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Heavenly Father, We are but children in our understanding of you. Forgive our immaturity and use our thoughts and our words, we pray, to build your Kingdom according to your grand and glorious design.
Response to Leviticus 22:17-23:44
Reflecting on today's reading from Leviticus 22:17-33 regarding acceptable offerings, God is not interested in our leftovers. He wants our very best. But this is not just a push for money! Roman's 12:5-13 explains offerings in our modern stressed economy: "we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality."
It is interesting that today's reading and our Levitical passage both talk about vows. So, let me share Jesus teaching about marriage as this is a modern application that affects both the family man and the child of God.
Matthew 19:3-12 is the sister passage to Mark 10:2-12 which is in our reading for today. It says:
Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"
"Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female, and said, For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."
"Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"
Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery."
The disciples said to him, "If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry."
Jesus replied, "Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. For some are eunuchs because they were born that way; others were made that way by men; and others have renounced marriage because of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it."
This may seem like a hard teaching. As a married man, I struggled for a long time making my relationship with God a priority over my relationship with my wife. Yet, I found the more I devoted time to her, the tougher our relationship became. As I released the chain that attached me to her and invested more time in service for the Kingdom, my relationship either improved, or my patience did. I'm sure this may be different for different couples as they deal with feelings of being smothered or abandoned, but in such situations, check your priorties and allow your spouse the real emotions they are experiencing. A married man will generally have a tougher time making God a priority, yet, they may find that in working on making God that first priority, the difficulties in commiting to the marriage vow becomes easier.
Single men, there can be a great fulfillment as you fill your lives with spirituality and service for the Kingdom in the absence of marriage. A good reading on the marriage vow and making God a priority is found in I Corinthians 7. Check it out with the Bible Gateway tool to the right of this blog. The point of this discussion is that we make our vows and commitments in purity, giving one another and God our best!
Leviticus 22:26-30 symbolizes the number seven regarding the animals to be sacrificed. Just as in the laws of circumcision the male child must be presented on the eighth day, so the newborn bull, sheep, or goat may not be presented as a sacrifice until the eighth day. 'Seven' appears to represent a purity and a completeness. Also, the eighth day has seemed to represent newness and the beginning of a union with God. God came on the eighth day in Leviticus 9, Christ rose from the dead on the first day after the Passover week. Presentation of sanctification and purity. Triumph, celebration, and dedication.
Leviticus 23 concerns festivals. Verses 1-3 deals with the weekly sabbath days. The Jewish sabbath remains on the 7th day of the week, Christians celebrate on the eighth day - the first day of each new week in honor of Christ's resurection. As I do not know as much about Jewish days, but feel their observance would bring glory to God in our own lives and a dedication to understanding our brothers of the Jewish faith, I recommend visiting the following website to know some of the dates and festivals throughout the year.
http://www.religionfacts.com/judaism/holidays/holiday_dates_calendar.htm
The following is a recommended book and offers detail on the festivals of Leviticus 23. As always, your Your thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated.
http://vmoodyart.com/chapters.html#weeks
If you would like more information or wish to purchase Valerie Moody's book, her is the information.
http://vmoodyart.com/books.html
Response to Mark 9:30-10:12
The focus of Jesus ministry changed following the "Mount of Witnesses" we discussed yesterday. in Mark 9:30-32 (also see Matthew 17:22-23 and Luke 9:43-45), Jesus continues to explain to the disciples that He must die. However, as they could not accept this due to their understanding of scripture, and given their belief in who He was, their hearts and their ears were stopped and they refused to believe. They dared not question, due to the stern rebuke given to Peter in Mark 8:33.
According to what we have read in Mark, up until this time, Jesus ministry was marked by mobs seeking signs and Jesus and His disciples were often apart. Now there is a time of bonding and closeness as Jesus continues to prepare His disciples for His death, resurection, and departure. Mark 9:33-50 is also reflected in Matthew 18:1-9 and Luke 9:46-50.
I have noticed as we share together that the Bible is written in such a way as to seek and to save the lost, yet to discipline, or condemn if you will, the believer. God knows our hearts and speaks to each of us wherever we are on our journey. None of us can stop growing today! Although Matthew speaks of coming to God as a child, Mark speaks of accepting the children. This not only represents little kids, but the new believer also. We'll come back to this after looking at verses 38-41.
What if you saw a brother of a different color - a believer of a different denomination or faith - performing good works in the name of God? Would you try to reform such a brother to your way of thinking, telling Him about the real Jesus from your point of view? Would you respond just how the disciples did in verse 38; "Lord make him stop - he is not one of us!" Jesus responds to us the same way today: "No" If someone is seeking God and doing good works in His name, who are we to condemn. As a brother, we might become a friend and talk about Jesus! - growing up as brothers into the full knowledge of God. We must remember who we are following. Is it Christ who separates us from the Love of God? Or is it God's Love that Christ was sent to unite us in? He provided the only access to the Father for all who seek after the Creator, believing that He exists. (see Hebrews 11:6 and John 3:16-17). We're just sharing the Good News.
Therefore, if we would cause one who is immature in faith to lose their faith through our preaching of condemnation, God would rather tie a rock around our neck and shut us up in the depths of the sea where our hand may get caught motivating us to cut it off to save our life rather than to remain in the depths where our foot may get snared causing us to cut it off so that we could rise again rather than suffer in the depths where our eye may keep us in darkness forcing us to leave it behind rather than remain in the depths where death consumes and despair never ends.
The refining fires of condemnation continue to spice up our life and inspire our spirituality. So, accept the condemnation and discipline of God as it helps you to grow, but be at peace with your brother and share the Love of God.
We visited the sister verse to Mark 10:2-12 in our study of vows in Leviticus today. We are introduced to Mark's teaching about marriage with Mark 10:1 setting the place and the scene of Jesus again teaching those who had come to listen. The Pharisees were there to test Jesus understanding of the law. Jesus turned the question around so that everyone could hear the law they spoke of. He then used one of my premises in that the prophet always speaks to the heart and understanding of the individual. If we were to tell the young believer to believe every word they hear from the Bible and they turned to Deuteronomy 24:1-4, they would be confused and find justification to break their vow. Jesus speaks to the heart of the law - beyond the words of Moses, and to the heart of the issue. Quite often, it is better to listen to the Spirit of God within, who teaches us right from wrong and makes us Holy, rather than expecting a scripture verse to give us all truth. All scripture may be inspired, but so is your mind and you must discern the scriptures. If it doesn't feel right and you call it into question, there is probably a good reason. You are a child of God. His Spirit within is the greatest Prophet you've got! Don't take the easy way out by justifying your behavior on a few verses from the Bible that agrees with what you know in your heart to be wrong, regardless of what your earthly teacher, including me, may say.
In writing this blog, My prayer is very similar to Solomon's in I Kings 3:7b-9a (NIV) "I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart."
One of the reasons I felt called to write this blog is that I was offended by the amount of hatred and hostility from the Christian community as President Obama rose to office. I read "Audacity of Hope" and had a strong sense that President Obama also seeks the Lord's will. I saw a world at war between people who sought after God, yet hated one another, and decided I wanted to understand the truth in a better light. So, here we are.
I have come to see the writers of the books of the Bibles as the humans they were with the ideologies and experiences they had. I feel welcomed to discern their writings as led by the Spirit within. Paul wrote in I Corinthians 2:12-16 "We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment: "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.
So, here's my question. If we have the fruits of the Spirit which come from the mind of Christ, how can we have hate, enmity, strife, anger, selfishness, dissension, self-conceit (see Galatians 5:13-26). Allow me to pose this answer. There is one Spiritual man, and He is Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, the Son of God the Father Himself, born of the virgin Mary. We are all at war within our bodies as the Holy Spirit of God fights against the desires of the flesh. It is unfortunate indeed when that war spills out onto the landscape of life and we pit our desires of the flesh against one another.
Romans 7:22-25 (NIV) puts it this way: " For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. Therefore, all of us can rededicate ourselves to Romans 12:2 "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."
I know, Jesus answer to the Pharisees in Mark 10:2-12 was a lot shorter.
Response to Psalm 44:1-8
Read the Psalm again and remember the battle is not against flesh and blood, but between the Spirit of God and the spirit of the flesh within. He will fight our battles for us if we will just follow in His wake! If we veer off course, as fun as that may be, He has a way of pulling us back tow. Enjoy the ride, if you let go of the rope, you're bound to get wet and you must have faith in the life preserver. Remember, there are a lot of children in your wake, hanging on behind you. Their ride depends on you staying safely in line with the captain.
Response to Proverbs 10:19
Perhaps I was long winded today as I believe "sin is not absent," I hope that you have received insight from God's word, and I thank you for your time.
Sincerely;
Rick.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
February 27, 2010, Leviticus 20:22-22:16, Mark 9:1-29, Psalm 43:1-5, Proverbs 10:18
Lord, you alone are worthy to receive all our honor and our praise. We confess our sins and ask for an extra measure of your Spirit as we study your word together. May our time be pleasing in your sight and may the thoughts and words we share illuminate our hearts and minds that through us, your light might shine on our fellowman, bringing other's closer to you. Amen.
Response to Leviticus 20:22-22:16
Leviticus chapter 20 began by addressing the disturbing worship of the God Molech that was being done among the Israelites. It went on to condemn wizards and sorcery, adultery, and other sins. Our reading today from Leviticus 20:22-27 reminds the people of our theme "I am the Lord your God who made you Holy because I am Holy." God chose this people, not because they were supposedly better than the rest of mankind, but because He would use them to carry forth His redemption plan for creation. Therefore, as His special representatives on earth, He said in verse 26: "You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine." Notice, it was never God who belonged to the people, but the people who belong to God. Therefore, "My God", becomes "Our God" through our commonality of creation and Our Father's redemption plan. This does not change the fact that God chose this nation for His special purpose and performed great signs and wonders to the Glory of His name.
Considering yourself a child of God is a serious matter. As His representative on earth, it is our call to draw all men unto the Father. If we are pushing men away, something is wrong with our understanding of scripture. Although the people were called to ceremony and sacriment, The family of Aaron received stricter laws of sanctification and consecration in Leviticus 18 and 19 as well as today's reading from Leviticus 21. Among them, the High Priest was called to the most Holy service and honor to God. The people were told to avoid the religious practices of the foreign nations but the High Priest was not even allowed to be with family at the death of a close family member. He could not leave the sanctuary - but he could marry. He could not have any noticeable affliction. As God's nearest representative, He had to live a life which was most Holy. This, again, should have affected this man's heart towards God and also was a visible sign to all the people of the Holiness of God.
Note that in providing the plans for the son's of Zadok regarding the new temple that would be built, Ezekiel 44:15-31 reads very much like our reading in Leviticus.
Today, the belief of Christianity is that our Creator has now allowed all of us access to Himself through Jesus Christ, our High Priest who offered himself on the cross as God's Holy Sacrifice on our behalf. He not only remains in the sanctuary, but sits at the right hand of the Father. Romans 12:5 states: "so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."
Hebrews 2:17-3:6 states: "For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future. But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house"
Hebrews 4:14-16 continues: "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
Jesus said it this way in John 14:23-26: ""If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."
Ephesians 1:17-23 speaks of the Father setting Christ up as our High Priest, calling us back unto Him: "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Finally, let's consider Leviticus 22:14-16. No longer are the people of God not allowed to partake of the holy sacriment, but we are invited to the wedding feast of the lamb. We celebrate this fellowship through the sacriment of communion laying claim to the body and blood shed on the cross on our behalf by our High Priest, Jesus Christ.
Response to Mark 9:1-29
In Mark 8:29, 32, and 33, we saw Peter respond to Jesus "You are the Christ." As the mindset of the Jews was that the Christ would be a conquering King, the fact Jesus changed the conversation to His death motivated a rebuke from Peter that this would not happen. As we read, Peter then received the rebuke back from Jesus, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of men." It could very well be that Jesus was speaking directly to Satan, and not to Peter given the strength of this temptation that He Himself was experiencing. Matthew 16:18 adds a comment following Peter's confession and before the rebukes in which Jesus blesses Peter and says "you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome." Peter indeed went on to become the leader of the Jerusalem Church.
