Thoughts and Notes
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Salvation Before Law
In Deuteronomy 6, God says, “these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” God is establishing…
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Jews and God-fearers
The structure of the people of Israel – the careful arrangement of the camp, the clear delineation of the land among the tribes, the laws of uncleanness, food restrictions, and circumcision – all serve to set Israel apart as a priestly nation. The Jews were not exclusively the people of God; there were still Noahic…
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At War Within You
David’s sin with Bathsheba is a prime example of the interconnectedness of whole body of the law. Though David had his own wives, he coveted another woman. He laid his hand on that which was forbidden and took her for himself, knowingly stealing another man’s wife. Of course, this is also adultery, and it leads…
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Out of the Heart
In James 3, he speaks about the use of the tongue. It is such a small thing but has the power to create or destroy worlds. An abuse of the tongue is a direct affront against God, who created the world through His Son, the Word. A corrupt tongue opposes the pure tongues of fire…
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Deuteronomy 25
Deuteronomy 25 covers a few different stipulations. The first is a prohibition against excessive beating as punishment. The limit is set at forty stripes. This calls to mind the forty days of rain at the flood and the forty years wandering in the wilderness. These were the maximum punishment and an effective cleansing of the…
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Man of Sin
If we look at the law for kings in Deuteronomy 17, it prohibits the king from multiplying horses and chariots, wives, and wealth. This is exactly what Solomon is doing in 1 Kings 10-11. Chapter ten begins by commending his great wisdom, but then steps through his decline—that is, he begins violating the rules for…
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The Many
Man, when treated as a figure in a sum, does not try to go back to his uniqueness and singularity. -Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy This immediately calls to mind the 99 percent movement. Someone stands up and says, look, all you 99 percenters, we are being oppressed by the one percent. They have stuff we deserve! None…
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War and Murder
Some pacifists indulge in calling war murder. Ever since men could speak, murder and war stood approximately at opposite ends of the scale of social processes. The murderer was and is pre-tribal; he expresses his will against another will. War defends the order to which the warrior has surrendered part of his will because he…
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Brother’s Blood
In chapter three of John’s first letter, he draws a clear line between the righteous and the unrighteous. He lays it out in black and white, not black and shades of black, or white and off-white. Those who practice sinning are of the devil and those who practice righteousness are of God, children of God.…
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Shadow of Things to Come
Deuteronomy 16 covers the three yearly feast times which were required attendance for all Jewish males of fighting age. The Feast of Passover and Unleavened Bread was specifically a memorial of the deliverance from Egypt. The day after the Sabbath after Passover was the Feast of Firstfruits, from which the 50 days were counted to…