A Pathway into The Bible

**WALKING THE NEW TESTAMENT**
WEEK 2: A 5-Day Guided Tour of MARK'S Gospel (5 of 5)
DAY 5: 'His Resurrection Life - and Introducing Yours!'
PLUS: A 'Walking Meditation' on Mark's Gospel
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..or listen on video...

https://youtu.be/2Mdx5yYOvK4
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MARK'S GOSPEL
"CONCENTRATED GOOD NEWS"
DAY 5
(with Tour Guide's notes in the EXTRA COLUMN)

9). His Resurrection Life and an Introduction to Yours!
Chapter 16.9-20

These last few verses of Mark's Gospel summarise what else happened after Jesus had risen. The disciples didn’t believe the women’s story! (16.9-11). On three occasions Jesus appeared to His disciples - the first to Mary Magdalene (see Matthew 28.8-10 and John 20.10-18), then to two men on their way to Emmaus (Luke 24.13-35), and then when “he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen”! (16.12-14)

And the last few verses tell us what His followers are to do about all this….

“Jesus said to them. ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned…
“After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.”
(16.15-20)

***THE EXTRA COLUMN
If you are considering Christian faith for the first time or want to confirm your commitment to Him, now may be your moment! But since we’ve met Matthew and John in Mark’s Gospel, perhaps we’ll let them ‘gather round’ and speak before you respond to Jesus.

According to Matthew, Jesus prayed this: “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”(Matth.11.28-29)

And at the end of John’s Gospel, he says this: “Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”(John 20.30-31)

You might like to pray this prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ, I know I have sinned in my thoughts,
words and actions.
There are so many good things I have not done.
There are so many sinful things I have done.
I am sorry for my sins and turn from everything
I know to be wrong.
You gave your life upon the cross for me.
Gratefully I give my life back to you.
Now I ask you to come into my life.
Come in as my Saviour to cleanse me.
Come in as my Lord to control me.
Come in as my Friend to be with me.
And I will serve you all the remaining years of my life
in complete obedience.
Amen.*
*(taken from the booklet “Journey Into Life” by Norman Warren)***
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A 'WALKING MEDITATION" ON THE GOSPEL OF MARK

WALKING WITH JESUS INTO ETERNAL LIFE

Thank you, Lord, that you have walked not only in our footsteps and in our shoes
But in our feet and in our flesh.

Thank you, Lord, for confining thought, condensing Life, containing majesty
And matching your pace to ours.

Thank you, Lord, that you have seen us with human eyes, loved us with a human heart
And spoken with us face to face.

Thank you, Lord, for your humility in not commanding us but inviting us -
To meet you, to listen to you and to watch you - so that we may be changed by you.

Thank you, Lord, for calling us to face our own fallen-ness and address our own sin,
By repentance and trust in you - for forgiveness, for life and for a future.

Thank you, Lord, that because of you the Kingdom of God is near,
And that for our world, at last there is Good News!

Thank you, Lord, for rearranging our relationships around the Father,
Allowing the seed of your message to flourish in the soil of our lives and families.

Thank you, Lord, that the decision to follow you is both ours and yours,
We may honour you as Messiah, and may grow - with Peter - to grasp what that means.

Thank you, Lord, for your patience in allowing our faith and understanding to blossom,
And always asking “What do you want me to do for you?”

Thank you, Lord, that we may trust your Lordship because of your love,
And we may dare to share your sufferings because by them you conquered death.

Thank you, Lord, for your empty tomb, for your resurrection and ours,
And for the calling to go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.

And thank you, Lord, because “you stand at the door and knock,
and if anyone hears your voice and opens the door,
you will come in and eat with them, and they with you” and
“In His great mercy God gives us new birth into a living hope through your Resurrection, and has given us an inheritance that can never perish.”

