Biblios Hokku – Hebrews

All joking aside, Hebrews is a pretty awesome book.  And despite the cartoon above, we actually don’t know who wrote it. 

Hebrews 11:1 gives us a wonderful definition of faith “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen.”

Hebrews is about how much better Jesus is than any sacrifice or ritual, and how through him we can boldly approach the throne of GOD.

HEBREWS
Salvation so great
What hope, should we neglect it?
Bold shall we approach.

 

To read more in the Biblios Hokku project, go to my other blog.

Bless me Father, for I am a cynic.

I have never been overly impressed with priests. 

Don’t get me wrong, I do not have a problem with priests, or the priesthood.  I just think that we sometimes place too much emphasis on it, and them. 

A calling to be set apart for the Lord is special, and should be honoured, but I have always thought that there are so many ways to serve Him without entering ordained ministry. 

Can you name five kings in the Bible?  What about five prophets?  Great leaders sent by God? 

How about priests?  Can you name even three of those?

Funny that.

Whenever I get asked whether I am planning to enter the ministry, I usually have a sarcastic comment about it.  When I started studying theology five years ago, I kept it a secret from people, because I was afraid they would read too much into it.

 

I think GOD has called me to serve him in my own way, and when I look at all the opportunities he gives to me as a lay person to be involved in ministry, I can’t think of a single reason why I would want to be a priest.

 

So why has He been putting them on my mind more and more lately?

 

 

 

And why do I stop and stare every time I see one?

 

 

And why am I watching their every move at the Lord’s table?

 

I can’t think of a single reason.

 

I wonder if HE can.

Why I like Twitter

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Sorry, I got nothing.

I've been to London, to visit the Queen

Sharkbait has left the building!

The official Sharkbait mascot (the stuffed fish) has gone to London to visit his friend S.  S has kindly agreed to show him around Europe for a few weeks, and I have been getting messages on my cell 'phone from both of them.  It sounds like they're both having fun.

It's hard not to be jealous of the little guy, but I hope he comes back with lots of photos.

So if you're somewhere in Paris or Holland, and think you see a stuffed fish with a silly grin, pop on over and say Hello.

Biblios Hokku - Philemon

I have always found this an interesting book.  If you have never read it, go do so now.  It’s really quite short.

Paul writes to Philemon, not to instruct him in church work, but to encourage him to take back a slave who ran away.  Apparently after Onesimus (who’s name means “useful”) robbed and ran away from his lawful master, he found Paul, who helped him find the Lord.

Paul sends him back to Philemon with a request that he receive him “as you would receive me”

Quite a strong lesson in forgiveness, and mercy. 

PHILEMON
Forgive and forget.
Receive him as you would me.
For he is useful.

Review - Opening John's Gospel and Epistles

I received a copy of Opening John's Gospel and Epistles from Tyndale House Publishers for review purposes, and so far I am impressed. 

According to the sales pitch: "Opening John’s Gospels and Epistles outlines four New Testament books with notes and exposition on each section. The notes cover every significant phrase of John’s writings, including some text-critical details."

Not only does it give verse by verse explanations about what is going on, but it seperates each section into a "snapshot" of Jesus, and gives an exposition of that aspect. I am finding it useful for preparing detailed Bible Studies on the Gospel, and signs, and foresee using it quite heavily in future for sermon preparation. The exposition strikes a useful balance between theological interpretation, and historical context. - A rare mix I think.

Despite being a fairly scholarly work, the language is simple.  There are no heavy theological terms, rather detailed explanations.  Easier to read than a commentary, more detailed than a study Bible.  Perfect for the amateur theologian.

From a orthodoxy perspective, I also don't have any problems with the book, or the language used, nor the versions quoted.  Where there is some doubt about a section, it describes in detail the debate, rather than opting for the annoying "section omitted in some versions" which tells us so little.

I would highly recommend this for anyone interested in pulling John's writings apart, and moderate to serious scholars.

Who writes YOUR blog?

I did some rough maths this morning, and discovered that 83% of my followers are women, and 75% of the blogs that I follow are written exclusively - or predominantly - by women.  I don't know if that is statistically significant or not.  Maybe there are more women christian bloggers, or maybe they are just better writers than us.  

I am not the only one to notice this trend, a friend of mine who recently featured me on his blog, mentioned  that I have "...a surprisingly large following of woman (I follow his comments ...  and am frequently struck by how popular he is)."

So in an effort to understand why I am more popular with the ladies (apart from my animal magnetism of course) I tested my blog at GenderAnalyzer.  This is a site where if you type in your blog address, it will assess whether it was written by a man or a woman.  Apparently the highly trained AI software will analyze language structure and vocabulary, and assess whether the writer is a male or female.

Would you like to know my result?

We guess http://sbreef.blogspot.com is written by a woman (57%), however it's quite gender neutral."

I guess I don't say boobies often enough, and need to swear more.  I'm not sure why it thinks my language is gender-neutral. 

My other blog, Seven's Heaven, where I talk about writing, and post occasional poems and short stories, came back 56% likely to be written by a man.  (I think I may have sworn in one of my poems, that must be it.)


So apparently my writing is rather gender neutral, and slightly more female than male.

On an interesting side note, the daily devotional blog I set up exclusively for lent this year - FISH for Lent - came back 80% likely to be a woman.

I wonder if that is significant in any way?  Does talking about religion, or feelings, make my language seem more female?  Or is it just co-incidence?

I know the site is far from 100% perfect, but a quick test with some of the blogs I follow showed a fair amout of accuracy in the results. 

How does your site weigh up?  Test it out, and come back and tell me.  I woud be interested to know.

Biblios Hokku - Titus

Another poem for my Biblios Hokku project. 

Paul left Titus on the island of Crete, to ordain elders.  Crete was notorious for it’s dodgy characters, so he reminds Titus to choose the right sort of person – men who hold fast to the Gospels.

TITUS
Be ready for good,
holding faithful to the word,
and choose wise leaders.

Biblios Hokku – Timothy

Another book from my Biblios Hokku project.  Click here for the whole Bible in Haiku, or keep reading for more insight on the letters to Timothy.

Paul writes this letter to his “Beloved Son in Christ” to give him instruction in how pastors should conduct themselves.  The book contains the memorable reminder that a ‘labourer is worthy of his reward’

1 TIMOTHY
You have chosen well,
and desire a good work.
Be worth your reward.

In his further writings, he reminds Timothy that “all scripture is given by inspiration of GOD” which is often translated as “GOD-breathed”

2 TIMOTHY
Words breathed out by GOD.
Equipping us for good works -
A holy calling

I'm still here.

I have not published a post here for a while.  Sorry about that, I guess I have just been under a bit of pressure.

So, instead of a profound thought, or deep theological insight, here is a some useful advice from a signboard.

Don't say I never give you anything.

(you might need to click the picture to read the English)