“Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by injustice! – Habakkuk 2:12

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 7, 2014): Habakkuk 2

Flavias Phocus Augustus (known simply as Phocas) was the Emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 602 C.E. until 610. C.E. Although very little is known of Phocus prior to rise to power, we do know that he took the throne away from his predecessor, Maurice, through inciting the army to rebel against the Emperor. Maurice fled Constantinople, and Phocus was crowned as emperor in his place. Then Phocus captured Maurice, who at this point was not really a political threat to Phocus, and had him and his six sons executed. A story is told of how Phocus made Maurice watch with his own eyes as each one of his sons were executed – and then finally the executioner allowed Maurice to die. This action marked the first violent change in leadership since Constantine took power of the Empire early in the 4^th century.

In the early days of his reign, Phocus was well received by the people. He lowered the taxes (which had been high during the reign of Maurice) and even garnered praise from the reigning Pope (Gregory the Great). But there were also rumors of the way that he handled those who dared to oppose him – often dealing with his opposition in a very cruel manner. (Later histories report that he killed thousands in trying to maintain his rule of the Empire, but since no histories remain from the time of his reign, and those that have survived were written by people who had a desire to blacken Phocus’ name, we are unsure of how many were really executed by the Emperor.)

But there is no doubt that Phocus’ empire was an example of one that was built on blood. Even in an Empire that was outwardly built on Christian principles (Phocus was crowned in the church of St. John the Baptist in Constantinople) the word of the prophet Habakkuk were ignored. Phocus had built an empire on the blood of his enemies – and that empire could not stand.

And it didn’t. In 608, a rebellion began in Africa against the reign of the Byzantine Emperor. By 610, the war had been brought to the door of Constantinople. Phocus’ own personal guard (including his son-in-law) defected on mass to the rebel Heraclius – and Heraclius entered the city without resistance. And when Phocus was brought into the presence of Heraclius, the new Emperor had one question for the former ruler. It was a simple one – “Is this how you rule, wretch?” We are told that Phocus simply looked up the usurper standing in his place and responded “Will you do any better?” The answer outraged Heraclius, and he personally executed Phocus on the spot, beheading him with his sword. A reign that had begun in blood, ended the same way. And a new Emperor was given the chance to “do better.”     

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Habakkuk 3

They are a feared and dreaded people; they are a law to themselves and promote their own honor. – Habakkuk 1:7

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 6, 2014): Habakkuk 1

During the early days of the 4^th Century B.C.E., Plato dominated the world of Greek philosophy. It sometimes seemed that Plato had an opinion concerning just about everything. But where the philosopher spent a lot his time was in the area of political philosophy. The ancient Greeks regarded the best form of government to be one where the best man of the culture (or men of the culture) were the ones that ruled. Unfortunately, because this form of government was not based on any kind of rule by heritage or by family (where the throne is passed from father to son), it often left an open question as to how we can know which men are the best. Plato agreed with this line of thought, but he postulated that the absolute best kind of government would be one led by a benevolent monarch – especially one led by a philosopher king. The philosopher king would be a student of wisdom and be able to discern the most beneficial actions that need to be taken on the behalf of the people. The philosopher king would be above the law (like any other monarch of the time), but he would be wise enough to limit his action to only those things that would benefit the community as a whole.

But Plato had a student named Aristotle, and although Aristotle was heavily influenced by Plato’s ideas, in this area he vehemently disagrees with his teacher. In Aristotle’s mind, the best ruler was not a wise philosopher king that stood above the law, but rather a king that lived and ruled within the boundaries of the law – a king that lived and worked under the rule of law. Aristotle postulated that the best government was one where the main responsibility of the sovereign was to defend the law of the land instead of being the one who created the law of land.

