Welcome to Day 2481 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom – Theology Thursday – Standing in the Council – I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible.

Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2481 Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps! I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day 2481 of our Trek. The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before.   Today is the twenty-sixth lesson in our segment, Theology Thursday. Utilizing excerpts from a book titled: I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible written by Hebrew Bible scholar and professor the late Dr. Michael S Heiser, we will invest a couple of years going through the entire Bible, exploring short Biblical lessons that you may not have received in Bible classes or Church. The Bible is a wonderful book. Its pages reveal the epic story of God’s redemption of humankind and the long, bitter conflict against evil. Yet it’s also a book that seems strange to us. While God’s Word was written for us, it wasn’t written to us. Today, our lesson is: Standing in the Council. Most people think a prophet is someone God empowers to foretell the future. No doubt, prophets announced God’s intentions, but forecasting future events wasn’t their primary job description. A prophet’s chief task was to serve as God’s mouthpiece to His covenant people, Israel, and her enemies. So, how did someone become a prophet? Was there some sort of heavenly qualification? In fact, there was. You might think the standard for a prophet was whether their words came to pass exactly as uttered (Deut 18:15-22). But that’s actually a by-product of the real litmus test, which we read about in Jeremiah: For who among them has stood in the council (no, sod) of the Lord to see and to hear his word, or who has paid attention to his word and listened? [The Lord says] ... “If they had stood in my council (no, sod), then they would have proclaimed my words to my people” (Jer 23:18, 22). What does it mean to “stand in the council”? Jeremiah elaborates: “to see and to hear his word ... to pay attention to his word and listen.” The one essential test of a prophet—that preceded their ability to deliver a divine message—was that the prophet had to see and hear God in His council. In the Bible, God and His heavenly host were thought to live and conduct business in the divine throne room. This assembly, with God as its CEO, is called “a divine council” (Pss 82:1; 89:5-7).- God chose prophets and commissioned them directly for ministry. When a prophet “stood in the council,” they had a direct encounter with God in His throne room. This motif of “standing in the council” is a repeated pattern in the Bible. In the case of Isaiah, the prophet was transported to the throne room of Yahweh (Isa 6:1-6) to receive his call to service (Isa 6:8-9). For Ezekiel, the circumstances were reversed, with the throne of the Lord coming to him (Ezek 1:1-14, 26-28). Jeremiah was also commissioned via a direct encounter with God. At the beginning of his ministry, the “word of the Lord” came to him (Jer 1:4) and appointed him a prophet. The “word” is identified as Yahweh (Jer 1:6-7) who has come in human form. He reaches out His hand to touch Jeremiah’s mouth (Jer 1:9). It was this encounter that distinguished Jeremiah from false prophets. The pattern began with the first man, Adam, as Job 15:7-8 indicates: “Were you the first person ever born? Were you born before the hills were made? Were you listening at God’s secret council? Do you have a monopoly on wisdom? Eden was the abode of God and His heavenly host. If Job could say he had such access, then he could speak with authority about his innocence. Proceeding from Adam, Enoch and Noah “walked with God” (Gen 5:22, 24; 6:9). The former “prophesied” (Jude 14-15), while the latter is called a “herald of righteousness” (2 Pet 2:5). God appeared visibly to Abraham (Gen 12:1- 3; 15:1-6; compare Acts 7:2-4). Isaac (Gen 26:1-5). and Jacob (Gen 28:10- 22; 31:11-13; 32:22-32; compare Hos 12:3-4). Moses was commissioned at the burning bush (Exodus 3:1-15). The elders of Israel under Moses were commissioned directly by Yahweh (Num 11:24-25), as was Joshua (Deut 31:14-23; Tosh 5:13-15). The book of Judges records dramatic appearances to Gideon (Judg 6) and the “word” of the Lord “appearing” to Samuel, the last of Israel’s judges, when he was a boy: It “stood” (1 Sam 3:10) before Samuel to inform him of Eli’s fate. Many New Testament figures also began their ministries with a direct divine commissioning. For example, the Father and the Spirit were present at Jesus’ baptism (Matt 3:16-17), an event that told astute observers that Jesus was in the prophetic line. Paul’s famous encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Damascus was crucial to proving his status as an apostle in the prophetic tradition (Acts 9:1-9; 1 Cor 9:1; 15:8). And it is no accident that the commissioning of the disciples at Pentecost was accompanied by divine fire (Acts 2:1-4), since fire is a frequent element of divine throne room commissioning scenes in the Old Testament (Exod 3:1-3: 24:17: Isa 6:6-7: 66:15: Ezekl:4.13, 27; Dan 7:9-11).^ Amazingly, the New Testament applies this commissioning to every believer. Every Christian is united to Christ and is commissioned to not only spread the gospel (Matt 28:18-20), but also to be Jesus to the world (2 Cor 3:18:4:11: 2 Tim 1:9: 1 Pet 2:21: 2 Pet 1:4). Every believer is Christ’s ambassador (2 Cor 5:20), having met Christ through the gospel. As the prophets before us, we are now God’s mouthpieces. The lessons that make up Theology Thursday on the Wisdom-Trek Podcast for the next couple of years will satisfy the statement, “I Dare You Not to Bore Me with the Bible.” I trust you’ll enjoy them—and, of course, not be bored. Reflect… If you found this podcast insightful, subscribe and leave us a review, then encourage your friends and family to join us and come along tomorrow for another day of ‘Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.’. Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal. As we take this Trek together, let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend to others Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

I am Guthrie Chamberlain….reminding you to’ Keep Moving Forward,’ ‘Enjoy your Journey,’ and ‘Create a Great Day…Everyday! See you next time for more daily wisdom!