I am not sure why Mark 9:1 is so often separated from either Mark 9:2 and following or Mark 8:34-38. "Jesus said to them, 'I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of God come in power.'" This statement ties the preceeding conversation and understanding of the people directly into the Transfiguration of today's reading. Mark 9:2 continues with the story. "And after six days (that makes this the 7th day), Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, (some of those who had been standing there), and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them!" They saw the power of His Glory! The King of Kings and Lord of Lords with the Heavenly prophets of old!
In a letter to the faithful, Peter wrote: "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.' We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts."
In today's reading, we witness that day where Peter, James and John experienced Jesus Heavenly transformation and heard the Father's words: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" If there had been any question in their faith, this should have cured it. This should have convinced them that when Jesus said He would die, they should believe it! But they still did not understand as their human faith had hardened their hearts to God's ultimate plan. Throughout the rest of their lives, they too would continue to put the pieces together of what they had seen and heard and how it all related to the Jewish Scriptures from Moses, through Elijah, until their present day. And, yet, I question whether they understood all things before they died, or whether we can still identify more truth through their words and through our own study of the scriptures today.
This story is also shared in Matthew 17:1-8 and Luke 9:28-36, each account is slightly different. I have found various references listed in study guides that were not used by the disciples, but I also find their witness found in Isaiah 43:9-10. "All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, 'It is true.' 'You are my witnesses,' declares the Lord, 'and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.'" All five who stood with Jesus that day were witness to the plan of the Father. Moses, Elijah, Peter, James, and John. Each is a major player in this book of life we call the Bible. We too play a part and are called to be witness.
Am I, as a child of God, able to question whether their interpretation of Malachi 4:4-6 was correct? The passage states: "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse."
The disciples upbringing had taught them a different theology. Before the Messiah could come, Elijah would, based on this piece of scripture. Into this mindset, Jesus speaks to them of John the Baptist, and their minds could wrap around that concept - as have ours. However, Moses and Elijah had come before Christ. All the law and the prophets had borne witness to the Prince of Peace! Yet, the people of that day imagined God the Father to be one of wrath and judgement who would come and destroy everyone but the Jews. They could not imagine that their promised Messiah had come to die to save all men! And yet, there it is in Malachi 4:4-6 He would turn the hearts of the children to their Father, and the heart of the Father to their children, lest the creation would remain under the curse. He had to die, to rise again! All the law, all the prophets, all the true witnesses to His life, and death, and resurrection agree. God stuck to His plan and His only begotten son, His chosen, obeyed. His children today continue to interpret the scripture and mature in their understanding. Jesus himself did not refer to Malachi, but spoke of Elijah's life and all the troubles he faced.
The story of the demon posessed boy in Mark 9:14-29 is also shared in Matthew 17:14-21 and Luke 9:37-43. Can you imagine what the tabloids would have done with Jesus, the celebrity, had they been there then? I'm sure they were in some capacity. Having witnessed epileptic siezures, I am apt to agree that this boy suffered from epilepsy. However, again, the purpose of Jesus ministry was not to train the people in modern medicine. He spoke and performed signs within the understanding of the culture. Have you noticed that Jesus has been becoming more and more frustrated with the crowd's dependance on miraculous powers, instead of understanding the purpose of the Kingdom? I do not believe He was questioning the faith of the disciples in this story, but was expressing His disgust with having to perform yet another miracle for these people who would still despise and reject Him as He would not perform their ultimate requirement, freedom from Roman oppression.
Having said that, I am quite sure I have dealt with demon possession within my own family. I think our inability to see the truth of the gospel - and many of our addictions, could certainly be caused by demons. I also believe that as we give our lives over to honoring God, we are able to win those battles. I cannot question the fact that as the demons of that day continued to speak to Jesus that something evil was definately involved. If you think about it, I am sure you can recognize demon possession affecting your own life or those around you. Do you believe God has the power to save? Is it worth commiting your life and the problem to Him? Do you believe He loves you enough to help? Call a friend and work through it together or seek help through a local church, and most importantly, pray unceasingly, it will cleanse your heart.
Did you hear Jesus rebuke of the boy's father when the father let slip a lack of faith? Verse 23: "If you can?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." To which the Father responds with our highlight verse for today: Mark 9:24: "Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" Amen!
Response to Psalm 43:1-5
As I read this Psalm, I thought it seemed like a continuation of Psalm 42. I checked the footnote which said: "In many Hebrew manuscripts Psalms 42 adn 43 constitute one Psalm"
Having just read Mark 9:19 where Jesus rebukes the crowd: "O unbelieving generation, How long shall I put up with you?" I can almost hear Him in Psalm 43:1: "Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; rescue me from deceitful and wicked men."
You may sense that I too get frustrated with my fellowman. And yet, I must admit that I am also plagued with unbelief. I am on a quest to find and to understand the Love of God, because I believe it is out there even if I don't feel it day to day. I am not a saint! I am but a man like you. I am seeking God and I have faith that I will find him. I do believe that although I have my doubts, there is a purpose I have been called to. Yet, I too, must wait to see the Salvation of our God. I also know that as I look back over my life, I will see that He was there all the time. I too must put my "hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." (vs. 5)
Response to Proverbs 10:18
In response to Psalm 43, I confessed my unbelief and frustration to you. Due to the prodding of today's Proverb, I must also confess that I deal with hatred, bigotry, and slander even though I despise these very things in both myself and others who swear allegience to the Prince of Peace. There, I said it and I displayed it. I confess it to you before God and I stand with you as a brother in need of our Savior's grace, mercy, forgiveness, and Love. He alone is worthy. Thank the Lord He serves as my Priest and King.
Until tomorrow, my family;
Rick.
Response to Leviticus 20:22-22:16
Leviticus chapter 20 began by addressing the disturbing worship of the God Molech that was being done among the Israelites. It went on to condemn wizards and sorcery, adultery, and other sins. Our reading today from Leviticus 20:22-27 reminds the people of our theme "I am the Lord your God who made you Holy because I am Holy." God chose this people, not because they were supposedly better than the rest of mankind, but because He would use them to carry forth His redemption plan for creation. Therefore, as His special representatives on earth, He said in verse 26: "You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine." Notice, it was never God who belonged to the people, but the people who belong to God. Therefore, "My God", becomes "Our God" through our commonality of creation and Our Father's redemption plan. This does not change the fact that God chose this nation for His special purpose and performed great signs and wonders to the Glory of His name.
Considering yourself a child of God is a serious matter. As His representative on earth, it is our call to draw all men unto the Father. If we are pushing men away, something is wrong with our understanding of scripture. Although the people were called to ceremony and sacriment, The family of Aaron received stricter laws of sanctification and consecration in Leviticus 18 and 19 as well as today's reading from Leviticus 21. Among them, the High Priest was called to the most Holy service and honor to God. The people were told to avoid the religious practices of the foreign nations but the High Priest was not even allowed to be with family at the death of a close family member. He could not leave the sanctuary - but he could marry. He could not have any noticeable affliction. As God's nearest representative, He had to live a life which was most Holy. This, again, should have affected this man's heart towards God and also was a visible sign to all the people of the Holiness of God.
Note that in providing the plans for the son's of Zadok regarding the new temple that would be built, Ezekiel 44:15-31 reads very much like our reading in Leviticus.
Today, the belief of Christianity is that our Creator has now allowed all of us access to Himself through Jesus Christ, our High Priest who offered himself on the cross as God's Holy Sacrifice on our behalf. He not only remains in the sanctuary, but sits at the right hand of the Father. Romans 12:5 states: "so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."
Hebrews 2:17-3:6 states: "For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house. Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future. But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house"
Hebrews 4:14-16 continues: "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
Jesus said it this way in John 14:23-26: ""If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."
Ephesians 1:17-23 speaks of the Father setting Christ up as our High Priest, calling us back unto Him: "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Finally, let's consider Leviticus 22:14-16. No longer are the people of God not allowed to partake of the holy sacriment, but we are invited to the wedding feast of the lamb. We celebrate this fellowship through the sacriment of communion laying claim to the body and blood shed on the cross on our behalf by our High Priest, Jesus Christ.
Response to Mark 9:1-29
In Mark 8:29, 32, and 33, we saw Peter respond to Jesus "You are the Christ." As the mindset of the Jews was that the Christ would be a conquering King, the fact Jesus changed the conversation to His death motivated a rebuke from Peter that this would not happen. As we read, Peter then received the rebuke back from Jesus, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of men." It could very well be that Jesus was speaking directly to Satan, and not to Peter given the strength of this temptation that He Himself was experiencing. Matthew 16:18 adds a comment following Peter's confession and before the rebukes in which Jesus blesses Peter and says "you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome." Peter indeed went on to become the leader of the Jerusalem Church.
I am not sure why Mark 9:1 is so often separated from either Mark 9:2 and following or Mark 8:34-38. "Jesus said to them, 'I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Kingdom of God come in power.'" This statement ties the preceeding conversation and understanding of the people directly into the Transfiguration of today's reading. Mark 9:2 continues with the story. "And after six days (that makes this the 7th day), Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, (some of those who had been standing there), and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves; and he was transfigured before them!" They saw the power of His Glory! The King of Kings and Lord of Lords with the Heavenly prophets of old!
In a letter to the faithful, Peter wrote: "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, 'This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.' We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts."
In today's reading, we witness that day where Peter, James and John experienced Jesus Heavenly transformation and heard the Father's words: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" If there had been any question in their faith, this should have cured it. This should have convinced them that when Jesus said He would die, they should believe it! But they still did not understand as their human faith had hardened their hearts to God's ultimate plan. Throughout the rest of their lives, they too would continue to put the pieces together of what they had seen and heard and how it all related to the Jewish Scriptures from Moses, through Elijah, until their present day. And, yet, I question whether they understood all things before they died, or whether we can still identify more truth through their words and through our own study of the scriptures today.
This story is also shared in Matthew 17:1-8 and Luke 9:28-36, each account is slightly different. I have found various references listed in study guides that were not used by the disciples, but I also find their witness found in Isaiah 43:9-10. "All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, 'It is true.' 'You are my witnesses,' declares the Lord, 'and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.'" All five who stood with Jesus that day were witness to the plan of the Father. Moses, Elijah, Peter, James, and John. Each is a major player in this book of life we call the Bible. We too play a part and are called to be witness.
Am I, as a child of God, able to question whether their interpretation of Malachi 4:4-6 was correct? The passage states: "Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse."
The disciples upbringing had taught them a different theology. Before the Messiah could come, Elijah would, based on this piece of scripture. Into this mindset, Jesus speaks to them of John the Baptist, and their minds could wrap around that concept - as have ours. However, Moses and Elijah had come before Christ. All the law and the prophets had borne witness to the Prince of Peace! Yet, the people of that day imagined God the Father to be one of wrath and judgement who would come and destroy everyone but the Jews. They could not imagine that their promised Messiah had come to die to save all men! And yet, there it is in Malachi 4:4-6 He would turn the hearts of the children to their Father, and the heart of the Father to their children, lest the creation would remain under the curse. He had to die, to rise again! All the law, all the prophets, all the true witnesses to His life, and death, and resurrection agree. God stuck to His plan and His only begotten son, His chosen, obeyed. His children today continue to interpret the scripture and mature in their understanding. Jesus himself did not refer to Malachi, but spoke of Elijah's life and all the troubles he faced.
The story of the demon posessed boy in Mark 9:14-29 is also shared in Matthew 17:14-21 and Luke 9:37-43. Can you imagine what the tabloids would have done with Jesus, the celebrity, had they been there then? I'm sure they were in some capacity. Having witnessed epileptic siezures, I am apt to agree that this boy suffered from epilepsy. However, again, the purpose of Jesus ministry was not to train the people in modern medicine. He spoke and performed signs within the understanding of the culture. Have you noticed that Jesus has been becoming more and more frustrated with the crowd's dependance on miraculous powers, instead of understanding the purpose of the Kingdom? I do not believe He was questioning the faith of the disciples in this story, but was expressing His disgust with having to perform yet another miracle for these people who would still despise and reject Him as He would not perform their ultimate requirement, freedom from Roman oppression.
