Those who walked before us III: Living among the dead - Melito of Sardis

Jesus says in Revelation 3 that the Sardis church is a dead church with a reputation of being alive. But He also says that there are some who were alive among the dead.

Melito of Sardis is one of them.

He was the bishop of the Sardis church shortly after the apostolic period ( around 160-177 ). He was probably martyred during the time of Marcus Aurileus, around 177 AD.

His apologetics in front of the emperor is bold and clear, and his preaching is Christ exalting, explaining the OT with the new, here's an example:

From the Catena on Genesis.

In place of Isaac the just, a ram appeared for slaughter, in order that Isaac might be liberated from his bonds. The slaughter of this animal redeemed Isaac from death. In like manner, the Lord, being slain, saved us; being bound, He loosed us; being sacrificed, He redeemed us ...
For the Lord was a lamb, like the ram which Abraham saw caught in the bush Sabec. But this bush represented the cross, and that place Jerusalem, and the lamb the Lord bound for slaughter.
For as a ram was He bound, says he concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, and as a lamb was He shorn, and as a sheep was He led to the slaughter, and as a lamb was He crucified; and He carried the cross on His shoulders when He was led up to the hill to be slain, as was Isaac by his father. But Christ suffered, and Isaac did not suffer: for he was but a type of Him who should suffer. Yet, even when serving only for a type of Christ, he smote men with astonishment and fear.
For a new mystery was presented to view,-a son led by his father to a mountain to be slain, whose feet he bound together, and laid him on the wood of the sacrifice, preparing with care whatever was necessary to his immolation. Isaac on his part is silent, bound like a ram, not opening his mouth, nor uttering a sound with his voice. For, not fearing the knife, nor quailing before the fire, nor troubled by the prospect of suffering, he sustained bravely the character of the type of the Lord. Accordingly there lies Isaac before us, with his feet bound like a ram, his father standing by, with the knife all bare in his hand, not shrinking from shedding the blood of his son.

More can be found at http://burondress.blogspot.com/b/post-preview?token=0bZfk0IBAAA.YrIdhp6YW7EbQWqfKx8NgQ.El5DU_51t6CG4agtkk4mAA&postId=5814525713765785831&type=POST

Indeed, Christ's words will always be found true.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Niblets in Genesis

1. God created animals for Adam to name and find a helper(no suitable one was found) - Gen 2:18-20
2. We still hide ourselves today like Adam and Eve - Gen 3:8-10
3. Methuselah died the same year the flood happened - Calculated from Gen 5
4. Terah(Abram's father) left Ur with Abram but never completed the journey - Gen 11:31-32
5. Abram knew about the Israelite's future because God told him- Gen 15:12-16
6. Isaac and Ishmael buried Abraham, Jacob and Esau buried Isaac - Gen 25:9, 35:27-29
7. Ephraim and Manasseh are half Egyptian

Those who walked before us II: Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts can be considered the father English hymns. He was among the first to use creative poetry in songs as worship to God.  During his time only poetry from the Bible were traditionally used during worship.

He was born in 1674 in Southampton, England. As a child he displayed a talent for making rhymes, one time he had to explain why his eyes were open during prayers, and he responded:

A little mouse for want of stairs
ran up a rope to say its prayers.

Receiving corporal punishment for this, he cried:

O father, father, pity take
And I will no more verses make.

As he grew up, Isaac Watts used his talent to write hymns. Some of his most well known hymns such as "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" and "Joy to the World" shows his love for God and his understanding of biblical doctrine.

He also made some contributions to the study of logic, having written a book called Logic, or The Right Use of Reason in the Enquiry After Truth With a Variety of Rules to Guard Against Error in the Affairs of Religion and Human Life, as well as in the Sciences. but that's less well known compared to his hymns.

Things I've learned, and am still learning

The gospel is a light shining in darkness
This is probably one of the hardest truths to accept about humanity. Because no one likes to admit they're as terrible and evil as the bible makes them out to be. But it's true, and the implications ought to drive me to pray, because my desire for respect and praise from others is a huge obstacle to being bold for the gospel, and contrary to a lot of evangelism methods, we ought to make it clear to people why Christ mattered, and that's because all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

There's an illustration that goes something like this: the light of the gospel is only seen against the backdrops of the darkness of the human heart, just as the stars are only seen against the night sky.

Being honest with God about my sins and screw ups and keep falling into the arms of Christ
This is related to the 1st point, but more personal. I am not special, just like everyone else I've sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, was enslaved to sin, satan, and his dominion, was a hater of God and righteousness.

The thing is, even though God saved me I cannot go on living in my own efforts. I've learned this the hard way. The most miserable times come when I don't take 1 John 1:9-10 seriously, then I will pretend I've never sinned, or even worse justifying my sins in my mind, which leads to further sinning. The only way is to admit my sins in prayer and ask for forgiveness, trusting in what God said in the bible about his promise to forgive.

Labouring is a pleasure/Ephesians 2:1-10 is true
I'm a lazy person who doesn't enjoy work, when I was lost I despised the thought of being a slave/servant of God, I would think "who in their right mind would call themselves a slave or a servant? Isn't it shameful?" neither did I find a purpose in all my works in school.

But now I think it's a pleasure to labour for Christ's kingdom, sharing the gospel/doing bible study with others and seeing them enlightened to the things of God is the most joyful thing.