Aristotle’s model was essentially the way that the Israel had always been designed to operate. The law was given to Moses by God. But the original idea was that the Israel would be a theocracy ruled by God who would occupy the position of the benevolent monarch, but unlike the philosopher kings of Plato’s imagination, God was a wise king who has always been bound to work within the limits of the law. (One of the explanations for Jesus sacrifice was that it fulfilled the requirements of the law – something that God had to do in order to finally set us free.) When the times of earthly kings came for Israel, these kings were also bound by the rule of law – God’s law. They had no standing and no right to be agents of change for the law. And that got more than one sovereign in Israel into deep trouble – instead of being the protectors of the law, they began to want to make changes in the law - always, of course, in their favor.

So as Habakkuk begins to consider the coming reign of the Babylonians, one of the things that bothers him is that these people are a “law to themselves” – essentially that they make up the law as they go along. There is no canon or ruler of the law against which they can measure themselves. Another way of saying this is that they were a lawless people, and that their definition of what was honorable was also defined by their own actions. There was no objective requirements. And this thought terrified the prophet.

And yet, for Habakkuk, part of the mystery was that God was going to use these people to help Israel on their journey. The Babylonians may act without the rule of law, but he knew that his God did not – and that in the end, even the action of this lawless people would somehow keep the people of Israel within the law of God. He was not sure how this was going to happen, but he trusted his God enough to know that this would come to pass.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Habakkuk 2

He said to the Levites, who instructed all Israel and who had been consecrated to the LORD: “Put the sacred ark in the temple that Solomon son of David king of Israel built. It is not to be carried about on your shoulders. Now serve the LORD your God and his people Israel. - 2 Chronicles 35:3

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 5, 2014): 2 Chronicles 35

As a science fiction lover, I have to admit that there is a special place inside of me reserved for Area 51. Officially known as the Nevada Test and Training Range or Groom Lake, Area 51 has been the subject of so much science fiction speculation that it is hard not to consider it as one of the most appealing places on this planet for Science Fiction fans to want to visit – even if all we can really do is stand outside of the gates, miles from the actual Facility. One of the most endearing and enduring rumours about Area 51 is that it is the home of members of an extra-terrestrial species who crashed their space ships on the earth near Roswell, New Mexico in June or July 1947. Some of the activities that are supposed to be taking place at Area 51 include –

• The storage, examination, and reverse engineering of crashed alien spacecraft (including material supposedly recovered at Roswell), the study of their occupants (living and dead), and the manufacture of aircraft based on alien technology.
• Meetings or joint undertakings with extraterrestrials.
• The development of exotic energy weapons for the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) or other weapons programs.
• The development of means of weather control.
• The development of time travel and teleportation technology.
• The development of unusual and exotic propulsion systems related to the Aurora Program.
• Activities related to a supposed shadowy one world government or the Majestic 12 organization.

And subjects such as Area 51 also carry us into the argument about how much we really need to know. Do we have a right to know everything – or are there some things that are beyond our need to know – or even more specifically, are there some things that it is dangerous for us to know (military attack plans during times of war would definitely fall into this last territory.)

In the eyes of the people, the Ark of the Covenant was a very mysterious piece of furniture. The Ark was believed to be the actual place where God sat on the earth. According to the Bible, the Ark was intended to be kept in a room that called the “Holy of Holies” at the one extreme end of the Tabernacle or the Temple – and this was the Area 51 of ancient Israel. The Ark was not to be removed. Once a year, the High Priest would enter the room to make atonement for the people (not surprisingly this day was called the Day of Atonement.) And that was it – one person, once a year physically confronted the Ark of the Covenant. What went on behind the curtain that closed off the room the rest of the year was unknown – and it seemed that it was beyond the people’s need to know. But over the years respect for the Ark dwindled. The Ark began to be a novelty item. During the days of Samuel, the Ark was actually carried into battle (something it was not supposed to be subjected to) and then lost to the Philistines. The Philistines eventually returned it – but it spent a couple of generations sitting in a barn. David finally brought it to Jerusalem when he moved the Tabernacle to his city. When Solomon built the first Temple, the Holy of Holies was again recreated for Ark and the Ark was hidden away. But among the people rumors grew about its power – a power that is evidenced in the 70’s Science Fantasy movie “Raiders of the Lost Ark” – the original Indiana Jones movie.