Having said that, I am quite sure I have dealt with demon possession within my own family. I think our inability to see the truth of the gospel - and many of our addictions, could certainly be caused by demons. I also believe that as we give our lives over to honoring God, we are able to win those battles. I cannot question the fact that as the demons of that day continued to speak to Jesus that something evil was definately involved. If you think about it, I am sure you can recognize demon possession affecting your own life or those around you. Do you believe God has the power to save? Is it worth commiting your life and the problem to Him? Do you believe He loves you enough to help? Call a friend and work through it together or seek help through a local church, and most importantly, pray unceasingly, it will cleanse your heart.
Did you hear Jesus rebuke of the boy's father when the father let slip a lack of faith? Verse 23: "If you can?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." To which the Father responds with our highlight verse for today: Mark 9:24: "Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" Amen!
Response to Psalm 43:1-5
As I read this Psalm, I thought it seemed like a continuation of Psalm 42. I checked the footnote which said: "In many Hebrew manuscripts Psalms 42 adn 43 constitute one Psalm"
Having just read Mark 9:19 where Jesus rebukes the crowd: "O unbelieving generation, How long shall I put up with you?" I can almost hear Him in Psalm 43:1: "Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; rescue me from deceitful and wicked men."
You may sense that I too get frustrated with my fellowman. And yet, I must admit that I am also plagued with unbelief. I am on a quest to find and to understand the Love of God, because I believe it is out there even if I don't feel it day to day. I am not a saint! I am but a man like you. I am seeking God and I have faith that I will find him. I do believe that although I have my doubts, there is a purpose I have been called to. Yet, I too, must wait to see the Salvation of our God. I also know that as I look back over my life, I will see that He was there all the time. I too must put my "hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." (vs. 5)
Response to Proverbs 10:18
In response to Psalm 43, I confessed my unbelief and frustration to you. Due to the prodding of today's Proverb, I must also confess that I deal with hatred, bigotry, and slander even though I despise these very things in both myself and others who swear allegience to the Prince of Peace. There, I said it and I displayed it. I confess it to you before God and I stand with you as a brother in need of our Savior's grace, mercy, forgiveness, and Love. He alone is worthy. Thank the Lord He serves as my Priest and King.
Until tomorrow, my family;
Rick.
Friday, February 26, 2010
February 26, 2010, Leviticus 19:1-20:21, Mark 8:11-38, Psalm 42:1-11, Proverbs 10:17
Our Father, You have called us to be Holy as your children to bring honor to your name. Sometimes, in our guilt and failure, we feel unworthy of your calling. Convict us we pray with your Love as we share your word together. May our thoughts and words reflect your Love invitinge all men to find the Glory and Power and Majesty that can be theirs in your Name.
Response to Leviticus 19:1-20:21
I know not all of us had the time or patience to read the passage, but I am thrilled you are here anyway! Allow me to reiterate a bit of what we read. You may have noticed that Levicus 19 reflects the 10 commandments which we read on February 4 from Exodus 20. Verse 2 reminds us of the reason for the law. "Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy."
However, in Leviticus 19:3 we begin the law with respect for parents and observance of the Sabbaths. In fact, in today's reading, except for new material, the commands from Exodus 20 are listed #4, #5, #2, #8, and #9 with the overall focus routinely repeated, "I am the Lord your God."
Verses 5-18 deals with the fellowship offerings and getting along as a society both in worship, and in living in general. Verse 15 suggests treating all persons as equal regardless of income and class. Verse 18 suggests forgiveness in the heart and finishes with the 2nd commandment as listed in the New Testament. "Love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus quoted this verse as the second great commandment in Matthew 22:37-40. Leviticus 19:18 is also referenced in Matthew 19:19, Mark 12:31, Luke 6:27-36, Luke 10:27 (story of the Good Samaritan(25-37))), Romans 12:19-21, Romans 13:8-10, Galatians 5:13-15, and James 2:8-10. Look these passages up on the Bible Gateway tool to the right of this blog.
Leviticus 19:14 is of particular importance to me. "Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind." This reminds me of child games on the unfortunate among us. However, when the Bible routinely speaks of God hardening hearts, stopping ears, or not allowing someone to see the light, perhaps there is more to this verse than we realize. How important is it to believe that God so loved the world, not desiring any to perish, yet allowing - or even causing hard hearts, deaf ears, blind eyes? As a parent, we are expected to have compassion on a child as we have suffered similar experiences. We are expected to help, knowing the nature of the beast. I am convinced that this is our call as Children of God to help the children of the world, and not to oppress them.
Ephesians 2:10 "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." and Colossians 1:10 "And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God"
These two verses back up this idea that those of us who have been granted the gift of maturing in the family are meant to raise up the children of the world. Rebellion is common in any family. It is up to us to help our child to see the light. Do not curse the world or place the stumbling blocks of our human theology either in your own road or that of the unbeliever to keep them, or you from understanding the Love of God. It is absolutely true that these stumbling blocks have been there since the beginning of time are are even represented within the hearts and minds of the Biblical writers as they shared what they knew of God out of the theologies of their own upbringings. yet, there are treasures hidden everywhere and the Bible itself corrects even their mindsets! If you want a treasure hunt, you found one. Build one another up in Love.
Have you questioned whether Moses was making up some of these laws as He was acting judge over the people? It almost sounds like a recording of some of his acts of office and a constitution for their culture. There are purity laws in verse 19 and a continuation of ritual, civil, cultural, and agricultural laws for the remainder of chapter 19. Routinely, sections end with our theme of "I am the Lord your God". The statement mentioned from verse 2 "Be Holy because I the Lord your God am holy" seems to carry throughout the chapter with this theme.
Before we leave chapter 19, I would like to mention Leviticus 19:33. "When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt." For those of us outside the Jewish faith who claim adoption into the family, we too are considered aliens. As treatment of the alien is often joined with that of a widow or orphan, (Exodus 22:21-24, Deuteronomy 10:18-19) I think as children of God, we must be very careful again in how we treat the alien or foreigner among us. This has everything to do with loving our neighbor as ourself and looking after the poor and needy. I do not understand how mistreatment of foreigners has been justified by Bible based individuals or institutions. Perhaps some of you can shed some light on this for me.
A second thought on this reminder that we are but aliens, adoptees into His family, is that we must observe these sacriments and ceremonies that God set up. Jesus Christ may be our sacrifice, but notice the Jews also do not offer animal sacrifices. Observance of a Sabbath day is only the beginning of our honor to God. What of all the other religious ceremonial and festival observances required in our Bible? It is good to be disciplined according to our Father's instruction. In so doing, our lights will share in the illumination of God's chosen people. Check out Yom Kippur, Passover, and Hannakuh observances this year! You won't be sorry! Of course this is if you wish to be considered a child of the King.
Leviticus 20 carries warnings against idol worship, detestable worship practices, adultery, and other sexual sins. It seems to me a catch all and some repitition of laws set out in chapter 18. Some of these laws certainly could have been used in the condemnation of David's sons Absolom and Amnon (see II Samuel 13 and II Samuel 16:20-23). Beyond health of man and honor to God and man, I have little commentary to add here and leave this chapter open to your discussion.
Response to Mark 8:11-38
Again, we hear Jesus sigh 'deeply' as this reading opened with the Pharisees asking for a sign from heaven. Isn't it amazing that his fame had spread throughout the countryside due to his signs and wonders - even to elders and friends of the synagogue - and yet, the people's thirst for more signs and wonders could never be satisfied?
It appears this was not one of Jesus happier days. The conversation of Mark 8:11-21 is also shared in Matthew 16:1-10. Matthew 16:12 claims that the disciples understood Jesus statement in Mark 8:15 to be "that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." The term "Sadducees" is used in Matthew instead of the term "Herod." It is believed that Herod was a member of the Sadducees. (Another denomination of Judaism if you will). Jesus had concerns with both. Remember his statement from Matthew 23:8, "you have one teacher, and you are all brothers."
Mark 8:19-20 reiterates what we have discussed regarding the feeding of the 5000 and 4000 in that the numbers of baskets picked up was important symbolically. We have seen 'seven' to represent the completeness of God, and 'twelve' to represent the people of Israel through whom we have received the Bible and through whom Jesus Christ had His nationality and earthly identity. I am concerned that the New Testament is preached so much without the Old Testament. It is easy to see the Love of Jesus Christ, but without a proper understanding of the Law, it is tough to understand how He fulfilled the law, nor to see how He was a manifestation of the Father's love.
As a Gideon member, (an organization that distributes Bibles worldwide) I handed Bibles out to students on a local college campus. One student looked at the New Testament I was handing out and said "Wrong Testament" and gave it back to me. Jesus also held up the importance of the Old Testament and the Law in Matthew 5:17-20; "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The teaching of The New Jerusalem in Revelation 21:9-27 is full of the numbers "seven" and "twelve". Nothing can separate the truth of God's word from Jewish culture, tradition, and history. Through their scribes, prophets, and law, we have the gospel. God's plan for salvation was portrayed through everything they were and are. God is not finished with them yet. The Old Testament and the Law must be understood for the major religious groups on earth to see God the Father through Jesus Christ and understand the oracle.
In Mark 8:22-26, Jesus healed a blind man. Beside's mention of Jesus visit to Bethsaida, this story is not told in the other gospels. Jesus took the man out of the village, healed him in private, and told him to go home and to not even return into the village. The focus of Jesus ministry as told in the remainder of Mark will be much more on who he was including his death and resurrection and teachings about the Kingdom. There will be only two more mentions of his miracles of healing.
In Mark 8:27-30 (see also Matthew 16:13-20 and Luke 9:18-21) Jesus asks the question "Who do men say that I am?" It seems to me there were strong beliefs of reincarnation in the community as some say "John the Baptist" who had only recently died; others say Elijah, and others refer to other prophets. Even after everything they had seen, the "Son of God" apparently was still a difficult consideration among the people. However, Peter spoke up and said "You are the Christ". Mark and Luke finish their records of the conversation with a call to secrecy, but Matthew alone writes of the blessing Peter received from Jesus for this statement.
Each of the passages just mentioned are followed with Jesus speaking of his death, resurrection, and second coming in very clear terms. Matthew and Mark include Peter's rebuke as Jesus knows the path he must follow that will lead to His death.
We finish with Jesus statement to His disciples then and now found in Mark 8:34-38; "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." (similar passages found in Matthew 16:21-28, Luke 9:22-27, and John 12:24-26)
Response to Psalm 42:1-11
Wow, can I relate to this Psalm this morning! As a landscaper in Colorado, I am in my offseason. My main source of income is in snow removal. With the poor economy, work is slow and bills use up my money faster than I can cause it to come in. I have felt the Lord lay it upon my heart to write this blog, but it takes a lot of time, and there is little comfort in what benefit such a blog will be to me.
And yet, this past week I was able to sing praises to God in the Church choir and pray with the family of God! This coming week I am expecting my first grandchild! There is nothing I want more than to sing praises to God, my Rock and to spend time with you in His word. At the same time that I despair in the present frustrations of life, I know that my God will bless this work! I know that He will come to my aid! I have confidence in what my eyes cannot see!
Psalm 42:1-2 is our focus verse today; "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God." If you ask "where is your God, look at your trials?" My trials are my testament to you that I am no different than any man. Yet, I know my Creator is real and active! I know my Savior carries me and my loved ones in the palm of His hand! I Am's Love gives my life purpose! I will daily praise my Lord and my King!
Response to Proverbs 10:17
What Father does not rebuke his son when he sees him making choices that will lead to ruin and despair? Would anyone truly imagine that such challenge in a brother's life - such attempt to provide long term happiness and contentment does not come from a heart of love? So, why question the fact that so many teachings of honor to God, parents, and family as we have found in the Bible do not stem from our source of Love? In Him lies true contentment and joy. If we have Him, we can still participate in life on earth! In fact, we find we can find more fulfillment in every aspect of life if we make our Creator and Redeemer number one in our lives.
Listen to the discipline of our Lord as He speaks to us of true faith in Luke 12:29-32: "And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."
Therein lies Hope! Psalm 42:11 "Put your hope in God, for (we) will yet praise Him, (our) Savior and (our) God!
Trust Him today with all your Heart, with all your Soul, and with all your Mind, for that is the First and most wonderful Commandment of all.
"And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it (does) not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure." I John 2:28-3:3 (NIV)
Until tomorrow
Rick
Response to Leviticus 19:1-20:21
I know not all of us had the time or patience to read the passage, but I am thrilled you are here anyway! Allow me to reiterate a bit of what we read. You may have noticed that Levicus 19 reflects the 10 commandments which we read on February 4 from Exodus 20. Verse 2 reminds us of the reason for the law. "Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy."
