Category: adventures

Bethlehem: The Birthplace of Faith

Advent{ures}: Let’s Go to Bethlehem
 
 
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 NKJV)
 
 
So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
(1 Corinthians 13:13 ESV)
 
 
And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”
(Luke 2:10-12 ESV)
 
 
 
Hope. Substance. That which undergirds. Desire, expectation, wanting something to happen.
 
Faith is the reality of hope. Faith offers tangible reality. Hope and faint not. Trust completely. Love with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.

Hope does not disappoint. Faith comes wrapped in the hope of things to arrive. Hope generates a longing for someone to show up who is able to help and save us. Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Enter our hearts, our homes. Transform us with things hoped for, with real love and experience. Show us. Reveal your presence. In a burning bush. In waters parted. In blood poured out. In a child swaddled and lying in a manger.
 
With an infant’s smile pierce our hearts and let us embrace hope once again.
Posted on by kelrohlf 3

Bethlehem: Home of the Beloved

Advent{ures}: Let’s Go to Bethlehem

 

Benjamin*: God’s beloved;
God’s permanent residence.
Encircled by God all day long,
within whom God is at home.

Deuteronomy 33:12 (The Message)

But you, Bethlehem, David’s country,
the runt of the litter—
From you will come the leader
who will shepherd-rule Israel.
He’ll be no upstart, no pretender.
His family tree is ancient and distinguished.
Meanwhile, Israel will be in foster homes
until the birth pangs are over and the child is born,
And the scattered brothers come back
home to the family of Israel.
He will stand tall in his shepherd-rule by God’s strength,
centered in the majesty of God-Revealed.
And the people will have a good and safe home,
for the whole world will hold him in respect—
Peacemaker of the world!

Micah 5:2-4 (The Message)

*While Jesus was descended from Judah, the tribe of Benjamin is closely associated with Judah.  Bethlehem was part of Judah’s inheritance and Jerusalem was part of the territory that both tribes inherited. Yet, symbolically they both have rich connections with the Messiah.
 

No history of the town of Bethlehem would be complete without a mention of David, the most beloved king of Israel. His name literally means “beloved.”  He is the one remembered as the man after God’s own heart.

After the debacle of the period of the judges and the miracle of Ruth and Boaz becoming the great-grandparents of David, the descendants of Jacob/Israel continue to move steadily toward becoming a nation. And as a nation, they desire a king. Moses had warned them that if they chose to be ruled by an earthly king, life would be more difficult. But they insist on moving away from a theocracy to a monarchy.

For their first king, a tall, handsome lad from the tribe of Benjamin was chosen by God. Saul appeared to have a promising future, until he stepped over the line of his role as king. One day on the field of battle, he gave in to fear or pride or both, and made an offering to God outside of God’s prescribed way, after earlier disobeying God’s command to completely destroy the enemy, which was an edict for their protection.
 
Saul fell back into that pattern of “doing what was right in his own eyes” with the twist of justifying his actions by asserting that he was worshipping God. After his disobedience and lack of repentance, God chooses a new leader for his people.

God sends Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint God’s beloved, a young shepherd boy, a son of Jesse. Samuel assumes God is looking for another tall, handsome lad. But this time God lets Samuel know appearances don’t make a man, but the heart.

Samuel pours the anointing oil over David’s head and it drips down his ruddy face. That day he becomes a marked man, marked for both triumph and adversity. For a period of time, he hides out in caves to escape the wrath of Saul, who hasn’t accepted God’s new plan graciously.
 
In this time of exile, David gathers around himself valiant men, who would give their lives for their captain. One day, David longs for the well of his youth. He thirsts for home. Three of his valiant men overhear David’s lament for this water from Bethlehem. They leave their stronghold, sneak through the ranks of the Philistines who have occupied the town. They triumphantly bring back the water to their leader and he pours it out before their eyes. They must wonder at his lack of gratitude, but he explains that to drink it would be to disregard the risk they took to get it. They risked their very lives to ease his homesickness.

I cannot say that I totally understand David’s action, but I notice a greater picture of sacrifice foreshadowed by their valor. David and his valiant men risked all for a drink of water. Jesus poured out his very life to quench our thirst forever.

O Little town of Bethlehem, where bread and water satisfy, where tragedy and redemption intertwine, where kings and kingdoms arise and where longing for home stirs.
Posted on by kelrohlf 2

Bethlehem: Where the Kingdom Begins

Advent{ures}: Let’s Go to Bethlehem

 

 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
(Matthew 5:3 ESV)

 

Empty. Bitter. Hopeless.
 
