Seeds For Thinking

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” (Proverbs 9:10, NKJV)

“Respect everything; fear nothing.” At first glance, this adage may seem to be at odds with the scripture from Proverbs. I think that there is much to be said for respect, compared with fear.
Fear is to “be afraid of (someone or something) as likely to be dangerous, painful, or threatening; an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain.”
Respect, on the other hand, is “a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements; agree to recognize and abide by (a legal requirement)”; and, “due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of others”
For example, I am not afraid of electricity, having worked with it in many ways, but I have a good, healthy respect for its power and what it can do to the body. I have worked with many rotating mechanical devices, again having the capability to inflict major damage, but I do not come quaking and shaking as I approach a farm implement. I do not experience an “unpleasant emotion” in these situations; rather, I hope I exhibit a “due regard for” the qualities that make them powerful.
Now let’s apply this to a Biblical theme, in keeping with the scripture. “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind; You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22” 37, 39)
To me, this approach to the great commandment speaks more of respect than of fear, according to my dictionary: “Deep admiration, and due regard.”
Let’s look at a case where a lack of respect resulted in fear, as represented by the ark of the Testimony, or Covenant. The Ark was an embodiment of God's presence with the Israelites. The atonement cover (or "mercy seat") that covered the ark was God's throne (2 Sam 6:2) and God's presence was above it (Lev 16:2); It contained the stone tablets of the Testimony (Ten Commandments) a golden pot of manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded. The mercy seat was covered with gold. Two winged figures (cherubim) faced each other with outstretched wings. It was designed to be carried by four men, using poles inserted into rings on the sides of the ark.
God had given the Israelites many rules concerning the Ark of the Covenant. It was to be kept in the Most Holy Place in the temple, hidden from view by a curtain (Ex 26:33). Only the high priest could enter the Most Holy Place, and then only after he had undergone ceremonial cleansing, made sacrifices to atone for his sins and the nation's sins, and burned incense to conceal the atonement cover (Lev 16). When the ark was moved, it was covered with at least 3 layers of cloth by the priests to protect others from seeing it (Num 4:5-6, 15, 18-20);
Certainly, we may say that the presence of the ark struck fear into the hearts of the Philistines, who had captured it in battle (See 1 Samuel, chaps 5, 6). Giving glory to the God of Israel, the Philistines returned the ark to the Israelites at Beth Shemish.
The Israelites rejoiced to see the ark, and made a burnt offering to the LORD. However, their curiosity led the men of Beth Shemish to open the lid, and to look in the ark, which, out of respect for its symbolism of God’s presence, they were not supposed to do. The LORD struck the people with a great slaughter. (1 Samuel 6:19) Since God's presence was on/over the ark, they were actually coming into the presence of God - and without the least sense of reverence (respect?) towards Him.
And the men of Beth Shemish said, “Who is able to stand before this holy LORD god?” (vs. 20)
Who, indeed! Those who show respect for, and have a feeling of deep admiration for, the abilities, qualities, or achievements of The LORD, expressing love for Him with all heart - soul - mind, should have no need to feel fear.

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: “And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the LORD.” (1 Samuel 5:4, NKJV)

In the way of a pun, I say that it sounds a little ‘fishy’ to me. Not the Biblical account of Dagon, an idol of the Philistines, but that people would worship an image that had the torso and head of a man and the tail of a fish. The image of a ‘merman,’ something that exists only in fantasy. Not even a mere man, but something worshiped as one having supernatural powers.
Dagon was the idol-god of the Philistines with temples at Beth-dagon in the tribe of Asher (Joshua 19.27), in Gaza (Judges 16.23, which tells how the temple is destroyed by Samson as his last act). The temple in Ashdod is mentioned in 1 Samuel 5.2–7. Dagon was apparently associated first with grain and vegetation, and later had the form of a fish from his navel down, (whence his name, Dagon), and from his navel up, the form of a man. 1.
1 Samuel, chapter 4, describes a great battle between the Hebrews (Israelites) and the Philistines. Even though the Hebrews brought the ark of the LORD from Shiloh, they were defeated; there was a great slaughter. The Philistines captured the ark of God, and the two sons of Eli, judge of Israel, Hophni and Phineas, were killed.
The Philistines brought the ark of God into the house of their idol, Dagon. But when they arose the next morning to check on their trophy of battle, they found the idol, Dagon, fallen on its face before the ark of the LORD. I can imagine the consternation they felt, seeing their idol, bowing down, as it were, before the ark of the LORD.
They set it upright again, but the next morning presented an even more startling sight - Dagon was not only prostrate before the ark, but its head and the palms of it hands were broken off on the threshold that supported the ark.
The men of Ashdod saw the impact the ark had on their idol, and apparently took the ark out of the house of Dagon. Now the city itself suffered great destruction, and The LORD struck the men of the city with a plague of tumors. They next took the ark to another of their cities, Ekron, and the hand of The LORD was heavy there, with great destruction of the city, and the men who did not die were stricken with tumors.
Yes, they finally got rid of the ark, sending it back to The LORD with a trespass offering. That is another story in its own right.
Idols of stone may not be in fashion today, as in the 1st millennium BC, but there are idols a-plenty among us. Wealth, power, privilege, and possessions often come before obedience to God. Like Dagon, they will fall, and The LORD will triumph over all!
October 24, 2010

