OT DAY 34 - Curses Due to Disrespect of God's Servants (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)

Today's Reading: Genesis 9:26-10:20

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Please click this link to read Genesis 9:26- 10:20

English(ESV): https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis 9&version=ESV

Chinese: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=創 世 記 9&version=CUV

Bible Study

     Today's passage gives us a strange way in understanding of curses and blessings. Noah cursed his grandson Canaan due to his father Ham's disrespect action towards Noah. Then, according to all those names in the development of Noah's three sons, the curses happened! And, the influence might be beyond anyone can think of until now in this modern age, especially with the continuous hate between the Arabs and the Israelites. 

Let's take a look at what Professor John Goldingay says (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Goldingay) :

    

     The Old Testament knows there can be power in curses and in blessings such as Noah's.  That awareness continues to underlie Noah's words about Shem, about Canaan, and about Japhet…
     The idea of cursing and blessing does not mean that human beings have power to affect other peoples' destiny in a way that bypasses God's own wishes.  Blessings and curses work only if God is prepared to let them do so…
     If you have no reason to fear that God might want to send you trouble, a curse is not something to be afraid of.  But if a curse expresses a wish that God affirms, the curse is effective.  The Israelites knew they could be under the curse if they ignored God's expectations of them.  And when they look at what has happened to the Canaanites, they see a curse at work…
     Nimrod stands out from Ham's other descendants…Nimrod is the Bible's first individual "champion" or outstanding warrior, following on the Fallen of Genesis 6 who were also "champions" or warriors; there will be no more "champions" in the Torah (except God)…Yet further, he is the first person in Scripture with whom words such as king or reign are associated, the first person in the Bible with a kingdom.  The comments about him suggest an anticipatory judgment on earthly kingship and kingdom.  The existence of powerful states and powerful rulers is at best an ambiguous development in the world's unfolding story.   

John Goldingay. Genesis for Everyone. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010, p.121, 123.

      How sad it is that a son's disrespect of his father could cause the whole world at war fighting for people's own kingdoms for thousands of years? How can you avoid that kind of disrespect to God's servants so that similar curses won't happen to you and your family members?   

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe":  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

Spiritual Journal

    The title I heard from Jesus today is: Curses due to disrespect of God's servants

    The message I receive from Jesus today is quite frightening. How can you imagine Ham's inappropriate and disrespect action to Noah could cause so much troubles to the whole world. It's talking about wars and killing to fight for kingship and kingdom. It's talking about fighting between Israelites and Arabs. All that start with a kind of disrespect attitude of a son to his father, Noah who was God's servant.

    I have seen too much of similar kind of disrespect happening everywhere. People just do not know the consequence of disrespecting God's servants. Please choose loving and respecting God's servants, building up your family and church rather than destroying, blessings rather than cursing.

Dear Lord Jesus,

Help us to respect God's servants so that our lives will be full of blessings. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

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This blog:

Discipler 123 (Daily devotion using N.T. Wright's NT for Everyone as source)

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Rev. Nicky Gumbel's daily devotion: Bible in One Year

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