FEAR GOD READING PLAN
Dive into the Bible as we go through our series on the character traits of God.
We hope these readings help your own exploration of knowing God. In the series, we will journey through the book of Exodus to witness how the ancient Israelites grew in their understanding and with relationship with God. In the first few weeks, we’ll work through some ideas of who God is and then work up to Exodus 34, where God describes his own character:
"The LORD [Yahweh], the LORD [Yahweh], the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished..."
- Exodus 34:6–7
Go through the plan at your own pace. There are enough readings to dig into scripture most days of the week. You may find listening helpful, and we encourage you to try at least one. The audio links take you to the chapter read by David Suchet (YouTube audio) who is most famous for playing Poirot in the Agatha Christie films. You can learn a little about him, how he became a follower of Jesus and why he recorded the whole bible in this article.
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These readings explore the biblical authors talking about the mystery and holiness of God. There are 10 readings because we take a break from the series on May 4th and that gives us more opportunities to hear from the Bible.
Imagine being a “fly on the wall” (or nearby rock) watching this all play out. What did you notice? (Audio: Exodus 3, Exodus 4)
Isaiah 40 & optionally Isaiah 55
How would this sound to you if you were kicked out of your country and felt abandoned by God? What do you think about this God? (Audio: Isaiah 40, 55)
To be “holy” is to be “set apart”. Here are some expectations from God for how his chosen people (the ancient Israelites) are to reflect his holiness (the ways in which they are “set apart” from everyone else). How do these expectations strike you? (Audio)
We’ve talked about this passage recently. Jesus shows who he truly is to some of his closest followers. What do you notice about who he really is and how he interacts with his closest followers? (Audio)
Paul breaks into poetry to get across who Jesus is (15-20). If Jesus is “the image of God”, how do the stories of and by Jesus help you understand who God is? (Audio)
John is given a sneak peek into God’s throne room. Is this a quiet room, or is there someone important there? What would it be like to be an observer in the room?
This is Isaiah’s commission with a similar peek into God’s throne room, and look how he responds. Does this make sense to you? (Listen here)
This is Ezekiel’s commission with another peek into God’s throne room. How do you imagine you would respond? (Listen here: Ezekiel 1, Ezekiel 2)
The story of the prodigal son. Is this father the same one you had a peek at in the throne room? Would you like to have a father who loves you like this? You do! Or do you imagine yourself more like the elder son? (Listen here and have a look at Rembrandt’s painting here)
What does Jesus say to Philip (poor Philip!)? Reflect on Jesus going around and interacting with people - is this how you imagine the father? (Listen here)
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God is God and we are not. He is “Holy” - completely unique and set apart from us and our world. “Holiness” is not a common word today. What did the Bible writers mean? You will find this 6 minute video helpful for this week’s readings.
God is “unique, powerful and the source of life”. What happens when he speaks? (Listen here: Genesis 1, Genesis 2 ). If you want to dig deeper, this 7 minute video might help you appreciate Genesis 1 even more.
Job spends some chapters complaining that God is not running the world correctly (can you identify with Job?). Now God answers Job and asks him how much he really knows. Do you sense Job experiencing God’s holiness? (Listen here Job 38 Job 40). If you find this all very confusing and want to dig deeper, here’s an article that might help (11 minutes).
After David is rescued, he composes a poem. Does any of the throne room language sound familiar? Could you ever see yourself writing a poem like this? (Listen here)
Paul claims that God’s power is shown in (what looks like) a spectacular loss: death on a Roman cross. That seems crazy. Do you ever wonder if you might be missing how God is showing his power? (Listen here)
Apparently Paul thinks its easy to miss God’s power, because he prays that the Ephesians will understand it. Is that a worthy prayer for you and the people around you? (Listen here)
We close out this week with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Four adventurous children enter a land called Narnia, slowly hear rumors about and catch glimpses of Aslan, the king of Narnia. Early on, Lucy (one of the four) asks Mr. & Mrs. Beaver about Aslan.
“Is he a man?” asked Lucy.