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagon

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: Paul wrote, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s spirit lives in you?” 1 Corinthians 3:16, NIV

Oh, what a day it must have been when the temple in Jerusalem was dedicated!
Musicians stood on the east side of the altar, dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps and lyres. They were accompanied by 120 priests sounding trumpets. The singers joined in, singing, “He is good;
His love endures forever.”
(2 Corinthians 13)
More importantly, after the Ark of the LORD’s Covenant was placed in the Holy Place, the glory of the LORD filled the temple with a cloud.
King Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD, in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread his hands toward heaven, and said:
“O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below - you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue whole-heartedly in your way.” (1 Kings 8:22-23) The king concluded his prayer with these words to the assembled people:
“But your hearts must be fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.” (1 Kings 8:61)
Unfortunately, as time passed, both the whole-hearted commitment to God, and the condition of the temple fell into disrepair. Israel turned from following the true God, and was conquered by Assyria. (2 Kings 17:1-23)
The people of Judah also followed “all the detestable practices of the nations - defiling the temple of the LORD, which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.” Ezekiel, in captivity in Babylon, again saw the glory of the LORD fill the temple, and a cloud fill the inner court. This time, however, there was no rejoicing. The glory of the LORD departed from the temple. (Ezekiel 10)
Eventually, the people returned to Judah and Jerusalem, and the temple was rebuilt; the completition and dedication of the second temple is recorded in Ezra 6:6-18. Neither the building nor the dedication was as spectacular as in Solomon’s day.
King Herod spent forty-six years rebuilding the temple into a massive edifice. This is the temple that Jesus visited. His disciples commented on the massive stones. Jesus prophesied that, “ Not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” (Mark 13:1) The people worshiped with their mouths, but not with their hearts.
Today, the temple mount is occupied by the Muslim “Dome of the Rock,” the 3rd holiest site in Islam. Herod’s temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D.
As goes the relationship with God, so goes the temple. Take care that your personal temple is not thrown down by failing to “continue whole-heartedly in God’s way.”
Take time to read about the construction of Solomon’s temple in 1 Kings chapters 6 - 9, and chapters 2 - 7 in 2 Chronicles.
November 16, 2003

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

Scripture: Joshua said, “Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you.” Joshua 4:5b-6, NIV

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) notes in his poem Paul Revere’s Ride that:
“Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year”

in 1875, when Paul Revere made his ride to spread the news of the British troop movements. While we still commemorate the Declaration of Independence, and the Revolutionary War, we do not relate to the poem the same way the American populace did in the 1800’s, when it was written. http://eserver.org/poetry/paul-revere.html
The poem was still a staple of literature and history during my school days, back a half-century ago, just at the close of World War Two. I committed it to memory at that time, so the line came to mind as I sought an example of how remembrance is diluted as each generation is distanced from the event.
My parents were in elementary school during WWI, and saw older uncles and cousins march off to war. The original “Armistice Day therefore had special meaning for them. They were married in the depths of the Depression, so people born during my generation are called “Depression Babies.”
I was in elementary school during WWII, and will always carry indelible memories of ration stamps, scrap drives, and total war impacting the home front, including bomb drills in the schools.
The “Boomer” generation -1946-1964 - questioned why they had to study “that old stuff” meaning not Paul Revere’s ride, but the depression and WWII. Just think how filled with joy today’s students are when the teacher breaks out the studies of the 20th Century, including the Cold War and Vietnam that the Boomers lived through!
How can you teach, how can you pass on the reminiscences of something another generation has never experienced?
Memorials, statues, music and poetry are often deployed to keep some reminder before the populace. Theater, including video and film, probably come the closest to eliciting the emotions of the original event.
The wandering tribes of Israel had spent forty years preparing for the day they would enter the Promised Land. Now, only the flooded Jordan River stood between them and the land they were to occupy.
As the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant stepped into the surging Jordan, the waters piled up in a heap a great distance away, and the people crossed over on dry ground. (Joshua Chapter 3)
Twelve men each picked up a stone from the middle of the now dry Jordan River, to build a memorial. Joshua 4:1-9 relates how children were to be told the significance of the stones; that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the Ark of the covenant of the LORD.
October 26, 2003