Thank you, Lord, that “your word is a lamp to our feet.”
And so we know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,
that even the wind and the waves obey him, and that he has done everything well.
And so we gladly hear His voice…
“If anyone wants to be my disciple, he must deny himself. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.”

Thank you, Lord, that as we walk in your written word
You lead us to be your brothers and sisters - and now “we are the people of God!
Once we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy!”

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: Look out for 'A 5-Day Guided Tour of Luke's Gospel' : GOOD NEWS FOR EVERYONE - Coming Soon!]

'A Pathway into the Bible - Walking with God Then and Now' is available on Amazon

(Photos: Kelly Sikkema, Ashim d'Silva, Tony Hand and Alexandra Fuller on Unsplash)

Walking Through the Old Testament
GENESIS - DEUTERONOMY (20 of 23)

..or listen on video...

https://youtu.be/5PeT0yclV3o

We continue by stepping into the last of Moses' Five Books...

5. THE BOOK OF DEUTERONOMY
STRENGTHENING A PEOPLE

‘Deuteronomy’ means ‘second law,’ because the fifth book of the Bible is a repeat of the Law that is found in Exodus and Leviticus - including the Ten Commandments.

The whole book amounts to a summary of what God has done for His people since they met with Him at Mount Sinai. It’s in the form of three sermons preached by Moses for the benefit of a new generation, most of whom had not been at Sinai because a whole generation had died during the ‘wilderness wanderings.’

He delivers these sermons on the border of the Promised Land just before they enter it…

“These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the wilderness east of the Jordan - that is, in the Arabah - opposite Seph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazoreth and Dizahab… In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the Lord had commanded him concerning them.”
(1.1-3)

You can divide the book of Deuteronomy into four main sections:

1). Moses’ First Sermon - The Story So Far
Chapters 1 - 4
2). Moses’ Second Sermon - The Law and the Covenant
Chapters 5 - 28
3). Moses’ Third Sermon - Choose Life!
Chapters 29 - 30
4). The Last Acts of Moses
Chapters 31 - 34

Each sermon is introduced by the words of an editor - which may or may not have been Moses himself. In the final section an editor also introduces Moses’ various speeches and actions, ending with an account of his death.
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1). Moses’ First Sermon - The Story So Far
Chapters 1 - 4

Chapters 1 - 4 make up Moses’ First Sermon, in which he summarises God’s mighty acts since they left Mount Sinai (called Mount Horeb here). And he challenges the people with what it means that God should have acted so wonderfully towards them.

Chapter 1.1 - 3.11 is a condensed account of their travels, repeating incidents described in Numbers 10 - 34.

Moses briefly recalls their departure from Horeb, the appointment of other leaders to help him, the rebellion and abortive attempt to enter the Promised Land after the men had returned from exploring it, and then a more detailed summary of their wilderness wanderings and the battles they fought.

INCLUDING THE BIGGER PICTURE

We also have interesting reminders of how God was also working on a bigger canvas, which included how He was dealing with other nations…

>“You are about to pass through the territory of your relatives the descendants of Esau who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, but be very careful. Do not provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land… I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his own. You are to pay them in silver for the food you eat and the water you drink.” (2.4-6) (see Genesis 36.1-30)

>“Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any part of their land. I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession.” (2.9) (see Genesis 19.30-38).

>“When you come to the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them to war, for I will not give you possession of any land belonging to the Ammonites. I have given it as a possession to the descendants of Lot.” (2.19) (see Genesis 19.30-38)

Moses also reminds them that the tribes of Reuben and Gad are to settle on land East of the Jordan, but only after they have helped invade Canaan (3.12-20). And he also reminds them that he himself is forbidden to enter the Land (3.21-29). He ends with a rousing call to obey God and a warning about idolatry - so easily embraced, but with such disastrous consequences. (4.1-40)
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How about this for breathless enthusiasm at the greatness of God…

“Ask now about the former days, long before your time, from the day God created human beings on the earth; ask from one end of the heavens to the other. Has anything so great as this ever happened, or has anything like it ever been heard of? Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of fire, as you have, and lived? Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation…”(4.32-34)

