Dear Friends,
We are completing the Old Testament segment of Disciple Bible Study and considering the responses to the tragedies. The nation of Israel is conquered and driven from its home. Their
attempts to understand this horrible experience are many and profound. My sermon will explore two of those.
The prophets believed that God allowed them to be defeated as a consequence of their sins and that the punishment was appropriate. They found hope, believing that turning back to
God would bring comfort.
The second response is found in The Book of Job, which contains many long conversations between Job and his not-so-helpful friends, who repeat the position of the prophets noted
above. The book also includes a lengthy discussion between Job and God, which offers another way of understanding our experiences of suffering.
This sermon is not a history lesson; I hope our explorations can help guide us through our painful experiences.
Grace and peace,
Peter
