Week 1 -To Live is Christ-The First Footprints

15But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles...Galatians 1:15-16 (The Holy Bible, NIV Version)

Steeped in the Word as a child:
Just finished 4 days of homework, basically a look at the apostle Paul's (aka Saul) upbringing, how God prepared him for his ultimate ministry--to bring the Good News to the Gentiles. Paul had an orthodox Jewish upbringing. His father was a Pharisee and Saul was weaned in Scripture. By age 6, he had memorized Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and six chapters of Scripture, Psalm 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, and 118. At age 13, he was 'deemed' a man and was sent off to Jerusalem to be taught under the most revered rabbi, Gamaliel, grandson of Hillel, important names in Judaism. Some lines of Hillel's teaching mirror Jesus' words: ...Judge not thy neighbour until thou art in his place...my abasement is my exaltation...what is unpleasant to thyself that do not to thy neighbour; this is the whole Law, all else is but its exposition.." Yes, Saul sat at the feet of a grace-filled man, full of wisdom and rare grace. 1Corinthians 8:1b says, "Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." Yes, all that knowledge at his most critical learning years did puff Saul up, but later on when he encountered Jesus and learnt about love, he was devoted to building up the Church with the knowledge that was ingrained in him as a child. There is no waste when it comes to God's redemptive purposes in our lives.

A Pharisee:
Now, whenever I hear "Pharisee", I conjure up a bearded, arrogant, cold, legalistic gentleman. So, I was glad to see Beth explain that the Pharisee stood for the noblest traditions of the Hebrew people, "austere in his ideals, and holy in life." I can think of one church denomination I have been associated with in which I have encountered a mindset that "rules rule!" In fact, I am a bit intimidated by them and for the lack of 'grace' I perceive. On the other hand, I admire their devotion to the Word of God and its sacredness, and their heritage in the Word give them a sort of trustworthiness. However, Beth had us do an exercise based on Matt. 23 that describes how the Pharisees were hypocritical, then asked: Do any of these descriptions describe you? Ok, lightbulb! Yah! And yes, I've often heard of Jesus' anger towards these people, but missed out on His mercy towards them when He said He longed to gather them to Himself, much like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings.(Matt.:23:37)

Father, may anytime I am tempted to judge others, may I remember the grace that You have shown to me and that Your love extends to all and does not stop with me and my conclusions about their worthiness. May I, like Paul, be purposeful in learning Scripture and teaching my sons to be students. Grant us teachable hearts, Lord. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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(Here is the prayer that Beth quoted at the Intro. session:)

Lord, Make Me A Student

Lord, make me a student,not of higher learning

but of Your higher ways; not to expand my mind,

but so my heart will change.

Give me the courage to withhold nothing

from You worthy of a lesson;

Your Word as my text;

Each circumstance, Your pen;

My heart, Your page.

Take my needs and teach me dependency.

Take my failures and teach me grace.

Take my pain and teach me compassion.

Take my fears and teach me faith.

Take my "waits" and teach me patience.

Take my storms and teach me trust.

Take my tongue and teach me reverence.

Take my deserts and teach me thirst.

Lord, make me a student.

Never let me stop growing,

for as long as I can see my reflection in the mirror,

I am not yet complete.

Lord, make me a student,

and take me not home,

until You look in my face

and see the reflection of Your own.