I’m Jemima L Yeggs, a.k.a. Stinker. Pink Lady Apple Yeggs, my landlady and my auntie, wants to read about how younger people, especially couples respond to what the Bible says. And she wants to know how God is at work at Lily the Pink.
Dr. Ellie, Mary, Arabella, and I were in our “green room.”
Dr. Ellie was playing with Stormie and Joan. B.B. was feeding Ethan.
Arabella was fixing my hair, “The miracle you had last week didn’t last.”
I asked, “What miracle, Fireball?”
Belle sighed, “The miracle that you got your hair fixed on your own.”
I protested, “I don’t think I did a bad job.”
Arabella replied, “But that’s what you can see. Back here, it’s a train wreck.”
B.B. snickered, “It’s not that bad, Fireball!”
Arabella asked, “Can you really see from over there?”
Dr. Ellie said, “Maybe train wreck is appropriate. Stinker has the caboose for it.”
Belle asked, “Can I use that line?”
We all said, “No!!!”
I whined, “Do I have the caboose for it? You do know that I am eating for two at the moment.”
B.B. snickered, “Stinker, the trick is to know that you have imperfections but find ways to hide them.”
I sighed, “There is probably a dozen Bible verses about how that is just wrong. All I can think of is ‘But who can discern their own errors? Forgive my hidden faults.’ (Psalm 19:12).”
Dr. Ellie said, “All that says is that you want God to forgive the faults that you cannot see. But that’s why we are here, to see them for you.”
B.B. snickered, “And for Belle to make a joke out of it.”
Belle bowed as she opened the door.
Rev. Joseph led us in prayer.
Emmett and the choir sang Foolishness of the Cross.
I said, “That was wonderful, but we are starting with the next chapter of 1 Corinthians.”
Emmett said, “I did not want chapter one to be left out. ‘For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.”’ (1 Corinthians 1:18-19). And that quote Isaiah… ‘Therefore once more I will astound these people with wonder upon wonder; the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.”’ (Isaiah 29:14).”
Joseph laughed, “To correct you, Aunt Jemima, we just started in 1 Corinthians 1.”
I smiled, “I stand corrected. Or that is, I sit down corrected.”
Samuel asked, “As if I need to know, where are we searching for Jesus today, Aunt Jemima?”
I smiled, “We are looking at the book of 1 Corinthians. I love it how you keep this up when it is obvious. Arabella, do you need Mr. Dictionary?”
Arabella shook her head, “Aunt Jemima, I have a hard time trying to think of a joke using 1 Corinthians, in the first place.”
I huffed, “Belle, I have no idea why you keep trying to make a joke out of each book in the Bible in the first or second place.”
Belle smiled as she replied, “Oh, Aunt Jemima, we don’t cover the second place until next week.”
I muttered to myself, “I fell for it again.”
Penny (1 Corinthians 2:9) “However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him—”
Penny said, ”The idea of not seeing and not understanding carries over into Romans. ‘Rather, as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.”’’’ (Romans 15:21). And that comes from Isaiah ‘Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.’’ (Isaiah 64:4). And then earlier in Isaiah… ‘so he will sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.’’ (Isaiah 52:15). I guess that last one applies to most politicians when they always have to have an answer to everything, when they really have no idea what they are saying. But what Paul applies this to in 1 Corinthians is that what God has in store for us, none of us who love Him could ever imagine. Everybody talks about their idea of Heaven, but even the most extravagant imagination could ever come anywhere close to God’s glory. And there we will be right in the midst of it.”
I nodded, “Thank you, Penny. How is Caeleb?”
Penny smiled, “He’s pulling up and he is trying to take that first step, but he’s not there yet.”
I added, “Watch out. Once he figures that out, running won’t be far behind.”
Blake (1 Corinthians 3:20) “and again, “The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.””
Blake said, “This kind of ties into Emmett’s song. But in Psalm 94: ‘They pour out arrogant words; all the evildoers are full of boasting.’ (Psalm 94:4). It’s what everybody in this room is saying. No matter how much intellect we have and how much we can read the Bible and all, it don’t mean anything if we don’t have Jesus in our hearts.”
