Welcome to Cam’s Reflective Bible Study Journal

Cam’s Reflective Bible Study Journal is a blog/podcast where Cam, one of Reflective Bible Study's founders, shares things he has discovered from his time studying the Bible (usually from one or more of the four gospels).

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Pursuing Greatness: Nehemiah 6:1-9, 15-16

Published January 7, 2014 in Uncategorized

If there is anyone in the Bible who had single-minded focus to complete a mission aside from Jesus, Nehemiah is someone who might top the list of people we think of. Not only is he one of the Biblical heroes of leadership, he is also a great example for how to press forward in spite of criticism and opposition.

Nehemiah’s single-minded goal at this stage of his life, and the task he is remembered throughout history for, is leading the people of Israel to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was torn down when the people were exiled (think the story of Daniel), and Nehemiah is the leader responsible for leading the rebuilding effort several hundred years later. Our adventure Journal passage focuses on the last days of the Nehemiah’s rebuilding effort, and it can be found in Nehemiah, chapter 6:

Focus Passage: Nehemiah 6:1-9,15-16 (NLT)

1 Sanballat, Tobiah, Geshem the Arab, and the rest of our enemies found out that I had finished rebuilding the wall and that no gaps remained—though we had not yet set up the doors in the gates. 2 So Sanballat and Geshem sent a message asking me to meet them at one of the villages in the plain of Ono.

But I realized they were plotting to harm me, 3 so I replied by sending this message to them: “I am engaged in a great work, so I can’t come. Why should I stop working to come and meet with you?”

4 Four times they sent the same message, and each time I gave the same reply. 5 The fifth time, Sanballat’s servant came with an open letter in his hand, 6 and this is what it said:

“There is a rumor among the surrounding nations, and Geshem tells me it is true, that you and the Jews are planning to rebel and that is why you are building the wall. According to his reports, you plan to be their king. 7 He also reports that you have appointed prophets in Jerusalem to proclaim about you, ‘Look! There is a king in Judah!’

“You can be very sure that this report will get back to the king, so I suggest that you come and talk it over with me.”

8 I replied, “There is no truth in any part of your story. You are making up the whole thing.”

9 They were just trying to intimidate us, imagining that they could discourage us and stop the work. So I continued the work with even greater determination.

 

15 So on October 2 the wall was finished—just fifty-two days after we had begun. 16 When our enemies and the surrounding nations heard about it, they were frightened and humiliated. They realized this work had been done with the help of our God.

Read Nehemiah 6:1-9, 15-16 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Nemehiah is one of the Bible’s great heroes of leadership. It seems that he single-handedly rallied the people of Israel to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he kept them motivated to continue the work, and he faced much stronger opposition than we face with our goals. Nehemiah had a vision, he was working for something greater than himself, and he was focused entirely on one task.

What has Cam learned from Nehemiah?

  • Whenever you are doing something great, you will be tempted to not start, or to stop before it is completed. Great things are intimidating, but intimidating great things can lead to the greatest feelings of success and accomplishment.
  • Whenever you are doing something great, you will be tempted to distract your focus. Distractions derail momentum, and therefore, they are the enemy of productivity. When doing something great, you want to succeed, so minimize if not completely eliminate distractions.
  • Whenever you are doing something great, you will face opposition. Some of the opposition may even come from people you thought you could count on.

The great thing I am pressing forward in 2014 (as I have for the past few years) is developing ReflectiveBibleStudy.com. For 2014 specifically, I have on my list regular Adventure Journal updates (both written and audio), re-recording the teaching videos (they’re good now, but I know they can be better), and a number of improvements to the infrastructure of the website itself.

I wish I could be as single-minded as Nehemiah, but this project is happening while I have a family, and a full-time job. This first written Adventure Journal entry is an important key step, because it breaks through the temptation to not start. It is also an important step, because once I’ve started a task, I really like seeing it through to completion.

Here’s my promise to you: Each week I will deliver one, if not two, written journal entries and one audio journal entry. This is part of my 2014 goals, because I want to help you learn new, practical, insights and tools that will help you move forward in your “adventure” with God. On the audio journal entries, and on some of the written entries, my lovely wife Suzie will join in on the conversation.

With that said, we both would love it if you joined the discussion below, sharing your thoughts on this passage and answering the following question: “What ‘great work’ will you push forward throughout 2014?”

The Fish Gospel: Matthew 17:24-27

Published January 2, 2014 in Audio Journal Entries

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Focus Passage: Matthew 17:24-27 (CEV)

24 When Jesus and the others arrived in Capernaum, the collectors for the temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Does your teacher pay the temple tax?”

25 “Yes, he does,” Peter answered.

After they had returned home, Jesus went up to Peter and asked him, “Simon, what do you think? Do the kings of this earth collect taxes and fees from their own people or from foreigners?”

26 Peter answered, “From foreigners.”

Jesus replied, “Then their own people don’t have to pay. 27 But we don’t want to cause trouble. So go cast a line into the lake and pull out the first fish you hook. Open its mouth, and you will find a coin. Use it to pay your taxes and mine.”

Read Matthew 17:24-27 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Cam’s Insights: Cam shares how amazing it is that in these four verses, we can see the whole gospel story. Humanity, represented beautifully by Peter, mess up (we could say “sin”), and God arranges for reconciliation (by sending Jesus to pay the price for our sin).
Suzie’s Insights: Suzie shares some thoughts on the idea of a temple tax and how it is not like today’s tithe and offering.