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: Moses' Second Sermon - The Law and the Covenant]
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(Photo: on Unsplash)

Buy a copy of 'A Pathway into the Bible - Walking with God Then and Now' here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pathway-into-Bible-Walking-Then/dp/1797038753/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2DEMFYQIYCYLU&keywords=A+Pathway+into+the+Bible&qid=1654604727&s=books&sprefix=a+pathway+into+the+bible%2Cstripbooks%2C69&sr=1-1

Walking Through the Old Testament
GENESIS - DEUTERONOMY (19 of 23)

..or listen on video...

https://youtu.be/d-rt7ffMRc0

We conclude The Book of Numbers with a 'walking meditation'...

WALKING DESPITE CONFLICT AND REBELLION

Thank you, Lord, that you have never stopped
Walking in the garden with Adam.

Thank you, Lord, that I have glimpsed you through the trees
And met with you once again.

Thank you, Lord, that you bless us, keep us, make your face to shine upon us,
Graciously turn your face towards us, and give us peace.

Thank you, Lord, for the Levites, in the place of firstborn sons,
Carrying and caring for the precious Tent and Place of Meeting.

Thank you, Lord, for accompanying your people, scattering their enemies,
And always returning to rest with the countless thousands of Israel.

Thank you, Lord, for your patience with complaining, your curbing of rebellion,
And bearing with your people a further forty years.

Thank you, Lord, for Moses - his humility, his pleading for the people,
His speaking for the rebel. But who reached the limits of his love and goodness.

Thank you, Lord, for your inexhaustible love, goodness, protection and patience,
And that it is you, and you alone, who punishes.

Thank you, Lord, for your love, for your justice and for your judgments,
As you built a people through whom all peoples on earth would be blessed.

Thank you, Lord, for targeting the sin and sickness of idolatry and rebellion,
With which we destroy others and separate ourselves from you, the One True God.

Thank you, Lord, that now no one comes to the Father except through Jesus;
That he who has the Son has life, and he who does not have the Son does not have life.

And thank you, Lord, that “anyone who worships the beast and his image… will be tormented in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb”
And “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, for they will rest from their labours
And their deeds will follow them.”

Thank you, Lord, that “your word is a lamp to my feet”
And that I can walk with you, even in your all-consuming holiness, the fire of your justice,
And the pure and searching light of your commands.
And with the rescued rebels who live and die in you.

Thank you, Lord, that as we walk in your written word,
Together, we find our way into a precious Place of Meeting,
And we walk hand in hand even now.

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: The Book of Deuteronomy: Strengthening a People']
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(Photo: Eddie and Carolina Stigson on Unsplash)

Buy a copy of 'A Pathway into the Bible - Walking with God Then and Now' here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pathway-into-Bible-Walking-Then/dp/1797038753/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2DEMFYQIYCYLU&keywords=A+Pathway+into+the+Bible&qid=1654604727&s=books&sprefix=a+pathway+into+the+bible%2Cstripbooks%2C69&sr=1-1

Walking Through the Old Testament
GENESIS - DEUTERONOMY (18 of 23)

..or listen on video...

https://youtu.be/AGWstRVw5Ms?si=l4WJwGozud7w48OL

We continue in The Book of Numbers with..

BACK TO ‘DEALINGS WITH GOD’

At Chapter 18 the narrative breaks off once again for teachings about ceremonial ‘Dealings With God.’ Daily, weekly and monthly worship offerings are prescribed, and arrangements are put in place for celebrating the Annual Passover, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Day of Atonement. Finally, there are rules about the taking and keeping of vows before God, and how a father or husband can release his daughter or wife from such vows (chapters 28 - 30).

Time passed.

As the people approach the borders of the land for the second time, they are involved in a very bloody war of revenge against the Midianites who had led so many into sexual immorality and idolatry amongst the Moabites in chapter 25.

