Not Much New Under the Sun.

 Not Much New Under the Sun.

 

Reading more of Tom Bradford’s lessons on the Torah today has given me the opinion—backed up by his statements—that the society during the days of Christ was not unlike what we have today. The Jews were living by the traditions of the Jewish synagogues rather than by the laws given in the Torah. No one was teaching the Torah at that time. The Temple was not really an active part of Jewish life back then. We think of the Jews as living closer to the Laws of God than what we can today. Yet very, very few Jewish scholars had even one book of the Torah, much less an entire copy of all that had been written out. Remember, the printing press was a long way into the future. What they had back then was laboriously copied by hand onto scrolls, not simply pages of script that would have been easily passed around. Anyway, according to what Mr. Bradford posted in Lesson 17 in Matthew, the men of that time were anything but faithful to their wives. In fact, sexual promiscuity was rampant throughout the land. Remind you of any people today? The “faithful” were only faithful to the traditions given to them through the synagogues—much like we see in the different congregations today in various churches. Some churches today are more political or profit motivated than God oriented. Joel Osteen’s church stands at attention in that statement. The overriding temptation of money and numbers is a clear symbol of today’s religious beliefs.

 

Years ago, our family celebrated the holy days as they were stated in the books of the Old Testament. We knew about the Passover, Days of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, and the fall holy days. We gathered with others who believed the same way as we did. We thought we were doing what would please God. It never hurt us to learn these different ways of observing His laws, but on the other hand, we allowed the church to lead us into being judgmental of others. We never had that right. Learning more about what the Bible actually says has convinced me that this old person still has so much to learn in order to observe God’s intentions in our lives. Loving without judging others is a primary objective.

 

Each day the news holds up more stories of storms and disasters. Our prayers must be given to those in the way of these “natural” disasters. Meanwhile, we can pray for those who are facing surgery (Barbara Matthews), recovering from surgery (Bruce Goolsby), or trying to avoid surgery. We can be so very thankful for the advances in medical technology, but still remember that our bodies are only so tough.

 

My daughter and her husband are headed to Scotland this Thursday and my prayers go with them for a safe and enjoyable visit. May all who travel this summer be blessed with good, safe flights and welcoming homes.

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.