“Aslan a man!” said Mr. Beaver sternly. “Certainly not. I tell you he is King of the wood and the son of the great emperor-beyond-the-sea. Don’t you know who is the King of the Beasts? Aslan is a lion – The Lion, The Great Lion.”
“Ooh!” said Susan, “I’d thought he was a man. Is he – quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.”
“That you will, dearie, and no mistake,” said Mrs. Beaver; “if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.”
“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy.
“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
Eventually, the children come to know Aslan for themselves. Aslan has “great, royal, solemn, overwhelming eyes” which cause the children to go “all trembly.” Going “all trembly” seems about right when encountering holiness.
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God isn’t called “God”. God has a name. In our readings this week, we explore the stories where God reveals his name. We have bonus reading this week!
This is the Shema which observant Jews recite every morning and evening. “LORD” in all caps is how most English translations render Yahweh (but not all, for example Lexham). How does using Yahweh’s real name feel (compared to his title - kind of like “your president”). Out of respect for his holiness, Jews did not say his name, Yahweh, out loud. (Listen here) If you want to go deeper, check out this 4 minute video.
This is where God describes his own character. It's always better to listen to who he says he is, than for us to make up who he is. We’re going to spend lots of time here later in the series. See if you can memorize vs. 6 & 7. (Listen here)
The Israelites get to Mount Sinai (chapter 19) and begin their one year stay here to get to know God. God starts by saying who he is. Note how similar it is to Exodus 34 (Listen here).
The bible talks a lot about wisdom - apparently she was there when the world was created (Proverbs 8)! How do you become wise? Self-help books? Where does v7 say to start? What does v27 say if you don’t? (v27-32) What do you think of this word “fear?”. Stay tuned, we’ll keep talking about it. (Listen here)
Psalm 25 - To know someone and their character deeply is to “know their heart”. David is described as someone “after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14 and Acts 13:22). Here’s how David talks to Yahweh. Do you know Yahweh like this? Can you pray these words from your heart? (Listen here)
Matthew 6:5-13 - Jesus goes even further than “Yahweh” and calls God “Father” (which you can understand) and invites us to also call Yahweh “Father”. Think back to the Exodus stories - how do you feel calling the Yahweh of Exodus “Father”? Note the next line - our heart’s desire is that his name will be considered holy. Is that your heart’s desire? Does this conflict with “Father” for you? (Starting in September, we will be digging to the Sermon the Mount in a big way. Teaser: this prayer is at the very center (of the center) of the sermon on the mount.) (Listen here)
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Recognizing Yahweh is the Lord of all.
The first part describes how Jesus will act and the second part how God acts. (Listen here)
Biblical writers describe a heavenly realm where spiritual beings (elohim) live, and an earthly realm where humans live. Here, Asaph describes God being very unhappy with the performance of his divine council (or staff team). (Listen here). If this is all weird, this 5 minute video might help.
Pharaoh was understood as the human incarnation of the Egyptian god. So Israel escaping the pharaoh was also a battle between the “authorities of the unseen world” (See Ephesians 6:12). Do you get a sense of that in our world? Compare to Exodus 15:2 “Yahweh … this is my God, and I will praise him”. (Listen here)
Another uncomfortable story about spirits and demons. Who is clearly the boss? (Similar to Exodus 15). Who do you put your trust in? (Listen here). If this story is also puzzling to you, maybe this 6 minute video will help.
Do you sense the tension between deep freedom and respectful awe. Does it draw you in or repel you? Does this tension influence the decisions in your life? (Listen here)
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This week we start our focus on Exodus 34:6-7 with “Compassion” (Hebrew Rakhum]; God's tender heart toward His people and His care for the suffering. To get an idea of what the Bible writers mean by “Compassion” and how its related to “womb”, check out this 5 minute video.
Reading plan passages coming soon…
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God gives undeserved favor and kindness.
Reading plan passages coming soon…
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God's patience invites us to repentance.
Reading plan passages coming soon…
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God’s steadfast love and covenant loyalty never fail.
Reading plan passages coming soon…
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God forgives sin but does not ignore justice.
Reading plan passages coming soon…
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