Bible Study Reflections

Bible Study Format

Bible Study Schedule

Matthew 6:1-4

Even people who give most generously of their time and money respond to a show of appreciation, even a simple thank you. A local company gives out small wooden blocks with symbols of each volunteer project to those who participate and these simple souvenirs are prized by those who earn them. Jesus doesn't see the need for reward as a flaw -- in his promise of God's reward, he may even be saying that the desire for reward is something instilled by God. However, we must carefully examine our hearts for what reward we expect.

True charitable giving is done not to draw praise from others. Praise is a nice feeling, but a shallow passing thing. It's also a great temptation. Generous people can become so bitter when they don't get the appreciation they expected that it can ruin any joy they might have gotten from giving and can even destroy the gift itself if they show their resentment to the recipient.

What then is the reward we should look for? It isn't necessarily eternal riches in a far off heaven. When acts of charity are done for praise, then praise is the reward, but when they are done for love, love is the reward.

Also, we consider the fact that we may have already received the reward in advance, in the many blessings we have. We give out of a sense of gratitude to God that we've already been taken care of so well.

Should all giving be anonymous then? What about the good that come by drawing attention to it by giving? Jesus himself tells us in Matthew 5:16, "Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven."

There's a difference between being a show off and a good model. In a recent interview, Brad Pitt said that since he and Angelina Jolie knew that photographers were going to be following them everywhere anyway, they decided to take them places to publicize those who needed help. There is no way that these celebrities can do anything anonymously, so they chose to put as much of their spotlight on a cause.

But Jesus' warning may be about more than just the dangers of public praise. Thoreau pointed out that some of the greatest philanthropists he knew were following a way of life that helped create the need they were contributing money to help. We find ourselves reflected in this mirror -- for example, how much do we give to help alleviate problems caused by violence in the Middle East while continuing to use large amounts of energy that contributed to that violence? We are asked to weigh our charitable acts not just with why we give, but also how we live.

-- Larry Herndon, Rachel MacNair, Terry Matz

Psalm 1

This psalm provoked much reflection on how it is possible to find happiness in laws, even, or perhaps especially, God's law. The psalm seems to be promising that the law of the Lord is meant to be a blessing to God’s people. True happiness comes from enjoying God’s word and not from a wicked life.

In some ways, this has been our experience. Hanging out with people who lead us into paths that at first seem fun, but are really self-destructive, has resulted in depression. Turning back to God, focusing on loving God and others, has healed our hearts and lives.

On the other hand, we have experienced family and church who have used the idea of the "law of the Lord" to promote the idea that anything enjoyable is bad and any act of independence is a sin. We have had to search for deeper laws of love and find joy in doing that deeper law, rather than the rules imposed on us. Knowing this deeper law is not as easy as it looks. The Bible is written by people and there is no pure or unbiased fountain of faith. Looking within our own experience helps with the search for that fountain.

Another challenge is the idea of "delighting" in the law of the Lord. To us, prayer and reading the Bible often seem like work, even if they ultimately bring peace and joy to some of us. Trying different approaches, being open to the Spirit, being creative in approaches to prayer and Scripture all help to make meditation more enjoyable.

Psalm 15

This psalm is a trap, luring the self righteous into self satisfaction before revealing God‘s real priorities for a good and moral life.

Suppose we are sitting in the temple or a church or a meeting house, listening to the psalm. We hear the first verse and the beginning of the second. Who can live in God’s presence? Those who are blameless and do right… “Well, that’s me of course,” we may think — even if we wouldn‘t say it out loud. “I go to the right church, I believe the right things, I give money to the right causes, I’ve got a clean record.” But then the psalm describes what blameless means to God — those who don’t slander, don’t hurt friends and neighbors, who stand by a commitment even when it’s inconvenient. Hey, where’s the “believe the right doctrine, follow the right rules”? Blameless also means lending without expecting a return (in other words, giving away!) and not exchanging the welfare of the innocent for our own gain or comfort. Those who can lend are most often wealthy; those who can control the fate of the innocent are most often the powerful. This seems to be a direct confrontation of those with wealth and power.

So who can live in God’s presence? Immoral behavior separates us from God, but no one is blameless. If a perfect life is the only way, then everyone is in trouble.

And what about despising the wicked? Jesus himself didn’t despise those the selfrighteous considered wicked but welcomed them as friends. Who are we to judge who is wicked? We may despise those who support war and we ourselves are despised for not supporting it. Judging brings demonizing and violence.