I smiled, “Amen. Now this next verse has so many connected verses, Professor Angus, can you divide things up amongst you and yours?”
Angus (1 Corinthians 5:13) “God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked person from among you.””
Angus said, “This idea of expelling the wicked from among you is scattered through Deuteronomy. I will do the first verse. ‘That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.’ (Deuteronomy 13:5). This is talking about false gods being worshipped within the Israelite community. This wickedness was supposed to be cast out, but the Israelites not only allowed it, they joined in the worship of these false gods.”
Missy smiled, “I will take the two verses in Deuteronomy 17. ‘The hands of the witnesses must be the first in putting that person to death, and then the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from among you.’ (Deuteronomy 17:7). What leads up to this verse is mentioned in the New Testament where two or three witnesses must give testimony before the guilty person is put to death. In this case, the law that is being broken is the worship of other gods. Now, later in that chapter, it talks about the courts… ‘Anyone who shows contempt for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering there to the Lord your God is to be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel.’ (Deuteronomy 17:12). These days, contempt of court is almost a joke. You go to jail until you can come back and apologize. But this shows that adjudicating God’s Law carries more weight. And then, that judge better be right or God will deal with him.”
Samuel smiled, “I will take the next two verses in Deuteronomy. ‘then do to the false witness as that witness intended to do to the other party. You must purge the evil from among you.’ (Deuteronomy 19:19). This relates directly to the Ninth Commandment. Again, evil must be expelled from among God fearing people. We are commanded to not give false testimony, but if someone does, they should be given the sentence of the person they lied in court about. If that is death, then death. But as of our courts today, the federal sentence for perjury is up to 5 years and the court decides how much of a fine. In this state, you can be sentenced to up to 8 years and a $20,000 limit on the fines. Now, for protection of the marriage vows… ‘you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife. You must purge the evil from among you.’ (Deuteronomy 22:24). This is talking about a virgin who is betrothed to someone. Remember Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but they had not yet married and consummated the union. That’s what Jesus talking about going ahead and preparing a place was all about. When the father had the house ready for the son, then they were married and they moved into their new house. So, this is in that period when the virgin is staying pure, waiting for her husband. If any man, married or single, so it covers adultery or fornication, they are to be put to death. Rape for the man. Sexual immorality for the woman because she could have screamed and she did not. Of course, in many communities, maybe some in Tracy, if the woman screams, it could be that no one comes to her rescue.”
Menzie smiled, “I guess that leaves me with the last one and a summary. ‘If someone is caught kidnapping a fellow Israelite and treating or selling them as a slave, the kidnapper must die. You must purge the evil from among you.’ (Deuteronomy 24:7). I want to thank my rescuer right now. Sophie, you are my best friend forever. You rescued me from my evil grandmama. And I want to thank my Dad, Angus MacDougall. Dad, you paid Sophie to do that detective work. All you wanted was to know what Mamma’s name was so you could marry her legally, but then it turned into a rescue mission. You ended up with a family instead, with me, Lauren, and Sammie. Grandmama is in prison. She will probably never get out. She didn’t know how to do anything other than make babies and cheat other people. And while we rarely give people the death penalty these days, we remove the evil from among us. That is the point of these verses. First, false god worship, then people who mess up the court system by contempt or lying under oath, then sexual immorality and kidnapping and slavery. All that needs to be removed from a lawful group of people. We cannot have that among us. We cannot accept that as a way of life. I know. I was not free. But now, I can say the words Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!’”
Grannie Fannie said, “I am getting used to saying this. And all God’s children said…”
The entire class replied, “Amen!”
I finally took in a breath, “Wow! I should have saved that one for last!”
Lauren said, “It’s not bus time, yet, Aunt Jemima.”
I muttered, “I will never figure out how Lauren knows when it is time.”
Menzie snickered, “We are starting to teach her how to tell time, Aunt Jemima, both digital and analog. I am sure Miss Madelaine will get around to it sometime.”