The Ark in Judah began to be treated with less and less respect. It might have been that Hezekiah, the great-grandfather of Josiah, even showed the Ark and other temple treasures off to foreign envoys – an action that the Bible says hastened the Babylonian Captivity. And then, apparently during the days of Manasseh and Amon, The Ark was actually removed from the Holy of Holies. What had been sacred now became vulgar. It was open to the eyes of anyone who wanted to see it. And that was a practice that Josiah came to understand was wrong. And so he commanded that the Ark be placed back into the Holy of Holies – and that it was never to be removed again. This was to be a return to the ancient ways, then the High Priest was the only one that was allowed in to see the Ark of the Covenant – and even he could only enter the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement.

I am not sure what Area 51 holds, but I do know that not everything is to be reveled – no matter how curious we might be. Our curiosity has never been reason enough for everything to be made public. And it is precisely because the Ark was revealed that it quickly became simply “lost.” Zerubbabel’s Temple, built after the exile, also had a Holy of Holies, but the room was empty. The Ark was missing – never to be returned.    

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Habakkuk 1

But I will leave within you the meek and humble. The remnant of Israel will trust in the name of the LORD. – Zephaniah 3:12

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 4, 2014): Zephaniah 3

In a recent blog posting (January 19, 2014), author Seth Godin comments about the nature of artistic world – and according to Godin, at the heart of any great artist is great humility. He writes “It's arrogant to assume that you've made something so extraordinary that everyone everywhere should embrace it. Our best work can't possibly appeal to the average masses, only our average work can.” Godin seems to believe that if we want to appeal to everyone, then the product that we produce as artists will be far from great – probably because a work that appeals to everyone is bound to have sacrificed artistic truth in order to gain acceptance. Work that appeals to the masses is compromised. Godin sums up his short article by saying that “finding the humility to happily walk away from those that don't get it unlocks our ability to do great work.”

Zephaniah’s prophecy, along with all of the other prophets of this time period, is wrapped up with the idea of the “end times.” No, not the end of the world, but rather the end of Judah and Israel. By the time of Zephaniah’s ministry, Israel was already gone and Judah’s fate had been set in stone. Judah was going to end with a crash. And one of the significant things about the end is that the Babylonian Captivity was about to remove the best and the brightest that Judah had to offer. All the heirs of the throne of Judah, and most of her scholars – the rich and the smart and the cultured and the high-born were all about to be removed from the nation. All that would be left in Judah was what the Bible calls “the remnant” – a small portion of the whole. And if the most desirable and educated of Judah – the ones with the highest potential –are all going to leave, then the ones who are left will be the odd and the weak; those that may have been considered the least desirable of the nation. And on the surface, the reason for the move from the standpoint of Babylonians makes some sense. By removing the best of the nation, the Babylonians were lessening any chance that Judah would rebel against the occupation of their traditional homeland – an action that Judah had taken in the past.

But what if that’s not it. According to the Bible, the Babylonian Exile was not engineered by Babylon – but rather by God. Nebuchadnezzar was God’s tool – and later in his life he became God’s servant. So what if the exile was not about protecting Babylon, but rather about God hitting the reset button on Judah? What if the story is really that God was about to do something new in Judah and Israel – and he knew that the most, and especially the best, were just not going to understand. And so God’s plan was to humble the proud in Babylon, while leaving the meek and the humble in Palestine to begin the work of resetting the nation. The remnant became place holders for the nations of Israel and Judah. God had not given up – he was just changing the game plan.

