Surfing the Scriptures : An Old-Testament survey of the Sceptre: An Old-Testament survey of the Sceptre

By Limmer, Brian, E. R.

Book Id: WPLBN0100302669
Format Type: PDF eBook:
File Size: 9.12 MB
Reproduction Date: 10/19/2020

Title:	Surfing the Scriptures : An Old-Testament survey of the Sceptre: An Old-Testament survey of the Sceptre
Author:	Limmer, Brian, E. R.
Volume:
Language:	English
Subject:	Non Fiction, Religion, Old Testament Studies
Collections:	Authors Community
Historic Publication Date:	2020
Publisher:	Limmer’s Loft Publishing

Member Page:	Brian Limmer
Citation APA MLA Chicago E. R. Limme, B. B. (2020). Surfing the Scriptures : An Old-Testament survey of the Sceptre. Retrieved from http://www.gutenberg.cc/

Description
There are two major themes in the Bible. The first is what has gone wrong with our world and the second what can be done to put it right. God will put it right by delivering Human-beings from themselves. He began the process with a promise in Genesis chapter 3, and the Old-Testament shows how he cannot break a promise

Summary
Are you a toe-dipper or a surfer? Surfers get in amongst the waves. They search for patterns. They do not jump on every passing wave but wait patiently for that ‘Seventh-Wave’ to take them further up the shoreline. They learn the skills of balance and discernment, knowing wrong judgements can trip you into a roll and tumble. When they sting a little from the learning, the pick themselves up to try again. Surfers know if you follow the rules correctly, it is truly possible to stand on water. Scriptures are out of fashion and favour at the moment, but Scripture-Surfers know they will be back. Scripture-Surfers have seen a pattern that is repeated from Genesis- (the opening chapter), through to Revelation- (the last): The world cries out from chaos; God reminds the world of His contract, (usually through a prophet or preacher). The people agree for a while; then they tear out bits of the contract they do not like. The world declines back into chaos. Scripture-Surfers have also seen that God’s patience eventually gives way to His justice. From that point on, when the people cry out, the answer comes back: ‘Enough! They have Moses and the prophets let them listen to them.… Even if one should return from the dead they will not repent’. Luke 16 29-31 Yet even now, if they repent … who knows, He might relent. Joel 2: 12 -14

