GCV Blog

As a pastoral team, we're excited to have Jim Berg as a guest speaker next Sunday, June 3. Jim is a gifted speaker, writer, and counsellor. He also happens to be Angie McMorris's dad. He's written two excellent books on sanctification, Changed Into His Image and Created for His Glory. I've personally been blessed by Changed into His Image, having read it multiple times, and his short little book When Trouble Comes is also an excellent read on suffering. We'll have some of Jim's books available at the Hub, so you might want to consider picking one or two up there on Sunday.

Here's one final suggestion for understanding the purpose of Judges 19-21: ask the Holy Spirit what we're supposed to apply from this story. In the two previous pastoral words on this passage, I suggested that we first look for clues in the text and context, then ask "how does this fit into the story of redemption"? A final clue to any passages' purpose, however, is to ask how it should be applied. Behind any ability to grasp the application of Judges 19-21 are two fundamental convictions. First, we need the Holy Spirit's help and second, He wrote it for a teaching purpose.

"Peanut butter." What comes into your mind when you hear those two words, "peanut butter"? Me, I think of how I like to eat Reese's two at a time. Or maybe one of my favorite ice creams ever, Moose Tracks. Say those two words to Silas, however, and he'll react much differently. He'll say "yuck," or make a spitting noise or, on a polite day, simply inform you that he's allergic and can't have any. In a much less trivial way, the two words "Mother's Day" can also result in a variety of reactions. This Mother's Day, let's take time to consider how we can best minister to each other.

Last week, we began to answer the question "What is Judges 19-21 in the Bible for?" My first suggestion was to look for clues in the context and text. Repeated phrases, recurring themes, and obvious similarities in the stories have already pointed us to the absence of a king and the utter spiritual bankruptcy of the nation of Israel.