However, in Leviticus 19:3 we begin the law with respect for parents and observance of the Sabbaths. In fact, in today's reading, except for new material, the commands from Exodus 20 are listed #4, #5, #2, #8, and #9 with the overall focus routinely repeated, "I am the Lord your God."
Verses 5-18 deals with the fellowship offerings and getting along as a society both in worship, and in living in general. Verse 15 suggests treating all persons as equal regardless of income and class. Verse 18 suggests forgiveness in the heart and finishes with the 2nd commandment as listed in the New Testament. "Love your neighbor as yourself." Jesus quoted this verse as the second great commandment in Matthew 22:37-40. Leviticus 19:18 is also referenced in Matthew 19:19, Mark 12:31, Luke 6:27-36, Luke 10:27 (story of the Good Samaritan(25-37))), Romans 12:19-21, Romans 13:8-10, Galatians 5:13-15, and James 2:8-10. Look these passages up on the Bible Gateway tool to the right of this blog.
Leviticus 19:14 is of particular importance to me. "Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind." This reminds me of child games on the unfortunate among us. However, when the Bible routinely speaks of God hardening hearts, stopping ears, or not allowing someone to see the light, perhaps there is more to this verse than we realize. How important is it to believe that God so loved the world, not desiring any to perish, yet allowing - or even causing hard hearts, deaf ears, blind eyes? As a parent, we are expected to have compassion on a child as we have suffered similar experiences. We are expected to help, knowing the nature of the beast. I am convinced that this is our call as Children of God to help the children of the world, and not to oppress them.
Ephesians 2:10 "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." and Colossians 1:10 "And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God"
These two verses back up this idea that those of us who have been granted the gift of maturing in the family are meant to raise up the children of the world. Rebellion is common in any family. It is up to us to help our child to see the light. Do not curse the world or place the stumbling blocks of our human theology either in your own road or that of the unbeliever to keep them, or you from understanding the Love of God. It is absolutely true that these stumbling blocks have been there since the beginning of time are are even represented within the hearts and minds of the Biblical writers as they shared what they knew of God out of the theologies of their own upbringings. yet, there are treasures hidden everywhere and the Bible itself corrects even their mindsets! If you want a treasure hunt, you found one. Build one another up in Love.
Have you questioned whether Moses was making up some of these laws as He was acting judge over the people? It almost sounds like a recording of some of his acts of office and a constitution for their culture. There are purity laws in verse 19 and a continuation of ritual, civil, cultural, and agricultural laws for the remainder of chapter 19. Routinely, sections end with our theme of "I am the Lord your God". The statement mentioned from verse 2 "Be Holy because I the Lord your God am holy" seems to carry throughout the chapter with this theme.
Before we leave chapter 19, I would like to mention Leviticus 19:33. "When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt." For those of us outside the Jewish faith who claim adoption into the family, we too are considered aliens. As treatment of the alien is often joined with that of a widow or orphan, (Exodus 22:21-24, Deuteronomy 10:18-19) I think as children of God, we must be very careful again in how we treat the alien or foreigner among us. This has everything to do with loving our neighbor as ourself and looking after the poor and needy. I do not understand how mistreatment of foreigners has been justified by Bible based individuals or institutions. Perhaps some of you can shed some light on this for me.
A second thought on this reminder that we are but aliens, adoptees into His family, is that we must observe these sacriments and ceremonies that God set up. Jesus Christ may be our sacrifice, but notice the Jews also do not offer animal sacrifices. Observance of a Sabbath day is only the beginning of our honor to God. What of all the other religious ceremonial and festival observances required in our Bible? It is good to be disciplined according to our Father's instruction. In so doing, our lights will share in the illumination of God's chosen people. Check out Yom Kippur, Passover, and Hannakuh observances this year! You won't be sorry! Of course this is if you wish to be considered a child of the King.
Leviticus 20 carries warnings against idol worship, detestable worship practices, adultery, and other sexual sins. It seems to me a catch all and some repitition of laws set out in chapter 18. Some of these laws certainly could have been used in the condemnation of David's sons Absolom and Amnon (see II Samuel 13 and II Samuel 16:20-23). Beyond health of man and honor to God and man, I have little commentary to add here and leave this chapter open to your discussion.
Response to Mark 8:11-38
Again, we hear Jesus sigh 'deeply' as this reading opened with the Pharisees asking for a sign from heaven. Isn't it amazing that his fame had spread throughout the countryside due to his signs and wonders - even to elders and friends of the synagogue - and yet, the people's thirst for more signs and wonders could never be satisfied?
It appears this was not one of Jesus happier days. The conversation of Mark 8:11-21 is also shared in Matthew 16:1-10. Matthew 16:12 claims that the disciples understood Jesus statement in Mark 8:15 to be "that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." The term "Sadducees" is used in Matthew instead of the term "Herod." It is believed that Herod was a member of the Sadducees. (Another denomination of Judaism if you will). Jesus had concerns with both. Remember his statement from Matthew 23:8, "you have one teacher, and you are all brothers."
Mark 8:19-20 reiterates what we have discussed regarding the feeding of the 5000 and 4000 in that the numbers of baskets picked up was important symbolically. We have seen 'seven' to represent the completeness of God, and 'twelve' to represent the people of Israel through whom we have received the Bible and through whom Jesus Christ had His nationality and earthly identity. I am concerned that the New Testament is preached so much without the Old Testament. It is easy to see the Love of Jesus Christ, but without a proper understanding of the Law, it is tough to understand how He fulfilled the law, nor to see how He was a manifestation of the Father's love.
As a Gideon member, (an organization that distributes Bibles worldwide) I handed Bibles out to students on a local college campus. One student looked at the New Testament I was handing out and said "Wrong Testament" and gave it back to me. Jesus also held up the importance of the Old Testament and the Law in Matthew 5:17-20; "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The teaching of The New Jerusalem in Revelation 21:9-27 is full of the numbers "seven" and "twelve". Nothing can separate the truth of God's word from Jewish culture, tradition, and history. Through their scribes, prophets, and law, we have the gospel. God's plan for salvation was portrayed through everything they were and are. God is not finished with them yet. The Old Testament and the Law must be understood for the major religious groups on earth to see God the Father through Jesus Christ and understand the oracle.
In Mark 8:22-26, Jesus healed a blind man. Beside's mention of Jesus visit to Bethsaida, this story is not told in the other gospels. Jesus took the man out of the village, healed him in private, and told him to go home and to not even return into the village. The focus of Jesus ministry as told in the remainder of Mark will be much more on who he was including his death and resurrection and teachings about the Kingdom. There will be only two more mentions of his miracles of healing.
In Mark 8:27-30 (see also Matthew 16:13-20 and Luke 9:18-21) Jesus asks the question "Who do men say that I am?" It seems to me there were strong beliefs of reincarnation in the community as some say "John the Baptist" who had only recently died; others say Elijah, and others refer to other prophets. Even after everything they had seen, the "Son of God" apparently was still a difficult consideration among the people. However, Peter spoke up and said "You are the Christ". Mark and Luke finish their records of the conversation with a call to secrecy, but Matthew alone writes of the blessing Peter received from Jesus for this statement.
Each of the passages just mentioned are followed with Jesus speaking of his death, resurrection, and second coming in very clear terms. Matthew and Mark include Peter's rebuke as Jesus knows the path he must follow that will lead to His death.
We finish with Jesus statement to His disciples then and now found in Mark 8:34-38; "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." (similar passages found in Matthew 16:21-28, Luke 9:22-27, and John 12:24-26)
Response to Psalm 42:1-11
Wow, can I relate to this Psalm this morning! As a landscaper in Colorado, I am in my offseason. My main source of income is in snow removal. With the poor economy, work is slow and bills use up my money faster than I can cause it to come in. I have felt the Lord lay it upon my heart to write this blog, but it takes a lot of time, and there is little comfort in what benefit such a blog will be to me.
And yet, this past week I was able to sing praises to God in the Church choir and pray with the family of God! This coming week I am expecting my first grandchild! There is nothing I want more than to sing praises to God, my Rock and to spend time with you in His word. At the same time that I despair in the present frustrations of life, I know that my God will bless this work! I know that He will come to my aid! I have confidence in what my eyes cannot see!
Psalm 42:1-2 is our focus verse today; "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God." If you ask "where is your God, look at your trials?" My trials are my testament to you that I am no different than any man. Yet, I know my Creator is real and active! I know my Savior carries me and my loved ones in the palm of His hand! I Am's Love gives my life purpose! I will daily praise my Lord and my King!
Response to Proverbs 10:17
What Father does not rebuke his son when he sees him making choices that will lead to ruin and despair? Would anyone truly imagine that such challenge in a brother's life - such attempt to provide long term happiness and contentment does not come from a heart of love? So, why question the fact that so many teachings of honor to God, parents, and family as we have found in the Bible do not stem from our source of Love? In Him lies true contentment and joy. If we have Him, we can still participate in life on earth! In fact, we find we can find more fulfillment in every aspect of life if we make our Creator and Redeemer number one in our lives.
Listen to the discipline of our Lord as He speaks to us of true faith in Luke 12:29-32: "And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."
Therein lies Hope! Psalm 42:11 "Put your hope in God, for (we) will yet praise Him, (our) Savior and (our) God!
Trust Him today with all your Heart, with all your Soul, and with all your Mind, for that is the First and most wonderful Commandment of all.
"And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it (does) not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure." I John 2:28-3:3 (NIV)
Until tomorrow
Rick
Thursday, February 25, 2010
February 25, 2010, Leviticus 16:29-18:30, Mark 7:24-8:10, Psalm 41:1-13, Proverbs 10:15-16
Father, what shall we say? Father, glorify your name. Through your word we have seen that you have glorified your name and we have heard your promise that you will glorify it again! You have promised that if we lift up the name of Jesus, you would draw all men to yourself. Father, may the words of our mouths, and the meditations of our hearts bring glory to your name and draw all men closer to you. Amen.
Response to Leviticus 16:29-18:30
Our study of the "Day of Atonement" which we began yesterday continues today in Leviticus 16:29-34. Again, we see a common number "7" and the number 10 as this Holy Day is celebrated each year on the Hebrew Calendar on the 10th day of the 7th month. The day is to be treated as a Sabbath day of rest for both the native and the foreigner within their midst. As a believer, adopted into the Kingdom of God, it certainly would not hurt for each of us to observe these Holy days of honor before God. We certainly need to be brought back to a place of honor in our spiritual lives as well as within our families, our nation and our world. On this day, the High Priest atones for the church, the sacriments, those called of God, and all the people. I'm guessing the word "everlasting" means "everlasting." This year, Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement, is Friday, September 17, 2010. May I suggest we set this day aside to the Glorify God the Father regardless of our separatist traditions? Perhaps there are other Holy Days we might honor to His Glory with brothers we have not seen in some time. Perhaps we could learn something about our Father. We'll visit this again on February 28.
At the time of the first offerings listed in the Bible, (Genesis 4:3-4), there was jelousy between brothers as one felt God loved them more. But, God spoke to Cain, the firstborn son, in Genesis 4:6 "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." As time went by, sacrifices obviously had gotten out of control. As we have pondered whether the Levitical ceremonial sacrifices were meant to control the killing of animals and focus appropriate honor back to God, so we find in Leviticus 17. No longer did God want animal sacrifices performed out in the fields by whomever, and for whatever man desired! Leviticus 17:7 specifically mentions sacrifices to the goat idols, also rendered "satyrs" or "demons" (today, this idea has been revisited as the horned god of wicca, a growing phenomenon within secular youth and others). It is not hard to see that given the fact they could not see God, God became what they could see, the bull, or the goat, or the things man could make with their hands.
As odd as some of the Levitical sacrificial laws may seem to us today, we must realize this was the beginning of redirecting the honor back to the Creator and truly affecting the hearts of the men involved. God, our Father, had chosen this people and this place to begin to draw all men to himself. Even the prophets of the Israelites of the Old Testament era even grew to the realization that the sacrifices were not about the killing and presenting of the animals themselves, but the change required within the hearts of men. Through reading the Psalms and Prophets, they even sensed the symbolism representing the coming Messiah. Leviticus 17:1-9 encourages the people to stop their individual sacrifices and to come together as a community for fellowship and peace as they present their offerings.
