David Pawson - ’Unlocking the Bible’ Podcast

Part 58 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  Continuing his study on Zechariah, David Pawson looks at the question brought to the priest/prophet by the people regarding fasting and feasting which were part of their religion. They were wondering how long they needed to go on fasting to please God. Zechariah quoted the enlightening words of Isaiah which show that food fasting is not the principal kind that God requires, but rather ‘fasting’ from mistreating others, and to be generous and kind. The exile had been the result of their selfishness and greed. Regarding their feasts, Zechariah pointed out that they needed to be celebrations of God. He seeks to give them a missionary outlook. Much of what he said in the 2nd half of the book regarded the distant future. David points out that Hebrews 1:1 says: God spoke to our fathers in the olden times through the prophets in bits and pieces. And that describes these prophecies. He says that they were like jigsaw pieces and that Revelation is “the picture on the jigsaw box lid”, fitting the pieces together. One of the pictures Zechariah presents is of a King riding on a donkey which obviously was describing Jesus. Eventually all the nations will send representatives to Israel to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.

Part 57 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  David Pawson says that Zechariah overlapped Haggai by one month, and had some similar prophecies but it is not an easy book to understand. It has apocalyptic prophecies. David explains that describing something in the distant future requires pictures and symbols such as Revelation, Ezekiel and Daniel have. How would you describe television to somebody who lived a thousand years ago? Whereas Haggai dealt with the current problems, much of Zechariah’s messages were looking far forward. Zechariah was a priest as well as a prophet and for the next 400 years there would be no direct word from God via prophets so priests would assume more importance. The book divides into 2 halves, the first 8 chapters concerned with the current situation in Israel. He reminds them that ignoring the prophets had caused their forefathers to be deported to Babylon. There were angels involved in messages to Zechariah. He was told that there was a window of world peace, so it was an ideal time for the Jews to get the temple built. Zechariah assures his people that the Lord will deal with the nations who harm them, but also, some Gentiles will join them. David explains symbols in the book. This is an encouraging study.

Part 56 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  While some prophets had a lifetime of prophesying, David Pawson says that Haggai spoke for only 3 months. He came after the exile, so his job was to encourage Jews who had returned. Not all Jews returned to Israel as they had become established in Babylon. The returnees had problems because the land had not been cultivated for 70 years, the walls had been torn down, there was opposition from the Samaritans and financial support was withdrawn so this was heavy going for them. Haggai spoke to them 18 years after they had returned, and he provoked them to rethink their attitudes. They had stopped building the temple because money was short, but Haggai showed them that money was short because they had stopped putting God first. When they resumed the building, there was still a drought – because they had not put their lives right with God. They responded well and Haggai encouraged them to be strong and not afraid. And eventually financial support came to them from Persia again. Haggai gave them a promise from God that His glory would fill the temple.    

Part 55 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  David Pawson says that Zephaniah was a descendant of the last good king, but now, after evil kings, there was a boy king on the throne, Josiah. What kind of king would he become? The whole nation was in chaos, having had bad examples on the throne, and God sent Zephaniah as his prophet. His job was to try to pull the nation  of Judah back to God before He would have to exile them as He had the northern 10 tribes already. Zephaniah warns the people of Judah and also the lands around them that there is coming a Day of the Lord when accounts must be settled, but there is time to repent and deflect punishment. Interestingly, God had brought the Philistines to Canaan at the same time as he had brought his chosen people - as an instrument of discipline for his people. David says it’s much better to have the discipline of our Father God now than to reap eternal punishment. Zephaniah is letting the people know that the choice between God’s justice and his mercy is theirs. God’s last word was always to choose his mercy. For all Zephaniah’s and good King Josiah’s efforts, the people wouldn’t listen.

Part 54 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  David Pawson looks at Habakkuk and finds that the prophet sometimes argued with God because his view of Him wasn’t quite accurate. But he clung to God until he got his answer. At first, he is disturbed by what is happening and calls on God for justice. When God gives his answer, he is further disturbed because He isn’t going to do what Habakkuk expects. David reminds us that we often come to God and want him to fit in with what we think He should be doing. David recommends what Habakkuk did - interrogatory prayer – where we ask God questions. David says when God reveals to us what he is going to do, he does so so we can tell people to get ready. Faith - both in the Hebrew and the Greek languages – is the same as faithfulness. So we demonstrate faith by remaining faithful. Habakkuk named 5 things for which God would punish the Babylonians after they had punished the Jews – Injustice, Imperialism, Inhumanity, Intemperance and Idolatry. When he stopped arguing with God, Habakkuk ‘saw the light’, and was at peace.  

