Hopeful Messages from The Bible: An Ordinary Man Finds Meaning; Volume One

Hopeful Messages from The Bible

An Ordinary Man Finds Meaning; Volume One

Richard P. Holland

ISBN 978-1-64471-304-4 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-64471-305-1 (Hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-64471-306-8 (Digital)

Copyright © 2019 Richard P. Holland

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

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Table of Contents

Preface

Old Testament

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

1 Samuel

2 Samuel

1 Kings

2 Kings

1 Chronicles

2 Chronicles

Ezra

Nehemiah

Job

Psalms

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Songs

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel

Obadiah

Micah

Habakkuk

Haggai

Malachi

New Testament

Matthew

Mark

Luke

John

Acts

Romans

1 Corinthians

2 Corinthians

Galatians

Ephesians

Philippians

Colossians

1 Thessalonians

1 Timothy

2 Timothy

Titus

Hebrews

James

1 Peter

2 Peter

1 John

2 John

Jude

Revelation

Index

About the Author

To Lisa

Preface

Most people will be familiar with the Bible's most recited verses, i.e., John 3:16, For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son. Other verses will not be quite so familiar but still hold plenty of meaning. After all, God made sure that they were written and included in his Word.

You and I can read the same verse, and for one of us, it may have great meaning, for the other, maybe not so much. The meaningfulness of verses will depend on where you are in your faith journey. I have a young level of Christian maturity (but I am maturing), so my thoughts may be far too basic for more mature Christians. Newer Christians may find them more helpful. What is amazing about the Bible is that everyone can find meaning in it. God speaks to everyone, precisely where they are in their journey with precisely what they need. The Bible is like a love letter from God to each one of us—it is that personal.

Finding Meaning

These selected verses are meaningful to me, but to find all the ones that are meaningful to you, well, you have to read the Bible and decide for yourself. The Bible is the greatest story ever told because it is the greatest love story ever told. Read it and then read it again. Each time you do, you will find more verses that are meaningful to you and more evidence that God wrote this for you! He loves you that much!

I hope you will read to more deeply know God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We cannot know them well without reading God's Word. Naturally, you will find more meaningful verses the more you read the Bible because you will come to know Jesus more deeply and walk with him more closely.

Why Read This Book?

I have read the Bible a grand total of three times—hardly qualification for you to purchase this book, I know. I don't have the credentials notable authors have. I don't have a degree from seminary. I was a public-school educator. I never went to church routinely until I was in my thirties, sometimes kicking my shoes off and resting when I should have been actively engaged. I wasn't baptized until I was fifty-seven. My only qualification for writing this book is I have found consolation, meaning, and hope in God's Word. Each time I have been in a place of sadness, I found God's love and provision in the Bible. As a result, I have come to know the meaning, and experienced the hope, behind this verse from the book of Jeremiah 29:11, ‘For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'

It is this hope I want to share with you. The more you read the Bible, the more you will realize how much God loves you and how awesome his love is. The more you read the Bible, the more you will realize that he is not a distant, unknowable entity, but rather, a knowable, magnificent, loving God. The more you read the Bible, the more you will realize that he wants a relationship with you! And that is a hopeful message!

Old Testament

Genesis

1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:1–2)

This verse is meaningful to me because it is the very first clue in the Bible about who God is. What does it tell us? It tells us that God existed before the earth. It tells us that God has never not existed. Before human history and before human time began, God existed.

This verse also shows us God's magnificent, creative power. He created the heavens and the earth. Think about that! Man can create some very impressive things, but compare those to creation of the heavens and the earth. This shows us the relative power between God and man. We create with building materials and technology. What did God have to create with? Just his imagination. God created something from nothing. Man cannot do that. Only God can do that.

In the verses that follow, God continues to create. In verse 3, we read, And God said, ‘Let there be light,' and there was light. He created the first day, and then he created the first night. He created the first evening and the first morning. He continued, creating the sky, the land, the seas, vegetation, the sun, the moon, the stars, sea creatures, birds, land animals, and then he created man, in six days.

Who is God? He is the eternal Creator. He created everything. And he created you and me. We know the science behind procreation, but we should not be so arrogant to think that we are the authors of procreation. No. God created this capability within us. He gave us the power to be fruitful and increase in number (verse 28). He created you, and he created me. He is our amazing creator!

2

So God created mankind in his own image. (Genesis 1:27)

I love this verse because it reminds me of the privilege that God has given us—we have been created in his image. No other creature was given this privilege. This is another clue about who God is. I know God is holy, and we have sin natures. He is immortal, and we are mortal. We come in all colors, shapes, and sizes too. But we are created with his image. I think this makes us rather special!

It is clear in the verses that follow that God had special things in mind for us. In verse 28, Moses writes, God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.'

We are special, not because of ourselves, but because we are made in God's image. It is he who makes us special. And he set us apart from all the other creatures. Not only that, he gave us dominion over the earth, the creatures in it, and provided all the food that we needed too. This is a clue that the eternal creator is also a loving God—he created us in his image, and he provided for us too. That makes us special. That makes him magnificent!

3

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. (Genesis 2:15)

This verse is meaningful to me because it shows that 1) God is loving—he gave Adam a beautiful garden. You know it had to be beautiful because the Lord God planted a garden in the east, in Eden, and 2) God expects a positive response from us—he expected Adam to work it and take care of it. This is more evidence of who God is. He is our loving, heavenly Father, who sets expectations for us and as we will see as we continue to read, holds us accountable too. Sounds a lot like my dad!