And, maybe, what we need to do in our modern society is to imitate the remnant. Part of the contemporary problem in the Christian Church is our pride. In Western culture, we often seem to be believe that we are the best and the brightest – and often do not seem to be humble enough to recognize a genuine move of God. What seems to be missing from the Western Church is a great humility. God seems to want to do a great work, but we aren’t getting it. And so God moves the church on with a new remnant made up of the humble and those that trust in him. But these are not the people that we would have chosen – actually, they are often made up of the very people that we have sent away - because we just don’t understand.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Chronicles 35

Therefore, as surely as I live,” declares the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, “surely Moab will become like Sodom, the Ammonites like Gomorrah—a place of weeds and salt pits, a wasteland forever. The remnant of my people will plunder them; the survivors of my nation will inherit their land.” – Zephaniah 2:9

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 3, 2014): Zephaniah 2

In the “Star Trek” Universe, the Captains and leaders of the Federation exploratory space ships struggle with their premiere law – the Prime Directive. The Prime Directive is essentially a non-interference decree aimed at allowing cultures to advance at their own pace. The directive is intended to limit the cultural effect that an advanced civilization can have on an inferior one. The leaders are expressly forbidden to share or use advanced technology on worlds that have not advanced far enough to develop the technology for themselves. Of course, the Prime Directive comes with a moral inconsistency. If I have the ability to relieve suffering, do I not also have the moral responsibility to use whatever technologies or practices that I have at hand to lessen that suffering, regardless of whether or not those in need of help have the ability to replicate the technology? It is an argument that each of the fictional star ship Captains aboard the Enterprise has struggled with – and every one of them at one point (or at several points) have made the decision to violate the Prime Directive – and in every case the decision to violate was because of the high value these leaders have placed on sentient life.

In ancient times there existed at least two cities – and maybe as many as five – on the south end of the Dead Sea. The cities were xenophobic in nature.  But the aversion to foreigner was not based on a moral Prime Directive that wanted to protect inferior cultures – they were simply highly prejudicial cities that had no desire to extend hospitality to anyone who was not “like” them. The Bible clearly says that it was this inhospitality, and not any homosexual practices (homosexual rape was actually a tool used by the cities to discourage strangers from coming to the south end of the Dead Sea on a visit) that resulted in their eventual destruction.

Zephaniah ties the fate of Moab and Ammon to the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah. And the tie is not accidental. The only survivors from the disaster that hit these cities on the south end of the Dead Sea that the Bible mentions were Lot and his daughters. And it was Lot’s Daughters that became the ancestors of the people of Moab and Ammon.

We do not know much about these two nations until the time of Exodus of Israel out of Egypt. But at that time they reject Israel and refuse to extend a hand of friendship to the escaping slaves. It would seem that Moab and Ammon both inherited the xenophobic policies of Sodom and Gomorrah – and for that they would share in the ancient cities fate. Like Sodom and Gomorrah, the nations would be destroyed and left a wasteland.

Historians have openly wondered whether Sodom and Gomorrah ever existed. The destruction of the cities was so complete that there is nothing left to tell of their existence. But the stories of Sodom and Gomorrah, and of Moab and Ammon, stand as a testimony to the hospitality that God demands of all of us. Hospitality and compassion are not optional – they form the Christians Prime Directive. And it is a Directive that we dare not violate.  

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Zephaniah 3

The word of the LORD that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, during the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah … Zephaniah 1:1

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 2, 2014): Zephaniah 1

Geoffrey Plantagenet was born in 1152, the oldest son of King Henry II. Unfortunately, Geoffrey was illegitimate and therefore he was disqualified from the throne of England. It is unclear exactly what Geoffrey’s ambitions were, but it appears that his father feared his oldest son’s desires for the future, and as a result he made his namesake son co-regent with him. But Henry, known to the people as “The Young King,” died before his father. As a result he was never king in his own right. Henry II died in 1189, and Geoffrey’s half-brother, Richard the Lionhearted, became king in his place. And Richard immediately nominated Geoffrey to the position of the Archbishop of York. Historians believe that Richard made the move not because of the aptitude that Geoffrey showed in clerical matters (he had held some minor clerical positions but there is no evidence that he actually fulfilled his responsibilities to his offices) but rather that Richard needed to remove him as a rival for the throne of England. It was not until 1189 that Geoffrey was ordained and in 1191 he was finally confirmed as the Archbishop of York. But Geoffrey seemed to spend much of his time wrapped up in disputes with his two half-brothers – first with King Richard and then after Richard’s Death, with King John, an even younger half-brother.