The Israelites virtually wipe them out by killing all the men including their five kings, and Balaam the hired ‘medicine man.’ They take captive all the women and children, and an enormous amount of plunder and livestock. Later, Moses orders the soldiers to kill all the boys and all the women who have ever slept with a man (chapter 31).

**We will learn more about the true and horrific nature of idol worship and how God deals justly with nations when we read the Prophets, but for now we should simply note that the Moabites and Midianites had succeeded in drawing the people of Israel into pagan worship by sexual seduction - worship that involved rejecting the One True God, destroying the marriage relationship, and probably sacrificing children in the fire. Not only had their time for judgment come, but the Israelites needed protection from such idolatry as they settled very nearby.**

**Once again: He is not a tame God! He is a God of holiness as well as mercy, a God of justice as well as love, and a God of truth as well as emotion.* *

In the last two chapters before final preparations are made for entering the Promised Land, the Israelite tribes of Reuben and Gad decide they want to settle on the East side of the Jordan River. So the necessary arrangements are made, but not before Moses has extracted a promise that they will fight alongside the other tribes in the taking of the land before returning to settle down with their families (chapter 32).

This section ends with a summary of the route taken by the people on their 40 years of ‘wandering in the wilderness.’ (chapter 33)

3). Preparing to Enter The Land
Chapters 34 - 36

Chapters 34 - 36 consist of some final organisational matters in preparation for entering the promised land.

(i). The setting of the overall boundaries of the land of Israel.

(ii). The names of the men who will allot the land to the tribes (although the actual division of the land takes place in Joshua chapters 14 - 19).

(iii). The arrangements for providing towns for the Levites in lieu of an allotment of land.

(iv). The setting aside of six of the Levites’ towns to be Cities of Refuge to which people could flee for safety if they accidentally kill someone.

(v). And last of all, the confirmation of the inheritance arrangements and allotment of land for Zelophehad’s daughters, provided that they marry within their own clan - because “No inheritance in Israel is to pass from one tribe to another…” (36.7).
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THE STORY SO FAR...

THE BOOK OF GENESIS is a book about beginnings.

THE BOOK OF EXODUS is a book about God's mighty acts of deliverance, and introduces the subject of how to worship Him.

THE BOOK OF LEVITICUS is almost entirely about how sinful human beings are to conduct their dealings with a Holy God.

THE BOOK OF NUMBERS weaves together teaching on how human beings can have ‘Dealings with God’, with narrative about how God deals with His people in faithful guidance and consistent punishment of sin as He leads them on both a physical and a spiritual journey.

There are many lessons to be learnt for our own lives, for the lives of our fellowships and for the wider church, from the way in which God deals with His people during their ‘wilderness wanderings.’

God does not change, and from the Book of Numbers we see what it means in practice to be The People of God, and to have Him actively guiding, leading and disciplining those whom He loves. God’s love shines out from these pages as a love that burns bright with the determination to bless His people, and make His people holy, at all costs - even though it requires that He punishes serious sin as it arises.

We also learn much about what God requires of leaders of His people by the way He deals with Moses and Aaron. He is a God who wants leaders to fear Him more than they fear the people. He wants them to be men ready to plead for His people over their sin and rebellion. And He is ready to remove even the greatest of leaders if they start to assume too much about themselves.

This is our God, and He loves us.

If this God is for us, who can be against us!!