Happily, there is a way out of this trap. We know from Scripture and faith that not only can we approach God without being blameless, God longs for us to do so. God is pulling us toward the Divine. We are able to improve our lives because God is with us, helping us to change, to love. The message can be turned around, “Who can walk blamelessly and do right? Those who walk in God’s presence and abide with the divine.”

- Terry Matz, recording

PSALM 23

The image of God as shepherd has become so familiar, even cliché to us, that we forget that shepherds were not respected members of the community in this culture. They were not rich or noble or well-educated. Yet this psalm doesn’t portray God as a king or a priest or a warrior, but as one of these humble, hard-working protectors who slept and lived with their flocks. God comes down to our level, to guide us, to protect us, rather than ordering us from a throne or temple.

If God is a shepherd, then we, and the psalmist, are God’s flock. Traditionally, king David is credited with writing this psalm. Though a king, David considers himself just one of the sheep in God’s flock, needing guidance and discipline. This psalm reminds us of our equality in God’s eyes, regardless of worldly success or position. It also reminds us to whom we should look to for direction -- not our rulers, not our celebrities, but God.

The rod and staff are the direction shepherds use to pull sheep back from cliff or dangers. Knowing God’s direction will guide us gives us courage to follow the paths and take risks.

Comfort and abundance come from trusting God. Oil was the moisturizing cream of that time, giving comfort to dry skin in the desert. It is easy for us to imagine God’s spiritual blessings providing moisturizer for our spirits in barren, troubled times.

The banquet in the presence of our enemies was troubling at first, because it seemed to imply some sort of triumph. But looking at it another way, this verse promises us that no matter how much our enemies put us down or insult us, we can still be spiritually rich. The banquet is a nonviolent image -- we don’t need to vanquish our enemies or fight them or even get rid of them in order to have an abundant life. We just need to enjoy the blessings God provides for us.

PSALM 93

We discussed this psalm before the tragic earthquake in Asia showed how the earth could be moved and how floods could roar. I hope these reflections still have some value.

God is more powerful than any anything or anyone we are impressed with on earth. Whatever we think is powerful or unyielding on earth is nothing compared with God. Water is majestic in beauty and destructive power, but God is even more powerful. We may depend on the earth to be solid beneath our feet but God is where we find true steadfastness.

Natural disasters remind us how powerless humans are in geological forces and time. Why doesn’t God intervene to prevent these disasters if God is more powerful? We struggled with this age-old question without a definitive answer.

We were reminded not to forget the big picture. We may have trouble relating to this transcendent powerful God. The image of God as king was troubling, and even insulting to God because kings often act cruelly and selfishly. Though relating to God in a personal way is helpful, it can be easy to forget that God’s ways are not our ways. We must be humble in the knowledge of God’s power or we fool ourselves.

What is the nature of this power? When we see so many natural and human-made forces that seem powerful or unchangeable, we may despair but this psalm reminds us there is something beyond those forces. One of us mentioned a man who had been hit by a lightning bolt, one of the most destructive forces in nature. Millions of volts of electricity ripped through his body to members of family, tearing his clothes to shreds, paralyzing him for hours, leaving cauterized claw marks on his body. Yet the first thing he did when he regained consciousness on the ground, was fight to turn his head to see if his daughters were all right. In the midst of this powerful destructive force, love still ruled.

We had an interesting discussion about what decrees of God are sure and established. These decrees would have to transcend culture. There is evidence that killing and violence cause extreme psychological distress for the perpetrators, indicating that a decree against killing transcends culture and time. But we also have to be careful not to impose our notions of morality on other people and cultures as “God’s laws.” On the other hand, when we consider something cruel, a natural disaster or act of a human being, where does that spring from, if not from the Light Within, God’s perspective on the world?

PSALM 100

God is so cool and that’s reason to party!

Let’s do joy (verse 1). We are God’s people and that’s enough grounds to feel joy and celebrate openly. We all have different ways of making a joyful noise. One Friend mentioned that sometimes it is freeing to go to a charismatic church where joy is expressed in very audible and visible ways. Another Friend enjoys singing along with a variety of contemporary Christian music.

Let’s worship with joy (verse 2). Although Quakers have much to be joyful about in their worship and relationship for the Spirit, it is sometimes difficult to see in the sober, somber faces we often present in worship and attention to business.

