Judges 6:23

[Rob McNair]

"But the Lord said to him, 'Peace be to you; do not fear, you shall not die.'"

For some reason it struck me that this one sentence could summarize the whole Bible.

[Amber Kalina]

Huh. That's pretty cool, and it's only the 7th book in the Bible. Remember when we went to those "Book of Faith" sessions with that adult group, Rob? It said it is important to read the old testament to get more in touch with Jesus. It's like foreshadowing what will happen in the NT.

[Steven & Candace Dahl]

Isn't it great there are these short gems that summarize it all? One of my favorites, coming up on Aug 6th is Isaiah 43:1b " Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, your are mine." I wonder how many times in the Bible we are greeted with those words of comfort and assurance "Peace to you." and "Do not fear." And I'm with you Amber. The O.T. was the place to start!
Candace

[Abby Kalina]

yeah, i remember reading that. i didn't see it that way though. nice imput rob.

[Amber Kalina]

Why is it that, even with this assurance, the Israelites still turned away from God? I mean, here they have God, who comes and practically shows himself to them, yet they go to wood or gold or silver instead?

[Rob McNair]

Steve, I looked up that verse from Isaiah you mentioned because it reminded me of baptism. Well if you keep reading it says:

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.

That's fascinating because in Matthew 3:11 John the Baptist says:

I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Anyway, interesting connection between the OT and NT.