anu, god of sky, who in turn bears Ea. These "sons of the gods" make so much commotion and are so ill-behaved that Apsu decides to destroy them.

To make the long story short, Tiamat was finally killed and her corpse was divided to create the earth and the other half to create the sky. Kingu (the new husband of Tiamat after the death of Aspu) was also killed and his blood was used to make mankind.

After reading all these ancient civilization creation stories, the Genesis account of God’s creation sound more realistic than all other myth!

Flood Story
We all know about Noah and the ark.

But do you know that there are about 270 worldwide flood stories and historic records found in many parts of the world?

The Epic of Gilgamesh is, perhaps, the oldest written story on Earth. It comes to us from Ancient Sumeria, and was originally written on 12 clay tablets in cunieform script. It is about the adventures of the historical King of Uruk (somewhere between 2750 and 2500 BCE). The story is quite similar to Genesis 6 – 9 so much so that people asked: Is the Biblical Flood Account a Modified Copy of the Epic of Gilgamesh? I leave you to read on this.

The Chinese too have their universal flood account. One ancient Chinese classic called “Hihking” tells of the story of Fuhi, whom the Chinese consider to be the father of their civilization. This history records that Fuhi, his wife, three sons, and three daughters escaped a great flood. He and his family were the only people left alive on earth. After the great flood they repopulated the world.


So to know truth and to know GOD, we need to know Bible Stories. More importantly, they are God’s stories. These stories become ours as HE “writes” us into it once we joined HIM into HIS family.


To be continued …

You'll Never Walk Alone

There is encouraging peom that I found.

In this difficult time, God is still our refuge and strength.

You'll Never Walk Alone

When you walk through a storm

hold your head up high

And don't be afraid of the dark.

At the end of a storm is a golden sky

And the sweet silver song of a lark.

Walk on through the wind,

Walk on through the rain,

Tho' your dreams be tossed and blown.

Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart

And you'll never walk alone,

You'll never, ever walk alone.

Walk on, walk on with hope in your heart

And you'll never walk alone,

You'll never, ever walk alone.

Like Father like Son

Life may repeat itself if we don’t learn from it.

Sometimes even to the next generation.

I have completed reading the book of 2nd Samuel. The turning point (dy/dx = 0; d2y/dx2 = +ve, ) of King David’s life is in 2Sam 11. Up to this point, he has done everything right with God. So just in case we think that the king has every right to take a man’s wife and killed the husband who is one of his trusted and mighty soldier (2Sam 23:39), the narrator’s spoke for God in the last verse of 2Sam 11: “But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD”.
This is a very important view of the narrator’s.

To what extent was God not please with David? Let’s look at the structure of the story’s after this chapter:


What followed after 2Sam 11 till the end of the book and into 1Kings bear a reflection to that act (sex & murder) :

David + Bathsheba - > killing of Uriah
Amnon + Tamar -> killing of Amnon
Absalom + David’s concubine -> killing of Absalom
(Adonijah + Abishag) -> killing of Adonijah
(bracket to indicate to some extent)

This analogus structure reflects the narrator’s view in these individual stories of David’s sons (rape of Amnon; rebellion of Absalom; usurp/struggle of throne of Adonijah) teaches us that our sins will catches up. David is forced to see how the same vices of sex and murder to which he succumbed re-emerge in his sons, causing disaster and great suffering. So much for a man after God’s heart.

Here lies a very stern warning to every man and father:

A godly man does not equate to a godly father. Just like Prophet Samuel,



A great king, very great king but sad finishing.

Reflections - Doing Good – Titus 2

Reflections on Last Sunday Message:

When was the last time I think of doing good works? Perhaps, I need a little reminder. This verse which I use to memorise came to me:

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in Heaven.

There’s this little story, simple but a good reminder. I am sure you have heard it. No harm repeating here.

Ruth went to her mail box and there was only one letter. She picked it up and looked at it before opening, but then she looked at the envelope again. There was no stamp, no postmark, only her name and address. She read the letter:

Dear Ruth:
I'm going to be in your neighborhood Saturday afternoon and I would like to visit.

Love Always,
Jesus

Her hands were shaking as she placed the letter on the table.
"Why would the Lord want to visit me?
I'm nobody special. I don't have anything to offer."

With that thought, Ruth remembered her empty kitchen cabinets. Oh my goodness, I really don't have anything to offer. I'll have to run down to the store and buy something for dinner." She reached for her purse and counted out it's contents. Five dollars and forty cents.

"Well, I can get some bread and cold cuts, at least."