Group unity with God leads to joy (verse 3). A group singing together in celebration of love can drown out joy-killing nonsense of bickering and pettiness.

Taking action as a community leads to joy (verse 4). This psalm was originally a song for a group of people to sing while the actions are being performed. Though we no longer enter the gates and courts of a temple, we can find joy in group activity dedicated to God.

God’s eternal love leads to joy (verse 5). There is joy associated in knowing that God is at work even in difficult circumstances. Being thankful for who God is and what God has done is a key to being joyful. This can be very difficult to do in the midst of troubled times or while we wait for answers to prayers. Praying regularly with gratitude for blessings and thanking God for what God is doing even when we don’t see the results yet are ways to incorporate thankfulness in our lives.

Psalm 131

The message that our peace comes from trusting in God is reassuring and difficult at the same time for those of us who discussed this psalm in Bible Study. The psalmist tells us that we don't have to do everything. Sometimes events occur in our lives in a completely unexpected way and we feel that someone or something prepared the way for us. Individuals can only do so much and then they have to rely on God. If God doesn't exist we have to figure out what to do. If God exists, then there are many things that are not our responsibility.

The psalms addresses our human tendency to "get too big for our britches." The temptation for all of us, especially social activists, is to overextend. Despair sets in as reality doesn't match our lofty goals. This psalm can be an antidone to that despair -- it says "You have lofty goals but you're not the Messiah." Our culture doesn't live easily with mystery and intangible (or nonexistent!) results, and this psalm pleads with us to be at peace with both. Peace and calm come more easily when there is no desire to overextend. This message is in opposition to an imperialist mindset. It demonstrates that a conquering spirit causes internal discontent and separation from God.

The psalmist seems to recommend an active seeking of the state of humility and calm where one can be receptive to what God can tell us. One Friend spoke of seeking to be an harmonious note in the symphony of the universe. We are not the conductor of the symphony, but can play our note, if we are receptive.

We were concerned about how this psalm could be misused. It was pointed out this psalm may not be complete in itself, appropriate for all situatious, but a recommendation that in between times of action, it is important to take time for contemplation. Too much detachment from the world could lead to quietism.

It's also possible it could be misused as a tool of oppression by telling people they should stay quiet and not think of things beyond them. Sometimes it is appropriate to reach beyond the status quo, to look high, and to try to understand the world from God's point of view.

We were fascinated by the image of the soul as a weaned child resting quietly in its mother's (God's) embrace. Those who were parents recalled how content and peaceful their own children looked resting in their arms and how they longed themselves to feel that same trust and peace. But they also recalled, especially at the toddler stage ("weaned"), the challenges it took to get them to that place of rest -- much like getting our souls to a place of trusting calm in our busy lives. The image of the soul as a "weaned" child spoke to us of some measure of independence -- we are able to stand alone but still need to return to God for love.

Psalm 133

This psalm urges us to listen and look beyond our personal search for gratification to enhance the lives of those with whom we relate in family and community. In a seeming paradox, the psalm promises that the more we seek to bless others, the more we will be blessed. In our spiritual lives, we are drawn beyond the lone individual search for perfection when we enter a community. When we come to a Friends meeting to seek answers and pray together, the answers we find will be far different than those we find on our own.

Unity must begin at home, within the family. All of us in Bible study have experienced disunity in the family. A particularly dangerous false unity can be created by scapegoating or banding together against one member of the family. Complaining about that family member is then used to create unhealthy bonds in the rest of the family. The true unity in this psalm excludes no one.

We also want to avoid mistaking uniformity for unity. All people are different and not everyone will be the same.

Because the images in this psalm arise from a different culture and time, we had to dig deeper to find relevance for our lives. Although we didn’t relish the thought of oil running down our collars, the psalmist is enticing us with positive images rather than negative images. Instead of being threatened with punishment if we don’t live in unity, we are given the incentive of rich blessings and life forevermore, like Jesus’ promise to bring abundant life.

The images are very sensual - oil running down, dew falling. For those of us who tend to live inside our heads, these physical images call us to a view of unity that goes beyond the intellectual to touch us on a gut level.

The images also lead us to a perspective of unity in family and community as sacred. The sacramental substances of oil and water anoint Aaron, the prototypical priest, and Zion, the holy city. God is a community in the Trinitarian view of Parent, Son, and Spirit. Unity is more than a good idea in God’s eyes. Unity is sacred. Do we treasure unity as something holy?

Psalm 150