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: We conclude The Book of Numbers with a 'walking meditation' entitled 'Walking Despite Conflict and Rebellion']
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(Photo: Ryan Stone on Unsplash)

Buy a copy of 'A Pathway into the Bible - Walking with God Then and Now' here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Pathway-into-Bible-Walking-Then/dp/1797038753/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2DEMFYQIYCYLU&keywords=A+Pathway+into+the+Bible&qid=1654604727&s=books&sprefix=a+pathway+into+the+bible%2Cstripbooks%2C69&sr=1-1

**WALKING THE NEW TESTAMENT**
WEEK 2: A 5-Day Guided Tour of MARK'S Gospel (4 of 5)
DAY 4: 'Witnessing His Last Acts''
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..or listen on video...
https://youtu.be/bI51mE0bwyY
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MARK'S GOSPEL
"CONCENTRATED GOOD NEWS"
DAY 4
(with Tour Guide's notes in the EXTRA COLUMN)

8 ). Witnessing His Last Acts
Chapter 14.1 - 16.8

***THE EXTRA COLUMN
We’ve met Jesus, listened to Him, watched Him at work and worked with Him alongside the apostles. We have now walked with Him to within three days of His death and heard all His teaching about Himself, and about what it will mean to follow Him.

It only remains to see Him take human sin and ingratitude ‘head-on’ and willingly go to His death to pay the price for us.

As we walk His increasingly lonely path with Him, as far as we can, watch how He lives out His teachings of love, forgiveness, meekness, humility and dependence on God … magnificently. He sets His face to do what God is asking of Him - and He does it.***
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“Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus and kill him. ‘But not during the Feast,’ they said, ‘or the people may riot.’”
(14.1-2)

BOTH HONOURED AND BETRAYED

Mark tells us that on the TUESDAY or WEDNESDAY two significant things happened. Firstly, while Jesus was having a meal at the home of a man known as Simon the L***r in Bethany, a woman showed her love and devotion for Him by anointing His head with very expensive perfume while He was sitting at the table. This upset a number of people, but Jesus openly interpreted her actions as preparing His body for burial (14.3-9). Secondly, at about the same time…

“Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.”
(14.10-11)

On THURSDAY, when the Jewish Passover was celebrated, Jesus got the disciples to arrange for them to eat the Passover meal secretly in an upper room in the city (14.12-16). As they ate, He told them that one of them would betray Him - they had no idea who He could mean. While they’re eating, Jesus takes some bread and wine and turns them into reminders of His coming death…

HIS BODY AND HIS BLOOD

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take it; this is my body.’ Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it. ‘This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,’ he said to them. I tell you the truth, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God.’”(14.22-26)

This day became known as MAUNDY THURSDAY and the symbolic meal of bread and wine is now the central act of worship for all Christians - it’s called HOLY COMMUNION. After the meal, they all go out to the Mount of Olives, a garden area where they’d probably relaxed together many times before. And on the way Jesus predicts that before the night is over Peter will deny that he even knows Jesus - but of course, Peter can’t believe it.

“Peter insisted emphatically, ‘Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.’ And all the others said the same.”
(14.27-31)

As the disciples doze in the cool of the evening after their meal, Jesus prays passionately as the moment of arrest and suffering approaches (14.32-42). Before He prays He tells His disciples:

“My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”
(14.34)

Peter is one of those close enough to hear Him pray.

“’Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.’”
(14.36)

BETRAYED WITH A KISS AND WITH TEARS

As he was still praying, Judas appeared with an armed crowd.

“Now the betrayer had arranged a signal for them: ‘The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.’ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, ‘Rabbi!’ and kissed him. The men seized Jesus and arrested him.”
(14.44-46)

He’s taken back into the city to stand before a hastily convened late-night sitting of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish ruling Council, with witnesses brought in to denounce Him. But their testimonies don’t agree! Finally, the Chief Priest just asks Jesus The Big Question…

“’Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?’ ‘I am,’ Jesus said. ‘And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.’

“The high priest tore his clothes. ‘Why do we need any more witnesses?’ he asked. ‘You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?’ They all condemned him as worthy of death.”
(14.61-64)

While this had been going on, Peter was following at a distance and was now out in the courtyard. And when he was recognised, he did indeed deny ever knowing Jesus (14.66-72).

“And he broke down and wept.”
(14.72)

In the early hours of the morning Jesus was taken from the Sanhedrin to Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor, because only he could approve an ex*****on.