Let's step back into the Genesis story again for a moment to follow the symbolism of eternal life. Adam and Eve chose to know more than just the good in the world. They chose to also know of evil. In that day, as they hid from God's Holiness in shame, God proclaimed that they had died and separated them from eternal life. Leviticus 17:10-16 again sets rules for sacrifices which carry a symbolic significance to this story: Although items may be dedicated or atoned for by the sprinkling of the blood, wherin is the life (vs11 and 14). Man may not partake of the lifeblood of any animal. He must pour it back into the creation, covering it with earth. Only in Christ does this observance change. Up until His ministry, the people could eat the meat or the manna. To the Jew, it must have sounded like blasphemy to hear the words of John 6:53-58:
"Jesus said to them, 'I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever." Remember the symbolism here. No-one drinks blood in honor of Christ's sacrifice, there is generally wine or grape juice. The symbolism is key.
This was the Father's plan all along. The symbolism stares us in the face, yet our eyes have been blind and our ears have been closed. See, hear, and believe and praise your Heavenly Father for His word. The wedding feast is prepared - come, fellowship together, eat and drink and partake of eternal life.
If anyone is interested in dealing with Leviticus 18 in such a way as to justify sex with anybody and everybody outside of family, think again. There is plenty of other scripture which narrows this down much more drastically: from Genesis 2:24 "the man...cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh." to Matthew 5:28 "every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." And many more, feel free to do a personal study - if not for your own long term health, at least for the health concerns and emotional harm you can do to your partner - or if you're just fooling around, someone else's in the long run. We all know there is emotional pain in abusing this gift. What sort of pain are you leaving in the wake of your recklessness and apathy? Do you really care for other people than yourself?
However, in light of Matthew 12:50; "For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother," Leviticus 18 could take on a whole new meaning.
Response to Mark 7:24-8:10
Mark 7:24-30 and Matthew 15:21-28 tell the story of a woman outside of the Jewish faith who wished for her daughter to be healed from an unclean (evil) spirit. As with the Roman Centurion (Luke 7:1-10, Matthew 8:5-13) and Jairus (Mark 5:22-43 see blog from Feb.21), this woman had faith that Jesus had power to heal even without being physically present. Perhaps they realized it was the Spirit of God Himself who was doing the healing. Through these readings, we see this woman is considered Canaanite, Greek, and Syrophoenician. All cultures that had been awed by the power of God apparent through this Jewish culture (I and II Maccabees shed tremendous light on this passage). The people of the world had faith, but realized they were but outsiders. Therefore, Jesus spoke to her through her own understanding, she responded in faith, and her daughter was healed.
Today, we have much to learn about demon possession. The interpretations of this passage refer to them as unclean or evil spirits. I wonder today if we may refer to them as mental illnesses or addictions. Certainly, the power of God can affect mental illnesses, addictions, or health concerns. Miracles happen everyday according to the will of God. It was His will to annoint the ministry of Jesus Christ and that of His disciples as He proclaimed the Kingdom of God. Many times today when we pray for miracles, we have our own agenda. Too often, we are demanding of God and we have not even taken the time to repent of our sins and seek His will. Too often, the world watches and loses faith when we ask for healing as the hearts of the community are not right with God. Seek healing and cleansing from within and watch God's hand at work. Sometimes, I believe, new life in His presence and peace on earth is the answer. Can our faith allow it? How many lives are touched as we stay faithful and care for the poor and needy? How often do we look like fool by asking God to do something that is not in his will and He sticks to His plan?
How long will we put the Lord our God to the test? How many asking for signs and wonders find no time to open their Bibles? Why is it that Jesus continued to avoid the crowds who only wanted a sign and who refused to put His words into practice? Why did Jesus sigh in Mark 7:34? He came to earth to live as a man so that He could speak our language and tell us about the Kingdom of God. Yet the people thronged about Him seeking healing from their physical unclean-ness (evil) ignoring what He had to say about Spiritual healing. Their bodies were healed, but their spiritual eyes and ears remained closed. He only had three years of ministry to say what He had to say, but the noise and the bustle of life choked out His words. He was known as the healer of bodies, but His passion was to be the healer of souls. He died on the cross, suffering tremendous torture. He was lifted up so that He could bring all men back to His Father from whom all blessings flow. But, we still don't understand. We still seek a sign. He wants to bring us home to be with Him, what glory is there in healing us and promoting our vain ideologies which claim He no longer has power in the world? I'm guessing he still sighs today when we ask for physical healing to promote our ideas about the His gospel. When He healed, he told them not to tell anyone. That's a personal thing, and steals glory away from the more important message.
Isaiah 53:5 states: "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."
Mark 8:1-10 and Matthew 15:32-39 tells the story of a second feeding of the multitude. This time, there are 4000. The more important numbers, however, are the numbers involved in what was fed and what was picked up. Notice with the 5000 in Mark 6:30-44 there were 5 loaves and 2 fish. 5+2=(7). There were (12) baskets picked up. In today's reading he had compassion as the people had been with Him (3) days. There were (7) loaves and a few fish. When they were finished, the scraps filled (7) baskets. Either the author was manipulating the story, or there is a consistent sign being witnessed through these stories. The completeness of God (7) displayed through the history of these (12) chosen tribes has fed the multitudes with the bread of life. Christ ministered in life for 3 years. He ministered in death for 3 days. He rose in triumph for all man on the fist day of the new week. The eighth day. The most important number, however, is 1. There is one God, Lord of creation, Father of all that is. When asked His name, He said "I Am". All power, glory, wisdom, honor, and majesty belong to Him.
Response to Psalm 41:1-13
Today's focus verse is Psalm 41:1 "Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the Lord delivers him in times of trouble."
If you have time and don't know the story, jump forward and read I Samuel 15:24-I Samuel 31. This is a long reading which we will study starting May 14 and continue through May 21, but carries tremendous weight and symbolism in today's Psalm and many others.
David's cry for mercy in Psalm 41:4 reflects Saul's penitent heart in I Samuel 24-31. However, God listens to David, but not to Saul. Beyond trying to understand why Saul was so much worse than David and imagining that God hated Saul as was reflected even in Samuel's confused heart, God had a plan and a symbolism in play. Unfortunately for Saul, he was forced to play the part of the world and it's rejection of God's annointed King, the Christ, descended from David Himself. Read this play as portrayed in this Psalm. It is doubtful that David realized the play He was writing, nor that the Israeli worshipers who sang this song understood it's deeper meaning.
Today, many in the world seek the demise of religion. The righteous children of God often feel oppressed and hunted down by the evil in the world. The play even involves Judas Iscariot, who also had the unfortunate fate of playing the part of the betrayer (see vs. 9). But, God has always had a plan and His story continues to be played out.
Through Judas betrayal the Jews, who in fact were serving the very God they were crucifying - though they did not understand what they were doing, fulfilled the word of God. Our play finishes with these words from Psalm 41:10-13 as David thought he was writing about retribution and judgment in hateful sort of way;
"But you, O Lord, have mercy on me; raise me up, that I may repay them. I know that you are pleased with me, for my enemy does not triumph over me. In my integrity you uphold me and set me in your presence forever. Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.
His retribution - his repayment - is filled with compassion and mercy as He shared our life for 33 years, our death for 3 days, and rose victorious for us on the eighth day of that Holy week calling all men to Himself.
Response to Proverbs 10:15-16
Ponder this one for a bit. This is like one of those mind puzzles, it keeps switching on you.
The wealth of the rich is their fortified city, (earthly city, or heavenly city?)
but poverty is the ruin of the poor. (spirituality, or finances?)
The wages of the righteous bring them life (His atonement, or a few fleeting coins?)
but the income of the wicked brings them punishment (those same few fleeting coins?)
May God's blessings be with you today.
Until tomorrow;
Rick
Response to Leviticus 16:29-18:30
Our study of the "Day of Atonement" which we began yesterday continues today in Leviticus 16:29-34. Again, we see a common number "7" and the number 10 as this Holy Day is celebrated each year on the Hebrew Calendar on the 10th day of the 7th month. The day is to be treated as a Sabbath day of rest for both the native and the foreigner within their midst. As a believer, adopted into the Kingdom of God, it certainly would not hurt for each of us to observe these Holy days of honor before God. We certainly need to be brought back to a place of honor in our spiritual lives as well as within our families, our nation and our world. On this day, the High Priest atones for the church, the sacriments, those called of God, and all the people. I'm guessing the word "everlasting" means "everlasting." This year, Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement, is Friday, September 17, 2010. May I suggest we set this day aside to the Glorify God the Father regardless of our separatist traditions? Perhaps there are other Holy Days we might honor to His Glory with brothers we have not seen in some time. Perhaps we could learn something about our Father. We'll visit this again on February 28.
At the time of the first offerings listed in the Bible, (Genesis 4:3-4), there was jelousy between brothers as one felt God loved them more. But, God spoke to Cain, the firstborn son, in Genesis 4:6 "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." As time went by, sacrifices obviously had gotten out of control. As we have pondered whether the Levitical ceremonial sacrifices were meant to control the killing of animals and focus appropriate honor back to God, so we find in Leviticus 17. No longer did God want animal sacrifices performed out in the fields by whomever, and for whatever man desired! Leviticus 17:7 specifically mentions sacrifices to the goat idols, also rendered "satyrs" or "demons" (today, this idea has been revisited as the horned god of wicca, a growing phenomenon within secular youth and others). It is not hard to see that given the fact they could not see God, God became what they could see, the bull, or the goat, or the things man could make with their hands.
As odd as some of the Levitical sacrificial laws may seem to us today, we must realize this was the beginning of redirecting the honor back to the Creator and truly affecting the hearts of the men involved. God, our Father, had chosen this people and this place to begin to draw all men to himself. Even the prophets of the Israelites of the Old Testament era even grew to the realization that the sacrifices were not about the killing and presenting of the animals themselves, but the change required within the hearts of men. Through reading the Psalms and Prophets, they even sensed the symbolism representing the coming Messiah. Leviticus 17:1-9 encourages the people to stop their individual sacrifices and to come together as a community for fellowship and peace as they present their offerings.
Let's step back into the Genesis story again for a moment to follow the symbolism of eternal life. Adam and Eve chose to know more than just the good in the world. They chose to also know of evil. In that day, as they hid from God's Holiness in shame, God proclaimed that they had died and separated them from eternal life. Leviticus 17:10-16 again sets rules for sacrifices which carry a symbolic significance to this story: Although items may be dedicated or atoned for by the sprinkling of the blood, wherin is the life (vs11 and 14). Man may not partake of the lifeblood of any animal. He must pour it back into the creation, covering it with earth. Only in Christ does this observance change. Up until His ministry, the people could eat the meat or the manna. To the Jew, it must have sounded like blasphemy to hear the words of John 6:53-58:
"Jesus said to them, 'I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever." Remember the symbolism here. No-one drinks blood in honor of Christ's sacrifice, there is generally wine or grape juice. The symbolism is key.
This was the Father's plan all along. The symbolism stares us in the face, yet our eyes have been blind and our ears have been closed. See, hear, and believe and praise your Heavenly Father for His word. The wedding feast is prepared - come, fellowship together, eat and drink and partake of eternal life.
If anyone is interested in dealing with Leviticus 18 in such a way as to justify sex with anybody and everybody outside of family, think again. There is plenty of other scripture which narrows this down much more drastically: from Genesis 2:24 "the man...cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh." to Matthew 5:28 "every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." And many more, feel free to do a personal study - if not for your own long term health, at least for the health concerns and emotional harm you can do to your partner - or if you're just fooling around, someone else's in the long run. We all know there is emotional pain in abusing this gift. What sort of pain are you leaving in the wake of your recklessness and apathy? Do you really care for other people than yourself?
However, in light of Matthew 12:50; "For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother," Leviticus 18 could take on a whole new meaning.