Zephaniah starts off his prophecy with a comment about his heritage. And he draws his heritage back to another king – Hezekiah. Zephaniah is the prophet that called for a reformation of the religious structure of Israel, and Josiah is the king that actually committed the resources of the Judean throne to that reformation – and both men were the great-grandsons of King Hezekiah.

The problem for biblical scholars is that in the case of Zephaniah, he declares that he is the grandson of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, but historically we do not know who Amariah is. As a son of Hezekiah, this is the only mention of Amariah. Historically, the only son of Hezekiah that we know of is Manasseh – and we do not really know who Amariah was. It is possible that Amariah was an illegitimate son of the king, but it is also possible that Manasseh in the evil portion of his rule managed to remove any other contenders to the throne of Judah. And the clue to the latter situation is that Zephaniah’s name means “Yahweh hides” or “Yahweh has hidden.” The name might indicate that Zephaniah was from an arm of Hezekiah’s family that God had hidden - maybe in order to keep them safe.

But regardless of the reason for the missing descendants of Hezekiah, Zephaniah as a prophet with a royal lineage made him a rare prophet in the history of Israel and Judah. Like Isaiah, he would have had access to the royal court, and his prophecies would have been delivered directly to the king. And in the case of Zephaniah, he was able to set the stage for the reforms that would eventually come from Josiah – two great-grandsons of Hezekiah would combine to provide real religious reformation in Judah.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Zephaniah 2

Hilkiah said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the LORD.” He gave it to Shaphan. – 2 Chronicles 34:15

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 1, 2014): 2 Chronicles 34

On April 6, 1933, Nazi Germany began its practice of burning books. The campaign was initiated by the German Student Union, and organization made up of all of the Student organizations of the various Universities in Germany. The action was proclaimed as a nationwide “Action against the Un-German Spirit,” the climax of which was a literary purge of books thought to have contained dangerous ideas – and this purge was done by fire.  The purge was directed at books that consisted of what the organizers called “Jewish intellectualism” and heralded the need for the book burning as an action that was required in order to allow a return for the nation to the traditional German “family values.” It is surprising how often the cry for “family values” has accompanied cries demanding the burning of books.

A quick survey of a list of the authors burned in the German burnings contains a few surprises. Included among the German authors burned on that night were books by Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, novelist Franz Kafka, and political theorist Karl Marx. But along with the works of the many German speaking writers that were burned were works by French authors, including the novelist Victor Hugo (Les Miserables), as well as American authors such as Ernest Hemmingway, Jack London and Helen Keller – British writers such as H.G. Wells and James Joyce and Soviet writers such as novelists Leo Tolstoy and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. It was as if the Germans believed that by burning the books they could make the ideas disappear. It is not a new idea – but the idea has never worked.

It is likely that the books of the law had been hidden during the years of the evil reigns of several kings prior to the reign of Josiah – maybe during the reign of Manasseh, Josiah’s grandfather, but the books had probably been hidden even earlier than that. The hiding of the books was probably done in an effort to protect them from those that wanted them destroyed along with the ideas that were found within them.  It may have even been that the books had actually been forgotten in their absence. Until the day that the workers began to restore the temple and found this book in the very walls they were attempting to fix. The particular book that was found by the workers in the Temple was likely to have been the book of Deuteronomy.

As a result of the finding of the book of Deuteronomy, the religious reforms that were completed under Josiah’s reign went far beyond just the repairing of the temple and extended to a reform of the actual ideas and practices that the faith of the nation was designed to be built on. It was a much needed reform of the faith.

The reality of our contemporary Christian faith is that we need the same kind of restoration of ideas that Josiah brought to the Temple. The sacred books are not lost, but often they are ignored, even by people within the church. And in most of our churches, the carpet may need to be replaced and walls may need to be painted, but what is needed even more is a return to the ideas of the faith – concepts found in the writings that we carry in our Bibles. And our reality is that it is these ideas that we need to really live life.   

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Zephaniah 1

Note: Last Week's message from VantagePoint Community Church (Edmonton) - "Real Strength" from the series "The UpsideDown Kingdom" is now available. You can find it here.