A SECOND KANGAROO COURT

“’Are you the king of the Jews?’ asked Pilate. ‘Yes, it is as you say.’ Jesus replied. The chief priests accused him of many things. So again Pilate asked him. ‘Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of. But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.”
(15.2-5)

And although Pilate tried to find a way of saving Jesus’ life, he eventually decided that it was politically expedient to give the Jewish leaders what they wanted.

“’Crucify him!’ they shouted. ‘Why? What crime has he committed?’ asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, ‘Crucify him!’ Wanting to satisfy the crowd, Pilate … had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.”
(15.13-15)

***THE EXTRA COLUMN
The other Gospels have a fuller account of what was said and done as Jesus was condemned to death, but Mark keeps it brief.

Very simply, the cleverest religious leaders in the land couldn’t get a conviction, so Jesus condemned Himself out of His own mouth by answering the high priest’s question truthfully! And when He could have defended Himself in front of Pilate, He remained silent.

As He’d already said: “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”(10.45)***
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As a condemned criminal Jesus had become a ‘non person’, so He could be humiliated and brutally treated by the soldiers in the barracks (15.16-20). In fact, He was so badly beaten that when they came to take Him out of the city for crucifixion, He couldn’t carry His cross. So they got a man called Simon from Cyrene to carry it. They took Him to the usual place of public ex*****on and crucified Him at about 9.00am, during what would have been the morning rush hour.

EX*****ON

“It was the third hour when they crucified him. The written notice of the charge against him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS. They crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, ‘So! You who are going to destroy the temple and built it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself!’ In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. ‘He saved others,’ they said, ‘but he can’t save himself! Let this Christ, this king of Israel, come down from the cross, that we may see and believe.’”
(15.25-32)

And of course, although He could have done, He didn’t. Even as they were speaking, He was indeed “saving others.” That’s why this day has become known as Good Friday.

DEATH AND BURIAL

So Jesus’ death was witnessed by many, some at very close quarters - as was His burial. At midday, darkness fell. At 3.00pm Jesus cried out…

“’My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ … One man ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink … With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.”(15.34-37)

Those who saw Jesus die included many women who had been His followers. A prominent member of the Jewish Council, Joseph of Arimathea, who had also been one of Jesus’ supporters, asked Pilate if he could bury the body. He took the body from the cross, wrapped it in linen and placed it in a rock tomb (15.42-46).

“Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.”(15.46-47)

***THE EXTRA COLUMN
As always, Mark is very brief in his account where the other Gospels give us much more information.

But again, it’s very simple. Jesus’ death was brutal, indisputable and witnessed by many. It was verified by professionals, and a prominent public figure took charge of the body and placed it securely in a tomb to await full burial rites after the Sabbath day of rest. ***

But unlike every other human being who has ever lived, Jesus’ death was not His Last Act! And the first evidence of what He did next deserves quoting in full…

RESURRECTION!

“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, ‘Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?’

“But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

“’Don’t be alarmed’, he said. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’

“Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.”
(16.1-8)

THIS WAS PROBABLY WHERE MARK'S GOSPEL ORIGINALLY ENDED. A dramatic finale, and possibly a clever literary device by Mark, who was well aware that his readers knew what this meant, and the life-changing impact it had had on their lives. But at some point, someone wanted to round off the story, perhaps to make the Gospel a more useful ‘evangelistic tract’…

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: 'His Resurrection Life - and Introducng Yours!']

'A Pathway into the Bible - Walking with God Then and Now' is available on Amazon

(Photos: Grant Whitty, Alexandra Fuller, David Pisnoy and Ashim d'Silva on Unsplash)

AROUND THE WORD IN 80 WEEKS
GENESIS-DEUTERONOMY (17 of 23)
The Book of Numbers: 'When God Punishes His Pepple'

..or listen on video...

https://youtu.be/7NHhIIS6CRc?feature=shared

Walking Through the Old Testament
GENESIS - DEUTERONOMY (17 of 23)

We pause in the middle of The Book of Numbers to consider a tough issue - one which causes many to reject the Bible, and the God of the Bible, out of hand...