A famine in the land, destitute and grieving, Naomi hears that God has visited her hometown with food. She starts out toward Bethlehem with her two bereaved daughters-in-law in tow. As they walk, she has second thoughts about bringing them along. “No, go back,” she tells them, “there is no hope, no husbands, no future with me.” One turns back, the other clings to Naomi. Her name is Ruth.

This love story gets me every time. Even though, I know how it turns out, the narrative action builds the anticipation. As Naomi expresses her bitterness, Ruth exclaims her hope. Ruth sees past the famine, the loss, the grief, the poverty and hunger. She clings to the news that God has visited Bethlehem with food.

When they first arrive in the little town, the hushed voices begin to stir. Naomi’s back. Who’s that with her? Did you hear she lost her husband and both her sons? What did she do to incur God’s displeasure? She should have never left Bethlehem. We told her, but she didn’t listen. Now she’s back with this foreigner. What good will come of this? They whisper and wonder.

Naomi laments, “I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. I am not that woman anymore; call me Mara, the bitter one.”

Even in her despair, God hears her cry.  They just happened to return at the beginning of barley harvest. Ruth volunteers to go glean in the fields. And Boaz, a relative, just happens to return to his fields to see how the harvest fares. He hails his workers with words of blessing, “The LORD be with you!” and they reply, “The LORD bless you.”

And the blessings begin to flow. Boaz notices Ruth and inquires about her, then offers her abundant access to all that she needs. She bows before him and asks him why such favor on a foreigner like herself.  He had heard of her. Her reputation preceded her.  So he invites her to sup with him, and she does and she is satisfied, with enough left over to take home to Naomi. God begins to fill up what had been empty.

When Naomi hears that Ruth has met Boaz, her hope revives. The kindness of Boaz stirs her heart to hope again. She cries aloud, “May he be blessed by the LORD, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” The blessings continue to flow.

I can almost see Naomi’s eyes dancing with delight, as she conspires with Ruth on how to approach Boaz. He was a kinsman-redeemer. She sends Ruth in hopes of seeking his favor in their plight, seeing that by law a relative was bound to keep the family lineage alive.

Ruth goes to Boaz in the night, hides until he has settled down for sleep, and rests at his feet. When he stirs in the night, she reveals herself and he blesses her with a promise. He agrees to redeem her.

He tells her not to fear, for she is publicly known as a worthy woman. He will go to the town square the next day to settle everything.  And he does, and they marry. And then they have a child, a child who becomes the father of Jesse, who becomes the father of David, who becomes the father of the Messiah.

Do you see what I see? The contrast of Ruth’s story with the tragic death of the last woman from Bethlehem, we met in Judges. The beauty of blessing and redemption in the way Ruth and Naomi relate, and Ruth and Boaz. I love the part where Ruth says, “Spread your wings (or cloak) over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” This request and her response to him earlier about his favor, do they not remind you of Mary? When she responds to the angelic message that she will be with child and give birth to a Savior.



The book of Ruth is chock full of God-bumps and God-incidences, so I’m linking up with Jennifer today at:

 
Posted on by kelrohlf 8

Bethlehem: Our Hopes and Fears are Met in Thee

Advent{ures}: Let’s Go to Bethlehem

 

Now in those days Israel had no king. There was a man from the tribe of Levi living in a remote area of the hill country of Ephraim. One day he brought home a woman from Bethlehem in Judah to be his concubine. ( Judges 19:1 NLT)

If I were the historian of Israel, the book of Judges would have been buried under a pile of dung or thrown into a fiery furnace. The book chronicles the downfall of Israel (you know, Jacob’s twelve sons, those who increased in number and were led by Moses out of captivity into the wilderness, and then led by Joshua into the promised land.) These characters rival the cast of a modern soap opera or mobster movie.
 
It’s easy to point the finger at them, but I do it warily, as I know that my deceitful heart has the potential for the same dark deeds, if given over to the folly of living my own way.

The last chapters of Judges (17-21) reveal some of the darkest and most foolish choices of the fractured tribes of Israel. They were living  in their own designated territory, with the tent of meeting in Shiloh, being their only common place to gather for worship. However, they tended to set up their own places of “worship” for convenience.