Response to Mark 7:24-8:10
Mark 7:24-30 and Matthew 15:21-28 tell the story of a woman outside of the Jewish faith who wished for her daughter to be healed from an unclean (evil) spirit. As with the Roman Centurion (Luke 7:1-10, Matthew 8:5-13) and Jairus (Mark 5:22-43 see blog from Feb.21), this woman had faith that Jesus had power to heal even without being physically present. Perhaps they realized it was the Spirit of God Himself who was doing the healing. Through these readings, we see this woman is considered Canaanite, Greek, and Syrophoenician. All cultures that had been awed by the power of God apparent through this Jewish culture (I and II Maccabees shed tremendous light on this passage). The people of the world had faith, but realized they were but outsiders. Therefore, Jesus spoke to her through her own understanding, she responded in faith, and her daughter was healed.
Today, we have much to learn about demon possession. The interpretations of this passage refer to them as unclean or evil spirits. I wonder today if we may refer to them as mental illnesses or addictions. Certainly, the power of God can affect mental illnesses, addictions, or health concerns. Miracles happen everyday according to the will of God. It was His will to annoint the ministry of Jesus Christ and that of His disciples as He proclaimed the Kingdom of God. Many times today when we pray for miracles, we have our own agenda. Too often, we are demanding of God and we have not even taken the time to repent of our sins and seek His will. Too often, the world watches and loses faith when we ask for healing as the hearts of the community are not right with God. Seek healing and cleansing from within and watch God's hand at work. Sometimes, I believe, new life in His presence and peace on earth is the answer. Can our faith allow it? How many lives are touched as we stay faithful and care for the poor and needy? How often do we look like fool by asking God to do something that is not in his will and He sticks to His plan?
How long will we put the Lord our God to the test? How many asking for signs and wonders find no time to open their Bibles? Why is it that Jesus continued to avoid the crowds who only wanted a sign and who refused to put His words into practice? Why did Jesus sigh in Mark 7:34? He came to earth to live as a man so that He could speak our language and tell us about the Kingdom of God. Yet the people thronged about Him seeking healing from their physical unclean-ness (evil) ignoring what He had to say about Spiritual healing. Their bodies were healed, but their spiritual eyes and ears remained closed. He only had three years of ministry to say what He had to say, but the noise and the bustle of life choked out His words. He was known as the healer of bodies, but His passion was to be the healer of souls. He died on the cross, suffering tremendous torture. He was lifted up so that He could bring all men back to His Father from whom all blessings flow. But, we still don't understand. We still seek a sign. He wants to bring us home to be with Him, what glory is there in healing us and promoting our vain ideologies which claim He no longer has power in the world? I'm guessing he still sighs today when we ask for physical healing to promote our ideas about the His gospel. When He healed, he told them not to tell anyone. That's a personal thing, and steals glory away from the more important message.
Isaiah 53:5 states: "But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed."
Mark 8:1-10 and Matthew 15:32-39 tells the story of a second feeding of the multitude. This time, there are 4000. The more important numbers, however, are the numbers involved in what was fed and what was picked up. Notice with the 5000 in Mark 6:30-44 there were 5 loaves and 2 fish. 5+2=(7). There were (12) baskets picked up. In today's reading he had compassion as the people had been with Him (3) days. There were (7) loaves and a few fish. When they were finished, the scraps filled (7) baskets. Either the author was manipulating the story, or there is a consistent sign being witnessed through these stories. The completeness of God (7) displayed through the history of these (12) chosen tribes has fed the multitudes with the bread of life. Christ ministered in life for 3 years. He ministered in death for 3 days. He rose in triumph for all man on the fist day of the new week. The eighth day. The most important number, however, is 1. There is one God, Lord of creation, Father of all that is. When asked His name, He said "I Am". All power, glory, wisdom, honor, and majesty belong to Him.
Response to Psalm 41:1-13
Today's focus verse is Psalm 41:1 "Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the Lord delivers him in times of trouble."
If you have time and don't know the story, jump forward and read I Samuel 15:24-I Samuel 31. This is a long reading which we will study starting May 14 and continue through May 21, but carries tremendous weight and symbolism in today's Psalm and many others.
David's cry for mercy in Psalm 41:4 reflects Saul's penitent heart in I Samuel 24-31. However, God listens to David, but not to Saul. Beyond trying to understand why Saul was so much worse than David and imagining that God hated Saul as was reflected even in Samuel's confused heart, God had a plan and a symbolism in play. Unfortunately for Saul, he was forced to play the part of the world and it's rejection of God's annointed King, the Christ, descended from David Himself. Read this play as portrayed in this Psalm. It is doubtful that David realized the play He was writing, nor that the Israeli worshipers who sang this song understood it's deeper meaning.
Today, many in the world seek the demise of religion. The righteous children of God often feel oppressed and hunted down by the evil in the world. The play even involves Judas Iscariot, who also had the unfortunate fate of playing the part of the betrayer (see vs. 9). But, God has always had a plan and His story continues to be played out.
Through Judas betrayal the Jews, who in fact were serving the very God they were crucifying - though they did not understand what they were doing, fulfilled the word of God. Our play finishes with these words from Psalm 41:10-13 as David thought he was writing about retribution and judgment in hateful sort of way;
"But you, O Lord, have mercy on me; raise me up, that I may repay them. I know that you are pleased with me, for my enemy does not triumph over me. In my integrity you uphold me and set me in your presence forever. Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.
His retribution - his repayment - is filled with compassion and mercy as He shared our life for 33 years, our death for 3 days, and rose victorious for us on the eighth day of that Holy week calling all men to Himself.
Response to Proverbs 10:15-16
Ponder this one for a bit. This is like one of those mind puzzles, it keeps switching on you.
The wealth of the rich is their fortified city, (earthly city, or heavenly city?)
but poverty is the ruin of the poor. (spirituality, or finances?)
The wages of the righteous bring them life (His atonement, or a few fleeting coins?)
but the income of the wicked brings them punishment (those same few fleeting coins?)
May God's blessings be with you today.
Until tomorrow;
Rick
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
February 24, 2010, Leviticus 15:1-16:28, Mark 7:1-23, Psalm 40:11-17, Proverbs 10:13-14
Holy, Merciful Father; As we enter your presence again today, we repent that we have become unclean and request your cleansing, renewing our wineskins that they may be filled with new insights found in your word. We ask that you would guide our hearts and minds to hear your will for our lives as we share our thoughts and words in response to your Holy word.
Response to Leviticus 15:1-16:28
Allow me to take a liberty today of combining our Old and New Testament readings. There are a variety of emmissions or discharges which Leviticus may be talking about which will not be of great benefit to our discussion. However, Our focus verse from Mark 7:14-15 brings this passage right back into play. "Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, 'Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.'" Mark 7:20-23 continues: "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean'"
As the Levitical law continues in Leviticus 15, it does not recommend that the clean not associate with the unclean, but that he must be ceremonially observant of the fact he was associated with uncleaness through washing. Even Pilate washed His hands of the evil he sensed at the crucifiction of Christ. (Matthew 27:24) David also ceremonially washed his hands in innocense in Psalm 26:6 and Psalm 73:13.
Leviticus 15:13 reflects the ceremonial cleansing of the unclean person when they are cleansed. Again, symbolically, this could represent confession of sin. As one considers his confession for seven days, there is honor to God. On the eighth day, following the period of honor before God. There are two offerings, first the sin offering, representing the confession and removal of guilt, and then the burnt offering of ascension, recommiting oneself to God. Verses 19-30 follow a similar procedure for women with a closing to this section given in verse 32-33.
You may be wondering, why so many laws. Back in Exodus, the people had offended God through innappropriate worship. God was following through on establishing His presence within the Israelite nation. It was important for His presence not to be taken lightly, just as we today should not take the name, child of God, lightly. If we claim it, we must live up to it. Over and over in the Bible, bad things happen to "His" people if they bring dishonor to His name. Leviticus 16 continues the story after Nadab and Abihu have died in Leviticus 10. God had said "I will show myself holy among those who are near me, and before all the people I will be glorified.'" A similar story happened in the New Testament in Acts 5 regarding the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira who attempted to be glorified through a lie. To take on the name "child of God" is a serious matter as the world looks to you to be His reprentative. His reputation is at stake and He is a jealous God. I do not take this blog lightly, and I pray that I might stay true to His leading. All the glory belongs to Him. This is why I cherish your participation, yet call you to honor His name in the process.
Leviticus 16 details a ritual which must be followed for the High Priest's entry in the Holy of Holies. The day in question becomes "The Day of Atonement". The High Priest, Aaron initially, washes and dresses appropriately and offers sacrifices. First the Bull of the sin offering is offered, making atonement for himself and his family, taking some of the blood and incense behind the veil into the Holy of Holies, ceremonially anointing the atonement cover of the Ark of the Testimony. Again, there is a sprinkling "seven" times. He then sacrifices one goat for the sin offering of the people and follows the same procedure behind the veil. Included with this annual ceremony is an atonement for the tent of meeting and the altar.
Leviticus 16:20-28 is the first mention of the scapegoat which removes the sins of the people away from the camp. Again, as becomes clear as we move through the Bible, all of this ceremony was symbolic and much had to do with God's message of salvation through His sacrificial lamb for the sins of the world. Isaiah 53 is perhaps the strongest prophecy in Jewish scripture depicting this sacrifice. The symbolism of the scapegoat is reflected in verse 6 (RSV); "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Again in verse 11(RSV); "he shall bear their iniquities." and verse 12 (RSV); "yet he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. If you have time, check out Isaiah 53 regarding God's plan for the sacrificial lamb and see how this document, hundreds of years before Jesus Christ lived reflects His death.
There is good news to share regarding judgment day. The Defense attorney is the Judge's Son and has yet to lose a case, and the prosecuting attorney is just looking for people to take down with Him.
Response to Mark 7:1-23
As we have just observed the ritual observance of cleansing in Leviticus, I do not have trouble with Jesus questioning the Pharisees concern about washing of hands. Again, there is something profound being stated here about the law. It was not to be used in an oppressive manner, but to bring glory and honor to God from the heart of the man who understood the reasoning behind it. It is obvious Jesus is not speaking from a physically health conscious perspective here, but a Spiritually health conscious perspective.
You might question whether Jesus was changing the subject here. Perhaps the Pharisees were concerned about the physical aspect of washing hands. However, even in our day to day activities, if we stop to pause a moment and consider how day to day activities represent our lives lived before God, we might gain inspiration also. Cleansing, purifying, having a pleasing odor - all of these things help us to live healthy, normal lives. They all help us to invest in relationships with humans. Who does not clean up, wear nice clothes, and attempt to have a pleasing odor before they go out on a date? If we can honor another human in this way, why not honor God in this way? Your answer might be; "Because I can see, feel, touch, and smell the human being, I know that they are there." This then begs the question; "Do you really believe God is there - or that He cares?"
Mark 7:1-23 is also reflected in Matthew 15:1-20. Both authors refer us back to Isaiah 29:13. As I have brought this back to a question of God's very existence, let me quote the section from Isaiah 29:13-16.
"The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men. Therefore once more I will astound these people with wonder upon wonder; the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish." Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the LORD, who do their work in darkness and think, "Who sees us? Who will know?" You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, "He did not make me"? Can the pot say of the potter, "He knows nothing"?
If by this blog I appear to want to change anything Moses said, or any of the Biblical writers for that matter; If I appear to disagree with Muhammad, John Smith, John Calvin, Martin Luther or any of the litany of church fathers who have added to our divisions and hostilities today, I am not ashamed. My desire is to remain faithful to God's word as it, and He, is alive and well. As I search the scriptures with you, I claim the wisdom of Matthew 13:52:
"Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
And Paul's exhortation to unity in the Father as represented in I Corinthians 1:21-25:
"For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength."
I hear many within the faith from their own spiritual identities, claiming that they know the true Christ and others serve a false Christ. How dare they! I believe it is the Spirit of God at work on men's souls, and that the power of d'evil is lame in His sight. I search for God through Jesus Christ daily and I have yet much to learn. If He is the Prince of Peace and God so loved the world, it should be very difficult indeed for men to justify war in His name. If a believer questions a brother's understanding of Christ, he must internalize the question and repent of his own sin. Let go and let God! You and I can't save anyone, and the concept that we can may very well be blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, if what is coming out of you in the name of faith is evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly; Then, by all means, wash your hands or do whatever else you need to do to become ceremonially cleansed and made right with God within your heart. Seek the true fruits of the Spirit which you know to be good, and right, and true (Ephesians 5:9): faith, hope, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control, compassion, lowliness, forbearance, forgiveness, wisdom, praise, thanksgiving, and the greatest of these is Love. (Galatians 5:22-23, Colossians 12:17, I Corinthians 13).