The Walking With Jesus study package is still discounted for a few more weeks. If you’re interested in taking your adventure with Jesus further, check out Walking With Jesus and all of our other Bible Study packages here.

Discussion Question: What stands out to you in this passage?

God’s Response to the First Sin: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-22

Published December 26, 2013 in Audio Journal Entries

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Focus Passage: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-22 (NIrV)

15 The Lord God put the man in the Garden of Eden. He put him there to work its ground and to take care of it.

16 The Lord God gave the man a command. He said, “You can eat the fruit of any tree that is in the garden. 17 But you must not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you do, you can be sure that you will die.”

3:1 The serpent was more clever than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. The serpent said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat the fruit of any tree that is in the garden’?”

2 The woman said to the serpent, “We can eat the fruit of the trees that are in the garden. 3 But God did say, ‘You must not eat the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden. Do not even touch it. If you do, you will die.’”

4 “You can be sure that you won’t die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5 “God knows that when you eat the fruit of that tree, you will know things you have never known before. You will be able to tell the difference between good and evil. You will be like God.”

6 The woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good to eat. It was also pleasing to look at. And it would make a person wise. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her. And he ate it.

7 Then both of them knew things they had never known before. They realized they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made clothes for themselves.

8 Then the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking in the garden. It was the coolest time of the day. They hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

9 But the Lord God called out to the man. “Where are you?” he asked.

10 “I heard you in the garden,” the man answered. “I was afraid. I was naked, so I hid.”

11 The Lord God said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten the fruit of the tree I commanded you not to eat?”

12 The man said, “It was the woman you put here with me. She gave me some fruit from the tree. And I ate it.”

13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What have you done?”

The woman said, “The serpent tricked me. That’s why I ate the fruit.”

14 So the Lord God spoke to the serpent. He said, “Because you have done this,

“I am putting a curse on you.
    You are cursed more than all of the livestock
    and all of the wild animals.
You will crawl on the ground.
    You will eat dust
    all of the days of your life.
15 I will put hatred
    between you and the woman.
    Your children and her children will be enemies.
Her son will crush your head.
    And you will crush his heel.”

16 The Lord God said to the woman,

“I will greatly increase your pain when you give birth.
    You will be in pain when you have children.
You will long for your husband.
    And he will rule over you.”

17 The Lord God said to Adam, “You listened to your wife. You ate the fruit of the tree that I commanded you about. I said, ‘You must not eat its fruit.’

“So I am putting a curse on the ground because of what you did.
    All the days of your life you will have to work hard
    to get food from the ground.
18 You will eat the plants of the field,
    even though the ground produces thorns and thistles.
19 You will have to work hard and sweat a lot
    to produce the food you eat.
You were made out of the ground.
    And you will return to it.
You are dust.
    So you will return to it.”

20 Adam named his wife Eve. She would become the mother of every living person.

21 The Lord God made clothes out of animal skins for Adam and his wife to wear. 22 The Lord God said, “The man has become like one of us. He can now tell the difference between good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and pick fruit from the tree of life and eat it. If he does, he will live forever.”

Read Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-22 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Suzie’s Insights: Suzie shares that she thinks it is odd that Adam and Eve try to hide from God, and that God would act as though He didn’t know where they were hiding.
Cam’s Insights: Cam shares three insights in this passage:
  1. First, while God was speaking the punishments for sin, He does not curse Adam or Eve. It would have been easy for Him to yell at them, but instead it seems as though He is more interested in loving them, but also emphasizing the consequences of the sin.
  2. Secondly, sin causes us to blame one another. Avoiding blame (i.e. Taking responsibility) is an important maturing step for us as we grow our relationship with God.
  3. Thirdly, God promised death to Adam and Eve for eating the forbidden fruit, but death did not come immediately for them. Instead, we read that God made clothing out of animal skins, and for that to happen, an animal would have had to die. In this way, Adam and Eve’s clothing would be a constant reminder of the consequences of sin, as well as the theme of a future Redeemer who would take our place.

We concluded this episode by inviting people to check out our available Bible Study Packages, and we feature the Walking With Jesus Bible Study package as a great one to pick up for the coming year!

Discussion Question: What stands out to you in this passage?

Zechariah’s Visit With Gabriel: Luke 1:5-25

Published December 19, 2013 in Audio Journal Entries

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Focus Passage: Luke 1:5-15 (NLT)

5 When Herod was king of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a member of the priestly order of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was also from the priestly line of Aaron. 6 Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations. 7 They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old.

8 One day Zechariah was serving God in the Temple, for his order was on duty that week. 9 As was the custom of the priests, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. 10 While the incense was being burned, a great crowd stood outside, praying.

11 While Zechariah was in the sanctuary, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the incense altar. 12 Zechariah was shaken and overwhelmed with fear when he saw him. 13 But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. 14 You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord. He must never touch wine or other alcoholic drinks. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth. 16 And he will turn many Israelites to the Lord their God. 17 He will be a man with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will prepare the people for the coming of the Lord. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and he will cause those who are rebellious to accept the wisdom of the godly.”

18 Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.”

19 Then the angel said, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! 20 But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.”

21 Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah to come out of the sanctuary, wondering why he was taking so long. 22 When he finally did come out, he couldn’t speak to them. Then they realized from his gestures and his silence that he must have seen a vision in the sanctuary.

23 When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home. 24 Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months. 25 “How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.”

Read Luke 1:5-25 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Discussion Question: What stands out to you in this passage?