A man named Micah meets a young Levite from Bethlehem, who is wandering homeless around the wastelands of Ephraim. Seeing that Ephraim is so far from Shiloh, he establishes the young Levite in his home as his private priest. He even carves some figures to aid them in their worship.
Later the wandering Danites, who had failed to establish their God-given inheritance, covet Micah’s priest and idols. They abduct the priest and the idols, setting up their own town and their center of worship, disregarding the house of God over in Shiloh.

Mostly this little story reeks of foolishness, but the downward spiral continues.

Another Levite, from the outskirts of Ephraim takes for a “wife” a woman from Bethlehem. She runs away from him to return to her father’s home in Bethlehem. He follows her to persuade her to return to the wilderness with him, but her father counters his offer with food and lodging, keeping him delayed for about six days.
On the seventh day, the determined man loads up his belongings and his “wife” on two donkeys. They wander from town to town, not finding any suitable lodging. They refuse to stay in a foreign town.  Upon entering Gibeah, a town of Benjamin, no one offers them a room. They are shivering in the night air, when a hospitable man fearing for their safety in the open town square, invites them to his home.

They get settled in. The host’s fear comes knocking on the door. Some men of the city have arrived, looking for some sport. They want the Levite, but the host “graciously” offers his virgin daughter and his guest’s concubine. The men don’t want the women, and insist on having the guest. Finally, the guest “valiantly” pushes his concubine out the door. By the next morning, she has been raped and left for dead at the door of the host.

In fact, she is dead, so the Levite bundles her up and takes her back to their home, where he proceeds to cut her into twelve sections to send out to the twelve tribes, as a call to arms and revenge. (Who in their right mind would record this horrific event?) Yet, the writer of Judges has a point and inspired by the Spirit of God offers us a mirror into the depravity of a people and a nation without a king.

War breaks out among the tribes. After high casualties on both sides, the war comes to an end. The conquering tribes vow to never allow their women to marry a Benjamite. With the war over, their foolishness continues. In making the oath, they jeopardize the longevity of the tribe of Benjamin. They go through some convoluted reasoning to provide wives for the Benjamites, just so they don’t break their foolish oath. (You have to read it to believe it.)

The final commentary of the chronicler of Judges summarizes their demise (and seems fairly contemporary, if we were willing to look into our own mirror):
 

In those days Israel had no king,
so the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.
(Judges 21: 25 NLT)

 
Little hope surfaces in this dark passage of Israel’s history. God promised that kings would reign in Jacob’s future nation. And later Israel does ask for a king and a kingdom is established, but all this is just the backdrop of a better kingdom and the best King!

Don’t lose heart, there will be a light in the darkness. Tomorrow we will revisit one of the best loved stories in the Old Testament, which just happens to be set in our little town of Bethlehem.

Posted on by kelrohlf 2

Bethlehem: The Burial Place of Rachel

Advent{ures}: Let’s Go to Bethlehem

Before heading off to a new destination, it can be interesting  and inspiring to pour over the guide books. To check out the attractions offered, to find out any historical significance about the place and to look at a map to survey the layout of the town, all this information can help prepare the way before your arrival.

Each day this week, let’s look at some information about the little town of Bethlehem.
 
 

Bethlehem still exists today, situated southwest of Jerusalem about five miles. It is known for being a fertile area that produces corn, figs, and olives, as well as  boasting fruitful vineyards.
It is first mentioned in Scripture at a crossroads in Jacob’s life. He and his family are returning to his homeland. On the way he encounters God at Bethel, where God reminds him that He plans to bless Jacob with the land and inherited promise of his forefathers, Abraham and Isaac. The promise reaffirms that Jacob’s descendants would increase and from his lineage would come kings. (Genesis 35:11-15)

On the way back home, his wife Rachel  gives birth to Benjamin:

Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you have another son.” As she breathed her last — for she was dying — she named her son Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin. 

So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb.  (Genesis 35: 16-20 NIV)

A death and a birth introduce this little town. And later a birth darkened by the death of “Rachel’s children” will accompany the introduction of our Savior. This little town will be marked by both tragedy and majesty.
Rachel prophetically names her son, Ben-Oni, “son of my sorrow,” foreshadowing the Man of Sorrows. Jacob renames him, Benjamin, “son of my right hand,” which also prefigures a role of Christ, as the triumphant Son of God, who now sits at His right hand.

This tragic association appears to offer little hope. Yet Benjamin will be a solace to Jacob in the days ahead, just as Jesus’ presence comforts us in our broken worlds.

Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him
for the help of His presence.
(Psalm 42:5 NASB)
Posted on by kelrohlf 4