In Paul's letter to the Colossians, chapter 3:5-11, Paul describes this new nature and the bond we must have with Christ. Understand that although you are invited into the family, you must be working to cleanse yourself from the impurity within. Any of us who have felt worthy to serve within the Kingdom of God are working on this ourselves daily and are (must be) willing to help. The question is, do you want to be healed? Can you forgive our humanity and failures and work together with us at this cleansing? Listen to Paul:
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Galatians 5:13-15 "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
For more reading, check out I Corinthians 13. If you are online, you can use the Bible Gateway tool to the right of this blog.
Response to Psalm 40:11-17
As we hear the heart of David in this Psalm, we can understand that this cleansing from within is a lifelong struggle for all of us. As David speaks of his earthly enemies, I exhort you to consider your spiritual enemies. Those thoughts and ideologies from within that give you pride, disension, and all those unclean spirits within that we have reflected in the blog above (Mark 7:20-23, Colossians 3:5-11, Galatians 5:18-21). The same is true as those evil desires are cleansed in righteousness in the blood of Jesus to the glory of the Father. May "The Lord be exalted!" (vs. 16) He is our help and our deliverer, O Father, Creator of all, come quickly to save us and grant us your peace.
Response to Proverbs 10:13-14
The further along you get in the Word of God, the more you can relate to the beauty of the longest chapter in the Bible - a love letter to God. In response to today's Psalm, Psalm 119:11 came to my mind:
"I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."
The next world war, should that ever happen, will not be the Creator's choice, but man's. Repent and believe in the Prince of Peace. He is mighty to save.
Until tomorrow
Rick.
Response to Leviticus 15:1-16:28
Allow me to take a liberty today of combining our Old and New Testament readings. There are a variety of emmissions or discharges which Leviticus may be talking about which will not be of great benefit to our discussion. However, Our focus verse from Mark 7:14-15 brings this passage right back into play. "Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, 'Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.'" Mark 7:20-23 continues: "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean'"
As the Levitical law continues in Leviticus 15, it does not recommend that the clean not associate with the unclean, but that he must be ceremonially observant of the fact he was associated with uncleaness through washing. Even Pilate washed His hands of the evil he sensed at the crucifiction of Christ. (Matthew 27:24) David also ceremonially washed his hands in innocense in Psalm 26:6 and Psalm 73:13.
Leviticus 15:13 reflects the ceremonial cleansing of the unclean person when they are cleansed. Again, symbolically, this could represent confession of sin. As one considers his confession for seven days, there is honor to God. On the eighth day, following the period of honor before God. There are two offerings, first the sin offering, representing the confession and removal of guilt, and then the burnt offering of ascension, recommiting oneself to God. Verses 19-30 follow a similar procedure for women with a closing to this section given in verse 32-33.
You may be wondering, why so many laws. Back in Exodus, the people had offended God through innappropriate worship. God was following through on establishing His presence within the Israelite nation. It was important for His presence not to be taken lightly, just as we today should not take the name, child of God, lightly. If we claim it, we must live up to it. Over and over in the Bible, bad things happen to "His" people if they bring dishonor to His name. Leviticus 16 continues the story after Nadab and Abihu have died in Leviticus 10. God had said "I will show myself holy among those who are near me, and before all the people I will be glorified.'" A similar story happened in the New Testament in Acts 5 regarding the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira who attempted to be glorified through a lie. To take on the name "child of God" is a serious matter as the world looks to you to be His reprentative. His reputation is at stake and He is a jealous God. I do not take this blog lightly, and I pray that I might stay true to His leading. All the glory belongs to Him. This is why I cherish your participation, yet call you to honor His name in the process.
Leviticus 16 details a ritual which must be followed for the High Priest's entry in the Holy of Holies. The day in question becomes "The Day of Atonement". The High Priest, Aaron initially, washes and dresses appropriately and offers sacrifices. First the Bull of the sin offering is offered, making atonement for himself and his family, taking some of the blood and incense behind the veil into the Holy of Holies, ceremonially anointing the atonement cover of the Ark of the Testimony. Again, there is a sprinkling "seven" times. He then sacrifices one goat for the sin offering of the people and follows the same procedure behind the veil. Included with this annual ceremony is an atonement for the tent of meeting and the altar.
Leviticus 16:20-28 is the first mention of the scapegoat which removes the sins of the people away from the camp. Again, as becomes clear as we move through the Bible, all of this ceremony was symbolic and much had to do with God's message of salvation through His sacrificial lamb for the sins of the world. Isaiah 53 is perhaps the strongest prophecy in Jewish scripture depicting this sacrifice. The symbolism of the scapegoat is reflected in verse 6 (RSV); "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Again in verse 11(RSV); "he shall bear their iniquities." and verse 12 (RSV); "yet he bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. If you have time, check out Isaiah 53 regarding God's plan for the sacrificial lamb and see how this document, hundreds of years before Jesus Christ lived reflects His death.
There is good news to share regarding judgment day. The Defense attorney is the Judge's Son and has yet to lose a case, and the prosecuting attorney is just looking for people to take down with Him.
Response to Mark 7:1-23
As we have just observed the ritual observance of cleansing in Leviticus, I do not have trouble with Jesus questioning the Pharisees concern about washing of hands. Again, there is something profound being stated here about the law. It was not to be used in an oppressive manner, but to bring glory and honor to God from the heart of the man who understood the reasoning behind it. It is obvious Jesus is not speaking from a physically health conscious perspective here, but a Spiritually health conscious perspective.
You might question whether Jesus was changing the subject here. Perhaps the Pharisees were concerned about the physical aspect of washing hands. However, even in our day to day activities, if we stop to pause a moment and consider how day to day activities represent our lives lived before God, we might gain inspiration also. Cleansing, purifying, having a pleasing odor - all of these things help us to live healthy, normal lives. They all help us to invest in relationships with humans. Who does not clean up, wear nice clothes, and attempt to have a pleasing odor before they go out on a date? If we can honor another human in this way, why not honor God in this way? Your answer might be; "Because I can see, feel, touch, and smell the human being, I know that they are there." This then begs the question; "Do you really believe God is there - or that He cares?"
Mark 7:1-23 is also reflected in Matthew 15:1-20. Both authors refer us back to Isaiah 29:13. As I have brought this back to a question of God's very existence, let me quote the section from Isaiah 29:13-16.
"The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men. Therefore once more I will astound these people with wonder upon wonder; the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish." Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the LORD, who do their work in darkness and think, "Who sees us? Who will know?" You turn things upside down, as if the potter were thought to be like the clay! Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, "He did not make me"? Can the pot say of the potter, "He knows nothing"?
If by this blog I appear to want to change anything Moses said, or any of the Biblical writers for that matter; If I appear to disagree with Muhammad, John Smith, John Calvin, Martin Luther or any of the litany of church fathers who have added to our divisions and hostilities today, I am not ashamed. My desire is to remain faithful to God's word as it, and He, is alive and well. As I search the scriptures with you, I claim the wisdom of Matthew 13:52:
"Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
And Paul's exhortation to unity in the Father as represented in I Corinthians 1:21-25:
"For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength."
I hear many within the faith from their own spiritual identities, claiming that they know the true Christ and others serve a false Christ. How dare they! I believe it is the Spirit of God at work on men's souls, and that the power of d'evil is lame in His sight. I search for God through Jesus Christ daily and I have yet much to learn. If He is the Prince of Peace and God so loved the world, it should be very difficult indeed for men to justify war in His name. If a believer questions a brother's understanding of Christ, he must internalize the question and repent of his own sin. Let go and let God! You and I can't save anyone, and the concept that we can may very well be blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore, if what is coming out of you in the name of faith is evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly; Then, by all means, wash your hands or do whatever else you need to do to become ceremonially cleansed and made right with God within your heart. Seek the true fruits of the Spirit which you know to be good, and right, and true (Ephesians 5:9): faith, hope, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control, compassion, lowliness, forbearance, forgiveness, wisdom, praise, thanksgiving, and the greatest of these is Love. (Galatians 5:22-23, Colossians 12:17, I Corinthians 13).
In Paul's letter to the Colossians, chapter 3:5-11, Paul describes this new nature and the bond we must have with Christ. Understand that although you are invited into the family, you must be working to cleanse yourself from the impurity within. Any of us who have felt worthy to serve within the Kingdom of God are working on this ourselves daily and are (must be) willing to help. The question is, do you want to be healed? Can you forgive our humanity and failures and work together with us at this cleansing? Listen to Paul:
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Galatians 5:13-15 "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
For more reading, check out I Corinthians 13. If you are online, you can use the Bible Gateway tool to the right of this blog.
Response to Psalm 40:11-17
As we hear the heart of David in this Psalm, we can understand that this cleansing from within is a lifelong struggle for all of us. As David speaks of his earthly enemies, I exhort you to consider your spiritual enemies. Those thoughts and ideologies from within that give you pride, disension, and all those unclean spirits within that we have reflected in the blog above (Mark 7:20-23, Colossians 3:5-11, Galatians 5:18-21). The same is true as those evil desires are cleansed in righteousness in the blood of Jesus to the glory of the Father. May "The Lord be exalted!" (vs. 16) He is our help and our deliverer, O Father, Creator of all, come quickly to save us and grant us your peace.
Response to Proverbs 10:13-14
The further along you get in the Word of God, the more you can relate to the beauty of the longest chapter in the Bible - a love letter to God. In response to today's Psalm, Psalm 119:11 came to my mind:
"I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you."
The next world war, should that ever happen, will not be the Creator's choice, but man's. Repent and believe in the Prince of Peace. He is mighty to save.
Until tomorrow
Rick.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
February 23, 2010, Leviticus 14:1-57, Mark 6:30-56, Psalm 40:1-10, Proverbs 10:11-12
Our Healer, Redeemer, Provider, Father; We humble ourselves as your Children and request your blessing as we consider your word today. We must admit we do not always understand. Use us we pray. Speak to us, speak through us. Open our ears. Open our eyes. Open our mouths. May our thoughts and the words we speak be uplifting to the body and bring Glory to your name.
Response to Leviticus 14:1-57
Wow, can't say I saw that one coming! That's the joy of reading the Bible over and over. It never ceases to amaze me and I am always able to glean something new and make new applications to my life. Today, again, I found I received as much inspiration from God through personal meditation in His word as I did from reading various commentaries. If you are like me, you are finding that the attitude of the heart and the symbolism of the crucifiction carry as much importance in these readings as the Levitical sacrifices and ceremonies themselves. Many remain a common part of our lives today. For instance; why 7 days in the week?,Why is it so important to take a break on the weekends? Feel free to add your insights. I certainly am not the only one with insights to share! You too have a spiritual identity and that prepares us for my thoughts on this passage.
As I believe symbolism is key and creates a modern reading, I will not get bogged down in leprosy. Therefore, when the man of God visits with the sinful man outside the church, (whether this is only a church leader or a layman who feels the call - you decide) and the sinful man wishes to be cleansed and made whole, we are given a ritual - or ceremony to welcome such an individual into the Kingdom. Call it an initiation - or baptism - if you will symbolizing God's acceptance.
Personally, I am glad we don't use; "two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop with fresh water in a clay pot (vs. 4-5 NIV). (note that vs. 5 in RSV reads "earthen vessel over running water) Now, some may find this offensive, but I found this ritual to resemble what I have seen "witch doctor's" doing in the movies from various parts of the world. Again, I am not embarrassed to claim that much of religious ritual outside of Judaism and Christianity is found within the Bible. Egyptian mythology in Genesis 6:4, tribal ritual in today's passage. Even some Christian leaders speak of a kind of reincarnation through their interpretations of Genesis 14:18-20 mixed with Hebrews 6:20-7:1. Yes, we must be very careful with respect to indoctrinations. With that, let me return to blogging on the ceremonial symbolism I glean from Leviticus 14.