Dr. Ben (1 Corinthians 9:9) ‘For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned? ”
Dr. Ben said, “And true to you being the Stinker, I have to follow Menzie quoting MLK jr. This is similar to what Paul wrote to Timothy. ‘For Scripture says, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain,” and “The worker deserves his wages.”’ (1 Timothy 5:18). And Paul was getting that from Deuteronomy: ‘Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.’ (Deuteronomy 25:4). Paul uses this verse to illustrate that you should pay fair wages and especially not withhold them. The ox is getting the grain threshed for you. The least you can do is feed him.”
Dr. Ellie (1 Corinthians 15:27) “For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ.”
Dr. Ellie said, “This is God’s hierarchy. He has placed everything under Jesus. ‘You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet:’ (Psalm 8:6). So all the nations on the earth will eventually bow down to Jesus.”
Rev. Joseph (1 Corinthians 15:32) “If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.’”
Rev. Joseph said, “The focus here is the resurrection. It is quoting Isaiah. ‘But see, there is joy and revelry, slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep, eating of meat and drinking of wine! “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!”’ (Isaiah 22:13). Paul related this verse to the resurrection. If there is no hope in the resurrection, we might as well turn to this concept of hedonism. Let us pleasure ourselves because death is the end. The problem that many find is that pleasure is fleeting. You either eat more and drink more, or the let down after the pleasure is worse than the emptiness before the pleasure. Of course, as Christians we know that the emptiness is there because we need God. But without the resurrection, there is no hope of the next life. Jesus gave us love, salvation, and hope.”
Mary (1 Corinthians 15:55) “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
Mary said, “This follows the argument that Joseph made. ‘“I will deliver this people from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. Where, O death, are your plagues? Where, O grave, is your destruction? “I will have no compassion,’ (Hosea 13:14). Until we know Jesus, the one thing that we all have in common is a fear of death, the unknown. But being with Jesus is better than anything we could ever imagine. Penny talked about that with her verses. And with that fear gone, we should have no fear, no anxiety, nothing like that. Now, I have a tight production schedule for the Storm Chasing Channel streaming service. And I do get bossy. Some of that bossiness comes from not having enough faith that God will see us through. We are all works in progress.”
Grannie Fannie (3 John 1:3) “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”
Then Grannie Fannie added, “And then all God’s children said, ‘Amen.’”
Lauren ran up to Grannie Fannie and hugged her. “Now, it’s bus time!”
Brooke said, “Stormie, church time!”
Stormie said, “Aunt Brooke, we like to go to church!” Joan yelled, “Yeah!” And Ellie Rain and Olympia joined in.
Credits
When I am using quoted verses in the New Testament, I got those verses (different translations) from Seeing Jesus – Bible Encounter Study Guide by Marilyn Hickey. The concept of doing this in a Sunday school setting is based on her book. When the youngster gives the other verse, Aunt Jemima had sent the comparison verse from the Hickey book, but occasionally, a verse is added (easily found in the cross references). The rest is from internet searches, a variety of commentaries and study Bibles, and personal knowledge.
The stats on the limits for a perjury conviction are fictional since the state in which Tracy resides is fictional, but they are slightly more severe than Pennsylvania.
A testament to God being in control, I had no idea what the topic of discussion was, I just wanted a family of at least four people to read 1 Corinthians 5:13 and then and then the six Bible verses from Deuteronomy. I was thinking the Evidents, their foster son Clay and Sarah Dalton. But then, I felt a certain calm when I thought of the MacDougalls. I even chose the verses in the order that I used before reading the verses from Deuteronomy. When I had the son of a judge, who is in pre-law at the university, reading about perjury and adultery, I got weak in the knees. God planned that. Then my eyes got moist as Menzie, a victim of a type of slavery and human trafficking read the last of the Deuteronomy verses. That was all God’s doing. And me putting my mind on how that character reacted to those verses made them a good part of this Bible lesson.
Here is Foolishness of the Cross from Christian Songs with Lyrics. I try to give the credit to the originator of the song, but this one was too good to pass up. This YouTube site is all I have.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
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