She threw on her coat and hurried out the door. A loaf of French bread, a half-pound of sliced turkey, and a carton of milk...leaving Ruth with grand total of twelve cents to last her until Monday. Nonetheless, she felt good as she headed home, her meager offerings tucked under her arm.

"Hey lady, can you help us, lady?" Ruth had been so absorbed in her dinner plans, she hadn't even noticed two figures huddled in the alleyway. A man and a woman, both of them dressed in little more than rags.

"Look lady, I ain't got a job, ya know, and my wife and I have been living out here on the street, and, well, now it's getting cold and we're getting kinda hungry and, well, if you could help us, lady, we'll really appreciate it."

Ruth looked at them both. They were dirty, they smelled bad and frankly, she was certain that they could get some kind of work if they really wanted to.

"Sir, I'd like to help you, but I'm a poor woman myself. All I have is a few cold cuts and some bread, and I'm having an important guest for dinner tonight and I was planning on serving that to Him."

"Yeah, well, okay lady, I understand. Thanks anyway."
The man put his arm around the woman's shoulders, turned and he headed back into the alley.
As she watched them leave, Ruth felt a familiar twinge in her heart.

"Sir, wait!" The couple stopped and turned as she ran down the alley after them. "Look, why don't you take this food. I'll figure out something else to serve my guest." She handed the man her grocery bag.

"Thank you lady. Thank you very much!"

"Yes, thank you!" It was the man's wife, and Ruth could see now that she was shivering.

"You know, I've got another coat at home. Here, why don't you take this one." Ruth unbuttoned her jacket and slipped it over the woman's shoulders. Then smiling, she turned and walked back to the street...without her coat and with nothing to serve her guest.

"Thank you lady! Thank you very much!"

Ruth was chilled by the time she reached her front door and worried too. The Lord was coming to visit and she didn't have anything to offer Him. She fumbled through her purse for the door key. But as she did, she noticed another envelope in her mailbox.

"That's odd. The mailman doesn't usually come twice in one day."

She took the envelope out of the box and opened it.

Dear Ruth:
It was so good to see you again. Thank you for the lovely meal. And thank you, too, for the beautiful coat.

Love Always,
Jesus

The air was still cold, but even without her coat, Ruth no longer noticed.

Cultural versus Religious

Should Chinese Christians discard all artifacts that have “dragon” on them?

Including the T-shirt, flower vase and Lunar New Year decorations?

To some, this may sound like a silly question to ask. Dragon, like all animals are just pictures for display and soft toys to play.

To others, it touches the core of our Christian belief and faith. Dragon, like serpent is symbolic of evil in the Bible and has no part in a Christian life at all cost.

Last Sunday message by Brother Paul Johnson was on Titus 1:10-16 about false teachings. This “dragon” thingy raised in the message brought back memories of the time when I was a student in SBC studying on cultural sensitivity in relation to Bible teaching. Our lecturer and missionary, Dr. Timothy Wirada, an American married to a Singapore Chinese lady for many years raised this question in class. Suddenly the class became alive! By a show of hands, half supported to motion, the other half disagreed. And these are theological students and church leaders, yet holding different views!

Those support the motion fired the first salvo:

“In Revelation chapter 12 & 13, we read that the dragon, like the serpent is evil making war against the angels. Christians should not associate with symbols of evil.”

The other camp responded:

“Symbols are just symbols used within that text. In 1Peter 5:8, the devil is like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Yet, Christ is also the Lion of Judah in Rev 5:5. Likewise, the serpent is Satan in Gen 3. But Moses made a bronze serpent to cure all who were bitten by serpent in Number 21:9.”

“But dragon to the Chinese is different; it also has a religious connotation. All the robes of the Taoist priests and Chinese folk religions have a big dragon on them. By having dragon with us, we identify with these Chinese religions.”

“To us Chinese, dragon is more cultural than religious. It associates with goodness, prosperity, majesty and blessing. Jesus Christ did not come to abolish culture. He followed the Jewish culture closely.”

“Fairy tales and legends frequently have dragons in them. In Chinese fairy tales the kings of the seas are the dragons. There is this mystic in them that Christian should avoid.”

….
….

Most of us know that we keep our culture like Chinese New Year but forbid practicing what is religious like burning joss stick and praying to idols.

So, is the dragon a cultural issue or a religious issue?

"God helps those who help themselves"

You may have heard this phrase: “God helps those who help themselves” before.

Last Sunday during worship service, I was a bit surprise to hear this mentioned during the children talk.

Since God is mentioned, can you find this phrase in the Bible?

What does this phrase actually mean?

For those who like to be a bit cheem, what does it mean theologically??????