4

For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good from evil. (Genesis 3:5)

We are always quick to blame Eve for the fall of man, forgetting that every time we sin, we are responsible for the fall of man. How different are we from Eve? Don't we also make decisions and live our lives as if we are like God? Don't we decide what is good and what is evil by ourselves?

Imagine if you were told that you would be able to discern good from evil. Who wouldn't want to be able to do that! Wouldn't that be a good thing? After all, the fruit of the tree of good and evil was desirable for gaining wisdom (verse 6). The hardest sins to avoid are often the ones which appear desirable, even pleasant.

Trying to be more like Christ, as we acknowledge his sovereignty over our lives, is a very desirable goal. Elevating ourselves to God-like status is not. Trying to be more like Jesus is good. Trying to be God is not.

I have heard it said that it is okay to look, just not to touch. But looking is often the first step toward sinning. If it is a temptation, looking at it is not okay. If you shouldn't touch it, you shouldn't look at it either. Eve looked at something she was not supposed to touch.

Satan tempts you and me just like he tempted Eve. And he tempted her with something that appeared to be very good, something valuable. And he succeeded, just as he sometimes succeeds with you and me. Being tempted is not a sin, but satisfying the temptation is. Disobeying God's command is a sin, and that is what Eve did. We should be careful, however, not to lay the fall of man at her feet for she was no different than you and me.

5

The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21)

This verse tells me a lot about God too. He must have been very disappointed (okay, he was angry) by Adam and Eve because they had violated his prohibition against eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. They had hidden from him knowing they had sinned, feeling the shame of their sin and their nakedness. So what do you expect a loving father to do? That's what God does!

He shows his disappointment in them and enforces the consequence for their sin by banishing them from the garden. And yet, he continues to show his love for them by making clothes for them. He knows they cannot, now, live without covering their nakedness. Living outside of Eden would require clothing, so God took care of them.

This is a great lesson for us about who God is. Not only does this verse reveal that there are consequences for our sin and that God is loving, but it also shows that God's character is unchanging. It is the same today as it was thousands of years ago. God still demonstrates his love and disappointment to us, just like he did to Adam and Eve.

6

Then the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it. (Genesis 4:6–7)

There is so much going on here. Adam and Even have two sons: Cain is the first; Abel is the second. Both boys make an offering to God. God is more pleased by Abel's offering, but we don't know why. I think we can be sure, however, that God has a good reason.

I am amazed by the conversation between God and Cain. It is like a conversation between a loving father and his son. It is not an easy conversation, just an important one. God asks Cain questions, Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? He is trying to get Cain to understand that his offering was not as worthy as Abel's and why, but Cain is stubborn—and this is a clue about why God favored Abel's offering. Cain may have been prideful; he may not have given a worthy offering; or he may not have given it with the right attitude. His heart may not have pleased God. We know that God is not arbitrary, or unmerciful, so Cain's offering must not have been acceptable. Still, God talked to Cain, and he even gave Cain advice: do what is right because if you do not, sin will rule your life.

Here is another meaningful message from this verse: sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it. If we think that sin is not serious, we need only read these words from our holy, righteous God. Sin is very serious to him, and it must be to us too. Intellectually, I never scoffed at sin, but practically, I didn't take it seriously enough. Sometimes, you have to learn that lesson by yourself, but the ruin it may leave in its wake is terrible.

As we continue to read this chapter, we see another example that God is loving. In fact, in just the first four chapters of Genesis, we see two powerful examples of God's love for his people, even though they have sinned against him. The first was Adam and Eve—God still clothed them after their disobedience was discovered. The next was Cain—God promised to protect him after he had murdered his brother Abel. Then the Lord put his mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him (verse 15). Think about that. God did punish their sins, but he did not turn away from them. This tells us a lot about our God—that he is just and yet, loving and protective too.

7

Noah did everything just as God commanded him. (Genesis 6:22)

It is inspiring to me when I read about people whose relationship with God is so strong that they are obedient to him no matter what the cost. I need stories like Noah's, not only for inspiration but also to use as a measuring stick for my relationship with God. I have a long way to go, but thank the Lord, I am not where I used to be!

8

For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. (Genesis 7:17)

This is really an amazing verse. It sounds like a simple play by play observation, but think of what is happening here: God is rescuing Noah and his family from peril and destruction. It is a powerful example of God's intervention in the lives of his children and a powerful metaphor of how he is the only God who can rescue us from sin, peril, and destruction. I can't say I was like the people of Noah's time, but my heart was inclined toward evil some of the time. I was no Noah, and my sins hurt me and my family. But God was faithful to me as he was to Noah, and I was a lot less deserving. He is an amazing God. He knows that we sin. He knows what our sins are. But if we seek him faithfully, he will rescue us too.

There is something else here that is important to note: God is all powerful. God created the earth and he can destroy it too—so great is his power. We tend to want to envision God as only gentle and loving. And he is that. We tend to not want to recognize his power and might which none can withstand. But he is that too. We need not be scared by it, but we should be awed by it. He is more powerful than anything we can imagine. And that really is good news because we need a God that powerful to