Excerpt
Our Bible is a remarkable book. It is more than just a clever view of history it was written down by forty authors of all walks of life from king to labourers and all between It was written over a span of one-thousand-five-hundred-years in three languages, There is no way these writers could collaborate with one another and yet it has one unified theme and message all the way through. Peter said, “For the word was not written by the will and schemes of man, but holy men of God wrote under the power of the Holy Spirit”.1 The Bible has many minor themes woven through it but it answers two overriding questions; What has gone wrong with the world and how can it be put right. The overall answer is, God is going to put it right, and he is going to do it by rescuing us from ourselves. The plot unfolds as to how he is going to do that in the story of redemption—the story of rescue. The Book of Genesis introduces us to the plot of this drama. When early Hebrews wanted to read Genesis, they picked out a papyrus scroll from a pitched lined storage box. Unrolling it enough to read the first few lines, they would check if it was the required scroll. If, “In the Beginning” were the first words, they would have the book we now call Genesis. As the Hebrew language declined, Greek began to rise. The Greeks added headings to the books. To make checking for accuracy easier, chapters were added later, and then chapters were further divided into verses. The scroll “In the Beginning” became “Genesis” or “Origins”. If you take Genesis out, the rest of the bible doesn’t make sense because it introduces the plot. Imagine trying to follow the plot your favourite mystery drama after missing the first two-minutes. But many critics of scripture will try to say Genesis is an irrelevant book. Paul writes, “Just as death came through the first man Adam, so the resurrection comes through a man Jesus Christ”.2 How would you know who Adam was or what he got up to without reading Genesis. But Genesis introduces us to very many more origins. Life, Our universe, The world, Marriage, Bigamy, Family life, Civilization. Government, Culture, Literature, Arts, Sciences, Sin, Death, Murder, Music, War, Sacrifices, Idol worship and much more. Most important for the major plot of scripture is the introduction of the plan to achieve Salvation. We do have an age-old problem however, ancient Hebrew people thought very differently from twenty-first century English folk. It was not just language or grammar but the very thought patterns behind the language. Hebrew people were meticulous about accuracy. We saw that vividly when a young shepherd boy idly slinging stones, much as we can imagine David doing, suddenly heard a tinkle as one stone hit the clay jars containing what we now know to be the Dead Sea scrolls. One-thousand-years of time were spanned at that moment. Bible translators were told to hold their translating because we now had scrolls more than a millennium earlier to translate. Was it surprise or delight when they found no more minor differences that can be counted on one hand? Hebrew obsession with accuracy led to two system checks when copying writings. The first was that every Hebrew letter has a numerical value. So scribes would have a checksum figure at the end of every line. We use the same system today to prevent fraud every time you enter a bank card number. Another checking system was used to ensure accuracy in the main facts of a story. They called it Chiasma3. We know it under the name attributed to Bill Gates called “Bullet-Points”. Chiasma has an added advantage because each “bullet-point” had a corresponding check. The whole of the Old-Testament is written in Chiasma4. What is a Chiasma and how does it work? Here is an example from Genesis chapter-three. Chiasma is simply a story stripped down to its bare bones. It takes an A, B,C,B,A. Structure where A6 corresponds to A5 B6 to B5 and so on. So: A6, God Favoured Adam and Eve. A5, Adam & Eve fall out of Favour. B6 God gives Adam & Eve protected land to live in. B5 Adam & Eve lose access to protected land. And so on. Hebrew people used this system long before the days when things were written down. Besides aiding the memory it ensured the accuracy of the story. By using chiasma, the storyteller can be sure all the essential facts are relayed to the listener even if the ear rings Eve wore or the slogan on Adam’s tea shirt are imagined. God Favoured Adam and Eve over the Beasts of the field. The beasts may be dinosaurs or Homo-Neanderthal folk for all we know, that is unimportant to the story. God gave Adam and Eve a protected land to live as free people, they were responsible stewardship to use and organize everything in that land as they wished subject to a contract. In that contract God reserved certain rights and privileges. These, we are told, are the sole right of God to decide Good from Evil. The turning point of the story comes in D, when Adam and Eve deliberately usurp God’s reserved rights under the contract. That Invalidated the contract and invoked the Sanctions. Under the sanctions they were to lose access to the protected land and to lose direct communication with God himself. They were to fall out of Favour with God. These are the essential facts of the story and clearly indicate that from the outset of creation, God gave human-beings Freedom within the bounds of His right to decide right from wrong. In relational terms, God required faith, trust and obedience from Adam and Eve, and indeed everyone else under this covenant. That is what God looks for when he judges. Deciding what is right or wrong are His part of the contract and will be the standard when He makes a judgement ruling. Faith and Obedience are the basis of this covenant and will remain the basis of all other covenants made in scripture. Any law or commandment, any sacrifices or ceremony, any attempt at good works will be based on and judged by these two requirements, Faith and obedience. The writer to Hebrews later writes: Cain and Abel both offered sacrifices to God. But Abel offered a better sacrifice to God because he had faith. Noah had faith and respect for God, Abraham travelled on the promised of God because he had faith. 5 Why did God reserve the right to Judge good from evil? Judging good from evil is above the human pay grade for four reasons. First God wants the best for his creation not for an individual. Remember God’s Motivation is always Love—even in his Justice. Secondly, God alone has the expertises and knowledge. Remember God has already had dealings with Satan and knows his ways, we do not. Third, God wanted Adam and Eve to remain innocent. When they ate from the tree they lost their innocence—it matters not what fruit it was, it was the act of wilful disobedience that called for the sanctions. Forth, but far from finally, If every human-being decides right and wrong for herself/himself, there will be no absolute right and wrong. Just think of the chaos and anarchy that causes now, what would it be if all laws and standards were removed from the world. We only have to look at Sodom & Gomorrah, or Babel, or the time before the great flood. Read again the time of the Judges when only a few chose to heed the laws. These times did not bring freedom, every person was striving to dominate others. Well, as we know, Adam and Eve fell by breaking the first contract with God. But God was not caught out because He immediately stated his second covenant. This time it was unconditional and not dependent upon the actions of his creation. God said to Adam and Eve, “You did not overcome Satan, but I will produce a seed from you that will overcome Satan. Satan may bruise the heal but this seed will bruise Satan’s head”. The writer to Hebrews wrote: This promise he swore by Himself because there is no-one Higher, and He cannot break a promise6 God is incapable of breaking a promise. That is why the promise became effective immediately. That is why Abraham could benefit from it through faith. That is why Job who lived two-thousand-years before Jesus could say: I know my redeemer lives and at a later date will stand upon the earth.

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION 8 Chapter 1 GENESIS 18 Chapter 2 EXODUS 28 Chapter 3 LEVITICUS 46 Chapter 4 NUMBERS TO DEUTERONOMY 52 PREAMBLE TO THE PROPHETS 58 Chapter 6 JOSHUA 62 Chapter 7 JUDGES 70 Chapter 8 RUTH 84 Chapter 9 SAMUEL 92 Chapter 10 KINGS 108 Chapter 11 JONAH 118 Chapter 12 OBADIAH 126 Chapter 13 JOEL 134 Chapter 14 MICAH 138 Chapter 15 NAHUM 146 Chapter 16 HABAKKUK 152 Chapter 17 AMOS 160 Chapter 18 HOSEA 166 Chapter 19 ISAIAH 178 Chapter 20 JEREMIAH AND LAMENTATIONS 190 PREAMBLE TO APOCALYPTIC BOOKS 202 Chapter 21 DANIEL 206 Chapter 22 EZEKIEL 216 Chapter 23 CHRONICLES 226 Chapter 24 ESTHER 236 Chapter 25 EZRA AND NEHEMIAH 246 Chapter 26 HAGGAI ZECHARIAH AND MALACHI 260 PREAMBLE TO WRITINGS 274 Chapter 27 JOB 280 Chapter 28 PROVERBS 288 Chapter 29 SONG OF SONGS 294 Chapter 30 PSALMS 300