WHEN GOD PUNISHES HIS PEOPLE

**Before moving on, we must give some attention to the events of chapter 25, just after the king of Moab tried to get Balaam to curse Israel, because what happens here (and on several previous occasions) has given rise to serious criticism of the morality of the God of the Bible.**

“While Israel was staying in Sh*ttim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women, who invited them to the sacrifices to their gods. The people ate the sacrificial meal and bowed down before these gods. So Israel yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor. And the Lord’s anger burned against them.” (25.1-3)

To cut a relatively short story even shorter, as a response to this God sends a plague on His people “…and those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.” (25.9)

**In fact, this is the last of eight occasions in the Five Books of Moses when God punishes some of the Israelites by death - sometimes in large numbers. Because all this is so shocking, we must at least explain what the Bible says actually happened on these occasions - and why.**

THE PLAIN FACTS ARE VERY CLEAR...

>In Exodus 32.27-28, Moses came down from Mount Sinai to find the people worshipping the Golden Calf, and God said to the Levites: “’Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbour.’ The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.”

>In Leviticus 10.2, Aaron’s sons, the priests Nadab and Abihu, were killed by “fire that came out from the presence of the Lord” after they had “offered unauthorised fire before the Lord.” In Leviticus 24.10-11 and 23, a man who had publicly “used the Name blasphemously with a curse” was, at God’s command, stoned to death.

>In Numbers 11.1-3 and 33, after the people had complained bitterly about their hardships, “fire from the Lord burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp” and the Lord “struck them with a severe plague.” In Numbers 14.36-37, the ten of the twelve spies who had gone to explore the Promised Land and had spread a bad report about it, causing mass rebellion “were struck down and died of a plague before the Lord.” In Numbers 15.32-36, after a man had been found gathering wood on the Sabbath, God ordered his death, and the assembly “stoned him to death.” And in Numbers 16.31-35, after Korah the Levite and 250 other leaders had rebelled against Moses “…the earth opened its mouth and swallowed” Korah and the ringleaders with their households, and “fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men.”

>And finally, as we’ve just seen in Numbers 25, after some of the men had “indulged in sexual immorality with Moabite women… and bowed down before their gods... those who died in the plague (sent by God) numbered 24,000.”

As regards why these things happened, it’s worth noting that four of these things involved the deliberate breaking of the Ten Commandments, two involved showing contempt for God’s deliverance from slavery and His promise of the land, one involved a deliberate and very organised attempt to overthrow the leadership of Moses and one involved the deaths of Nadab and Abihu who deliberately ‘did their own thing’ on the very first occasion they were called upon to act as priests.

**In the face of these ‘acts of God’ we should remind ourselves of the highly unusual circumstances - a mass migration across hostile territory over a period of 40 years.**

**We should remind ourselves of the crucial importance of moving these refugees to their new land - without the maintenance of order, focus and morale, they would have been dispersed or destroyed**

**And we should also remind ourselves that idolatry and contempt for God, breaking ‘commandment-level’ laws, and rebellion against lawful authority, are extremely destructive to society and to other individuals. This is not an angry and petulant God losing His temper, but a God who means business and is determined to rescue His people and make a family out of them!**

**The other thing that we should take from the book of Numbers, as from all the historical books of the Old Testament, is that God is a loving, long-suffering, merciful and forgiving God - but He is not tame! He’s a God of holiness as well as mercy, a God of justice as well as love, a God of truth as well as emotion. He is not to be messed with.**

Spend a few moments thinking this matter through...

Stuart Kimber

[NEXT TIME: Back to 'Dealings with God']
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(Photo: Artyom Kabajev on Unsplash)

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