Part 53 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  In looking at the book of the prophet Nahum, David Pawson says that time had run out for Assyria. Jonah had preached a warning from God 150 years earlier with great success. But now it was time for judgment. David warns that today people think that God will never be angry, because he is slow to anger, offering mercy first. Judgment on Assyria was good news for the Jews who were living under Assyrian occupancy. Chapter 1 of Nahum gives warning to the capital city of Nineveh; chapter 2 gives details of how it will happen. God doesn’t judge a heathen nation for breaking the 10 Commandments, but rather for their inhumanity, and this applied to cruel Assyria. Less than a decade later, the devastation occurred & Nineveh has never been inhabited again. Why study the prophets? Because they reveal God to us. He is presented as the all-powerful God, in total control of nature and history. In our modern scientific age, we must keep hold of the fact that God can cause miracles within nature and movement within history. Also, God is a unique combination of both justice and mercy. He can change his plans for people depending on how they react to him. An important study.

Part 52 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” This is a beautiful verse from Micah. In this study of Micah, David Pawson points out that the Bible is unique in that it is a book of history and geography, not just words and thoughts. God unfolded his revelation at particular times and places, and it is helpful to understand why. As a simple country man, Micah was very aware of social injustice, and the corruption of the city was influencing the country areas. Micah was greatly disturbed by what he saw going on among the people of God – idolatry, immorality and injustice. He also has good news for the distant future. David notes that God is both just and merciful. Justice gives us what we deserve whereas mercy gives us what we don’t deserve. He says that justice and mercy are not contradictory, but travel down the same road, but mercy goes further than justice. The cross demonstrates this supremely. David says Micah is a message for our time as well as his.

Part 51 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  As David Pawson looks at Jonah, he says that God would give a message to a prophet in either words or pictures and it would become like a burden within them until delivered. The message could be of challenge when people were doing wrong, or of comfort when they were on the right track. Sadly, most of the prophets, like Jonah, had to challenge. Jonah came from the same village as Jesus, Nazareth. He was called to go to Assyria’s capital, Nineveh. The Assyrians were a particularly cruel people. Because of the strange story of Jonah being swallowed by a large fish when he tried to run away from his mission, many people take it as a myth or parable. David explains why he believes it is factual. He also says when you’ve answered the question of why Jonah ran away, the whole book will open up to you. There are 8 physical miracles in the story of Jonah, not just one. This book shows us that God is still in control of the world he created. This is an enlightening study.

Part 50 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  David Pawson looks at what God was doing in the 8th Century B.C., in particular with prophets Amos and Hosea. God’s great plan was to win the world back to himself through his people, the Jews. But his people did not have the same plan. He had made a covenant with them and planted them in the crossroads of the world, promising to bless them as they were obedient to him. The choice was theirs and to disobey would bring curse instead of blessing. There was a time of peace and prosperity and corruption emerged. Religion was popular but it was not true religion. When goddesses come in, religions become sexual. What was supposed to be a holy nation were becoming just like everybody else. Amos goes through the things by which God disciplined his people: a food shortage; a shortage of fresh drinking water; locusts and mildew to the crops and animals; plagues to the people; they were raided; lightning set houses on fire. Each time Amos mentioned the warnings God had sent, the refrain was the same – “yet you did not return to Me”. The last 2 disasters were an extreme earthquake and then exile from their land. Amos’s prayers affected God’s actions.

Part 49 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series  David Pawson says that Joel agreed with Obadiah that the Day of the Lord would settle accounts, but Joel warned Israel that they would be included. This was a shock to Israel as they had felt safe from God’s judgment. Joel said that a terrible plague of locusts which had left them with famine had been a warning from the Lord. God had visited their enemies with disasters; now they had brought this disaster upon themselves.  David says it is similar with believers today when they realize that the Word of God warns against losing their salvation. “Sin in God’s people is just as serious as sin outside God’s people.” Joel called the people to repent and come back to God. David notes that Jezebel’s daughter Athaliah had seized the throne on the death of the king and killed all his male descendants (except one hidden by the High Priest) and nobody had done anything to stop her. After Joel’s words, Queen Athaliah was replaced by the boy who had been saved, Joash. David says that when there is true heart repentance, God can restore the years that the locusts have eaten in our lives. Joel prophesied a time when God’s Spirit would be poured on believers.