Rainbows and Promises

Genesis 9: 12-16

¹²And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. ¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."

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The hubby and I recently decided to read through the Bible in chronological order. I'm sure many of you know, but for those who don't, the Bible is not arranged chronologically.

The Old Testament of the Bible is organized according to relevant categories. i.e., the first five books present the books of law or Torah. Next come the books of history (such as I and II Chronicles) followed by wisdom writings (such as Proverbs), then books of major and minor prophets.*

The New Testament is arranged as follows: first, the Gospels or Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John, then The Acts of the Apostles, which might be more aptly called The Acts of the Holy Spirit. Next come some of the letters saved by early groups of Christians. Also known as the Epistles, those letters were either written by the Apostles or by people who learned from them. Finally, Revelation reveals an apocalyptic book, describing future events that will, indeed, be guided by God just as the first book offers insight into the past actions and loving promises God gave us from the beginning.*

So although the Bible as we read it today has a “method to the madness” if you will, it is not a chronological depiction of God’s Word.

I spoke with a friend a while back who had read the Bible chronologically. She highly recommended it, as it helped put all the stories into perspective. I am a very logical thinker, so I need to understand how we get from point A to point G. Thus the decision to study the Bible in this fashion was made.

Yesterday’s reading was Genesis 8 to 11. Within those chapters is the story of Noah and the Great Flood. What was so neat was that yesterday, just before I sat down to read the above passage, Dallas was blessed with the sight below…

(photo courtesy of chad007 posted on wfaa.com)

God has such a great sense of humor and quite a knack for perfect timing. It was so cool to see such a beautiful rainbow after a hard thunderstorm, and then to open up the Bible and read about the creation of rainbows and what they mean for us as Christians.

So now, I’m looking forward to what tonight’s passage has in store… Up next, Job 1-5!

(* denotes my understanding; not guaranteed to be 100% factual)