Come Follow Me with Sam

 Welcome! The (first) Reign of Judges The time of judges was a strange disruption of government to the patterns of the time. While this isn't a western type democracy as we see it today by any means, it  seems much more egalitarian than the other forms of government at the general inhabitants disposal of the time. This is also a very unique time in Israel's history. I already talked about how assuming that the ante-diluvian and the Israelites under Moses following the same type of church structure misses the mark. We can do the same thing when we think about periods of the nation of Israel. First was the period in the desert, then there was the reign of judges, then there was the reign of kings, then the split kingdoms, then the diaspora, the regathering, occupation under the Greeks and roman, and finally the Christian era.  The way that the Israelites operated under the Reign of Judges seems to be resilient against general apostasy (somewhat more decentralized) but not e...

 Welcome! Before this weeks reading, it would be good to check out Come Follow Me's explanatory note of the histories There are some rough stories coming up. It is important to understand that this is a different place and a different time recorded by different people in a different way. Rather than passing judgement on who the Israelites were and were not, it is better to seek understanding of what this work means. How to play very dicey games The story of this week is the people of Israel playing on the edge of a knife. God gave them them land of Israel and told them to inhabit it. The people knew the Israelites were coming and were preserved miraculously, but the groups described chose to defy the armies of Israel. Joshua's people were surrounded everywhere by enemies and all they had were God's promise/covenant/command to possess the land and follow in His footsteps. It is at these times that you need to be exactly obedient to the voice of God and hearken very closely....

 Welcome! pull up your deut and lets get slicing! The evolution narrative vs the dispensation narrative Bottom line up front: The chapters and verses you are about to read emphasize that that which is taught to us today is that which was taught to the Israelites in the dispensation of Moses; it's the same gospel. The same first commandment, the same prophecies of Christ, the same heed to prophets and the commandments of God and anyone looking with the spirit could be told these things. Some days it seems like academics are hard-welded to studying the scriptures as though the central figure, God, doesn't actually exist. Like studying McDonalds but ignoring burgers. You might explore why people keep coming to this place, develop theories on what motivates them, what comforts, they may be trying to obtain, or what past traditions led to them to think of McDonalds as a daily Mecca. the people who actually go to McDonald's would probably give these people a good shake (pu...

 Welcome! There are a lot of cool stories in the reading this week! check out the first 3 minutes of this The Chosen episode for an interesting insight into the brass serpent. You have permssion to watch the rest too, I did :D The thanksgiving way vs the way of complaining We always have the choice to open up or to close down. God has given us the thanksgiving way to keep us always open to the greater things. The devil is always trying to get us to close down, to disconnect, and distance. This is what happens when you become cynical, then you become trapped because you see the problem as outside of you and not part of the flow and that can lead to bad places. For Israel, it literally led them away from the promised land and back into the desert. Moses' whoopsie Moses forgot to praise God for the water delivered to the Israelites. This is a poignant lesson because it seems to easy to fall into the same thing for me. How do you adequately recognize God in your life? Can any of us do ...

 Welcome! The great secret of the temple Understanding the Tabernacle requires a different mode of thought than the world. The world wants to treat the mysteries like a giant treasure hunt, a labyrinth of clues that leads you to ultimate power, enlightenment, presence, whatever you want to call it, and that the secret of the temple is these hidden clues and symbols that you collect like Pokémon cards until you you've caught them all and you are ready. Its not exactly wrong, because there is a great treasure and there is a map and there are symbols and secrets to understand. But for the most part, its actually bypassing the whole point of the temple experience, past and present. All the secrets you need to know to understand the temple are in fact hiding in plain sight, but the key to unlocking their knowledge requires a lifetime of work. The temple is a miniature representation of the cosmos, and the temple ceremonies past and present are the story of eternity packaged in a way tha...