Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The Bible Challenge: Day 113

The scriptures read are 2 Samuel 10-12, Psalm 93 and Acts 8.

2 Samuel 10. The Ammonites and the Arameans attack David's army. Bad news...for them.

2 Samuel 11-12. David's wandering eye gets him in big trouble. He sees and lusts after Bathsheba, the wife of one of his loyal soldiers, Uriah the Hittite. After sleeping with David, she finds out she's pregnant. David calls her husband home from the front to get him to sleep with his wife but Uriah won't enjoy any of the pleasures his fellow soldiers fighting at the front can't enjoy. So David sends him back to battle with sealed orders to have him put where he will be killed in battle. The perfect crime.

Except God knows what he did. Love Nathan's little story, playing on David's shepherd background to make him condemn himself. Unfortunately, David and Bathsheba are deprived of the fruit of their adultery, their son. David's reaction is heartbreaking. Their second son, however, is Solomon.

Psalm 93. God is king and earth is firm, despite the powerful breaking of the waves.

Acts 8. Some acts of Philip. Saul's persecution of Jesus' followers has the unintended consequence of scattering the Christians all over, where they preach the gospel to new groups, non-Jewish groups. Philip preaches to some Samaritans and they become believers, including Simon a magician. He baptizes them in the name of Jesus. A delegation from the mother church in Jerusalem comes to confirm the conversions and lay hands on the converts, sealing them with the Holy Spirit. Simon tries to buy the power of the Spirit and Peter sets him straight.

Later, at the Spirit's urging, Philips converts an Ethiopian eunuch. So Philip baptizes the first Gentile into the Christian faith. Also under the Old Covenant a eunuch could not be a worshiping member of God's people. God is doing something new!

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