May the Lord judge between me and you, may the Lord avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you.—1 Sam 24:12

David refused to participate in vengeance towards Saul. He trusted God’s justice.

Hard as it is, let us actively love and entrust vengeance to God.
In those moments when I want to lash out, to go after the jugular of the one I perceive to be my enemy, I remember:

When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.—1 Peter 2:23
I am sometimes surprised, as someone who despises conflict and actively works to avoid it, how easy it is to end up in a heart posture of wanting to lash out at someone who has hurt me personally.

Learning to trust God’s hand has been difficult.
Two great teachers over the last decade or so:

1. The teaching of the black church. I’ve watched their posture towards forgiveness and peacemaking closely. Their heritage of teaching on this specific topic is among the richest in the church’s history. Perhaps it is the richest.
2. Awakening to the Sermon on the Mount, initially thru Bonhoeffer, and the rich teaching tradition among those who have had the Sermon transform their lives.

May we trust God’s hand.

Grace and peace.

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More from @Bezner

22 Apr
Wrapping up 1 Samuel this morning.

Struck by David’s acknowledgement of Saul being the Lord’s anointed, despite Saul’s numerous foibles and follies.

David somehow trusted that God was working a purpose, despite Saul’s instability—allowing God to work on His timetable.
David had already been anointed as the next king. He seems to have every right to kill Saul in the cave or in the camp.

But he is “the LORD’s anointed.”

David trusted God was doing work he could not see—even though it forced him to live in the wilderness as a raiding fugitive.
And yet—David waits for God’s timing.

For God to end Saul’s reign and David’s time in the wilderness.

For God to enthrone David and to declare that the next season has begun.

I want to be marked with such patient trust.
Read 4 tweets
27 Feb
Love, a 🧵: I can’t speak for other religions, but, when it comes to Christianity, those who describe themselves as theologically “orthodox” (creedal? conservative?) ought to be among the most loving people in the world and should increase in said love across their—er, our—lives.
Christians in this theological vein believe that we have been given the greatest gift imaginable—we were due to receive condemnation but through the miraculous grace of God, we were rescued through the interposition of Jesus. Through Jesus we get a new life! This is the gospel.
This means that I love everyone. And I mean EVERYONE. I’m friends with Jews and Muslims and atheists. I’m friends with gay and lesbian and trans and straight. I’m friends with folks on the far left and the far right. I love them all. Because that’s the love given to me by God.
Read 13 tweets
26 Feb
🧵I hold to what some might call a “traditional” biblical sexual ethic. I’ve come to this conclusion after reading multiple sources (across disciplines and decades), doing the work in the biblical languages/culture, etc.

I also understand that others think I am completely wrong.
I know Western culture outside the church broadly disagrees with my position. I understand the reasoning (usually based on the inherent right of individual actualization).

And, in a pluralistic society, I can understand why such a position should be allowed and protected.
I also understand that many *within* the church would disagree with me. Most of them would argue my hermeneutics are either a) obsolete due to culture or b) misreadings of the biblical text.

This is (and has been) playing out in multiple denominations and traditions.
Read 6 tweets
14 Feb
Up later than normal for me on a Saturday night, but just now having a chance to put down a few thoughts re: why evangelicalism has a habit of producing leaders who flame out. A few ideas:
1. “Success” is celebrated more than “faithfulness.” And “success” is almost always measured by the size of the gathering.
2. Speed is celebrated more than patience. In other words a church that “blows up” “overnight” will gain more notoriety than a church that grows a substantial ministry over years, decades, or even generations.
Read 22 tweets
10 Feb
Women in Ministry, a 🧵: Over the last two years, my elders and I have been on a deep dive in order to better understand the role of women within the New Testament in order to provide clear guidance to our congregation, specifically the women in our congregation.
As a result, I read and re-read a number of books, commentaries and articles on the topic. I was reminded of a *number* of points I had forgotten, and I discovered a *host* of points I had never seen or heard.

In the end, such wide reading was extremely beneficial.
Wide reading helped me to more charitably understand the position of people I had previously disagreed with on this topic. Seeing their exegesis and reasoning up close helped me to become gracious. While disagreeing, I could *understand* why they reached their conclusions.
Read 8 tweets
6 Jan
Today is #Epiphany, the day we remember the magi from the east coming to pay homage to the Christ child.

Although the Bible is not explicit, I have long appreciated the theory that that magi are the spiritual descendants of the prophet Daniel.

There are several clues. (Cont.)
First , Daniel was a magi himself in the Babylonian court following his exile. The magi (wise men) served as counselors and dream interpreters to the king and his entourage. Joseph would have been a magi of sorts. Makes sense Daniel could have passed down prophecy in Babylon.
Second, they come from the East. This could be any number of places, but given the way geographical locations were discussed at the time, Babylon/Persia makes sense. They particularly would have resources to send such a caravan. Additionally, it rules out a place like Egypt.
Read 6 tweets

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