As we kill a bird over the clean water in the clay pot, I can't help but see the soul of man as it is cleansed by the blood of the lamb of God. (ie. death of Christ) On passover, the blood of the lamb was spread on the wooden doorposts of the homes of the Israelites as a sign of protection from the evil one (Exodus 12:22). Again, chosen and cleansed. Hyssop symbolized cleansing in Psalm 51:7 and was used as part of the crucifiction (John 19:29. Cedar wood is known for it's pleasing odor - just as the pleasing odor of a sacrifice. One may also sense the cross through this use of wood. In I Chronicles 17:1-6, David and Nathan refer to the house of God, the earthly church, as a house of cedar - these earthly vessels. The scarlet thread certainly displays the blood of sacrifice again (Isaiah 1:18, and Revelation 7:14). Hebrews 9:14 states "how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God. The symbolism of all these signs being dipped into the blood of the lamb who died - sprinkled seven times (complete cleansing - completeness of God) on the person (vs 7) and the house (vs 51) is followed by realeasing the living spirit out of the camp and into the open field. Freedom, joy, and release of the burden of sin that the plague of leprosy (sin) had produced.
Ephesians 2:5-6 says it this way; "made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions -it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms"
When John baptised Jesus, he testified that He saw the Spirit of God descend and remain on Jesus (John 1:33). Matthew 3;16 claims the Spirit was represented by a dove. All this was forcast in Isaiah 11:2.
After this ceremony, the individual lived in full sight of the community outside his tent for seven days. On the first and seventh day, he was physically cleansed, both clothes and body and fully shaved. On the eighth day, there was a full ceremony of sacrifices and anointing. The individual who has been cleansed and welcomed back into the community of believers after his separation is annointed, both in the blood of the lamb, and with oil on the tip of the right ear, on the right thumb, and the big toe of the right foot. I am wondering if this might represent "He who has ears, let him hear" and Lord, let me be your hands and feet. I am cleansed and ready for service. There is also the sprinkling with oil, seven times. With the oil that is left, the priest annoints the sinner's head with oil - a sign of consecration. Few religious ceremonies observed today expect this amount of patience and personal awareness. It is much easier for us to neglect the honor and worship of God. An hour a week seems like nothing, right! What other symbolism or understanding do you have to offer? I'd love to hear your ideas.
Response to Mark 6:30-56
Following their missionary journey, Jesus recommended the disciples get away to rest for awhile. But the People followed them into the countryside. Notice that even Jesus grew tired of the constant crowds. Yet, he spent the day teaching the people. Word had spread and there were about 5000 men. Matthew adds that this was 5000 men besides women and children. With only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, all the people were fed and there were 12 baskets afterward. This was such an amazing miracle, the story (Mark 6:30-44)is shared in each gospel. (see Matthew 14:13-21, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-13). John writes that Jesus had to withdraw afterwards because the people were ready to make Him king by force.
To avoid the tumult, Jesus had sent the disciples away and withdew from the crowd. As night came, Jesus walked across the water to reunite with the disciples (Mark 6:45-52). Matthew 14:22-32 and John 6:15-21) Although it is believed that Mark wrote much from Peter's account of Jesus life, it is Matthew that shared the story of Peter getting out of the boat and walking on the water with Jesus. Again, this story shares the power Jesus had over creation. Creation of matter, walking on water, and calming the wind and sea. Perhaps the disciples looked back at this day and wondered why they never ceased to be amazed as is reflected in Mark 6:51-52. But, how difficult is it for us to believe in the Creator despite the fact we see His glory throughout His creation surrounding us everyday? How hard do we work to explain these things away?
Mark 6:53-56 coincides with Matthew 14:34-36. Again, wherever Jesus went, the knowledge of His power brought the crowds. He did not even need to acknowledge the individual. If they but touched his clothing, they were healed. They believed because of the testimony of others, and they were healed. The only place the scripture claims that His power was not displayed was His hometown, amongst those who knew He had grown up just like any man.
What will it take to soften your heart to the Love and Acceptance your Almighty Creator has for you? What anger or resentments do you need to release? Does it seem right to consider Him to be a Prince of Peace, Power, and Healing - and not the God of war so many imagine? Do you believe He is at war for your protection as He is not willing that any should perish? Do you believe He cares about you? Do you believe He wants you? Do you believe He can save you? Do you believe He can give you joy?
Response to Psalm 40:1-10
It's been a while since I suggested you consider Jesus Christ personalizing the Psalm, but this is a good one. I also thought of Jeremiah after he was thrown into the cistern in Jeremiah 38:6-13. Psalm 40:1-2 are the focus verses in our reading today. "I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my fet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand." How many others we have discussed today could have claimed these words? The unclean lepor from Leviticus who has been made clean and pronounced whole and worthy of the Kingdom; The people who's ears were opened by the teachings of Jesus; those who were healed through his healing touch!
We all have a story to tell to the nations. A Psalm, a hymn, a spiritual song. Our song is to the Lord, not to our pride or to doctrines which would separate us from the Love of our Creator!
Verse 6 carries a footnote. Instead of the words "my ears you have pierced" which may represent "opened", the interpretation from the ancient Septuagint document is rendered "a body you have prepared for me". Then it is easy to hear the sacrificial lamb of God continuing to speak in Psalm 40:7; "Then I said, "Here I am, I have come - it is written about me in the scroll.
For all of us who have accepted adoption into the Kingdom of God, we can recite verses 8-10. "I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart." I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know, O Lord. I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly."
Response to Proverbs 10:11-12
War serves a purpose only when evil reigns, yet God does not need our armies. I have seen the hardest hearts softened - talk of Peace must never cease to be an option among men.
Our Proverb today: "The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.
If the Bible claims "For God so Loved the World... - and Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace.... - Then why do end times philosophies of the religious spell doom and destruction? Even when doom was declared upon Nineva, the people repented and their lives were spared.
The 6th sign...plague...angel of Revelation continues to spell doom and destruction. Yet, this was not the message of Jesus and it defies the fact that men worldwide are seeking after God - and He promises that if ye seek me ye will know me. Jesus fortells in Matthew 24-25 that war does not represent the last day.
The prophecies of Zechariah can easily see fulfillment throught the historical documents of I and II Maccabees, a time when war ruled the world.
Only through our ideologies of war, do we continue to justify it's use to carry out the will of God. At what point, will we lay down our weopons and acknowledge our Creator's Love through the reign of the Prince of Peace? That's what our Children yearn for! Read Isaiah 44-45. God will bring Peace and destroy the ideologies which have separated and governed man for millenia. It finishes with "every knee shall bow and every tongue confess" Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength...In the Lord all the offspring of Israel shall triumph and glory." There are a multitude of verses to back this up and only one mention of Armageddon. If we would join in the valley outside the walls of Jerusalem and everyone would join hands, bow the knee and worship, it would indeed be the final battle. Religion provides forms of worship. Our reverence takes many forms. Check out this video and let your imagination wander! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW8VvXUv_8Q
The grapes of wrath certainly will be processed into new wine to be drunk by all men as we celebrate the wedding feast of our Lord and Savior and d'evil is vanquished once and for all and the eighth day, the first day of the new week, shall have arrived at last.
Of course, you might apply today's Proverb in a much more individual and personal way.
Until Tomorrow;
Rick.
Response to Leviticus 14:1-57
Wow, can't say I saw that one coming! That's the joy of reading the Bible over and over. It never ceases to amaze me and I am always able to glean something new and make new applications to my life. Today, again, I found I received as much inspiration from God through personal meditation in His word as I did from reading various commentaries. If you are like me, you are finding that the attitude of the heart and the symbolism of the crucifiction carry as much importance in these readings as the Levitical sacrifices and ceremonies themselves. Many remain a common part of our lives today. For instance; why 7 days in the week?,Why is it so important to take a break on the weekends? Feel free to add your insights. I certainly am not the only one with insights to share! You too have a spiritual identity and that prepares us for my thoughts on this passage.
As I believe symbolism is key and creates a modern reading, I will not get bogged down in leprosy. Therefore, when the man of God visits with the sinful man outside the church, (whether this is only a church leader or a layman who feels the call - you decide) and the sinful man wishes to be cleansed and made whole, we are given a ritual - or ceremony to welcome such an individual into the Kingdom. Call it an initiation - or baptism - if you will symbolizing God's acceptance.
Personally, I am glad we don't use; "two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop with fresh water in a clay pot (vs. 4-5 NIV). (note that vs. 5 in RSV reads "earthen vessel over running water) Now, some may find this offensive, but I found this ritual to resemble what I have seen "witch doctor's" doing in the movies from various parts of the world. Again, I am not embarrassed to claim that much of religious ritual outside of Judaism and Christianity is found within the Bible. Egyptian mythology in Genesis 6:4, tribal ritual in today's passage. Even some Christian leaders speak of a kind of reincarnation through their interpretations of Genesis 14:18-20 mixed with Hebrews 6:20-7:1. Yes, we must be very careful with respect to indoctrinations. With that, let me return to blogging on the ceremonial symbolism I glean from Leviticus 14.
As we kill a bird over the clean water in the clay pot, I can't help but see the soul of man as it is cleansed by the blood of the lamb of God. (ie. death of Christ) On passover, the blood of the lamb was spread on the wooden doorposts of the homes of the Israelites as a sign of protection from the evil one (Exodus 12:22). Again, chosen and cleansed. Hyssop symbolized cleansing in Psalm 51:7 and was used as part of the crucifiction (John 19:29. Cedar wood is known for it's pleasing odor - just as the pleasing odor of a sacrifice. One may also sense the cross through this use of wood. In I Chronicles 17:1-6, David and Nathan refer to the house of God, the earthly church, as a house of cedar - these earthly vessels. The scarlet thread certainly displays the blood of sacrifice again (Isaiah 1:18, and Revelation 7:14). Hebrews 9:14 states "how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God. The symbolism of all these signs being dipped into the blood of the lamb who died - sprinkled seven times (complete cleansing - completeness of God) on the person (vs 7) and the house (vs 51) is followed by realeasing the living spirit out of the camp and into the open field. Freedom, joy, and release of the burden of sin that the plague of leprosy (sin) had produced.
Ephesians 2:5-6 says it this way; "made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions -it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms"
When John baptised Jesus, he testified that He saw the Spirit of God descend and remain on Jesus (John 1:33). Matthew 3;16 claims the Spirit was represented by a dove. All this was forcast in Isaiah 11:2.
After this ceremony, the individual lived in full sight of the community outside his tent for seven days. On the first and seventh day, he was physically cleansed, both clothes and body and fully shaved. On the eighth day, there was a full ceremony of sacrifices and anointing. The individual who has been cleansed and welcomed back into the community of believers after his separation is annointed, both in the blood of the lamb, and with oil on the tip of the right ear, on the right thumb, and the big toe of the right foot. I am wondering if this might represent "He who has ears, let him hear" and Lord, let me be your hands and feet. I am cleansed and ready for service. There is also the sprinkling with oil, seven times. With the oil that is left, the priest annoints the sinner's head with oil - a sign of consecration. Few religious ceremonies observed today expect this amount of patience and personal awareness. It is much easier for us to neglect the honor and worship of God. An hour a week seems like nothing, right! What other symbolism or understanding do you have to offer? I'd love to hear your ideas.
Response to Mark 6:30-56
Following their missionary journey, Jesus recommended the disciples get away to rest for awhile. But the People followed them into the countryside. Notice that even Jesus grew tired of the constant crowds. Yet, he spent the day teaching the people. Word had spread and there were about 5000 men. Matthew adds that this was 5000 men besides women and children. With only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish, all the people were fed and there were 12 baskets afterward. This was such an amazing miracle, the story (Mark 6:30-44)is shared in each gospel. (see Matthew 14:13-21, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-13). John writes that Jesus had to withdraw afterwards because the people were ready to make Him king by force.
To avoid the tumult, Jesus had sent the disciples away and withdew from the crowd. As night came, Jesus walked across the water to reunite with the disciples (Mark 6:45-52). Matthew 14:22-32 and John 6:15-21) Although it is believed that Mark wrote much from Peter's account of Jesus life, it is Matthew that shared the story of Peter getting out of the boat and walking on the water with Jesus. Again, this story shares the power Jesus had over creation. Creation of matter, walking on water, and calming the wind and sea. Perhaps the disciples looked back at this day and wondered why they never ceased to be amazed as is reflected in Mark 6:51-52. But, how difficult is it for us to believe in the Creator despite the fact we see His glory throughout His creation surrounding us everyday? How hard do we work to explain these things away?
Mark 6:53-56 coincides with Matthew 14:34-36. Again, wherever Jesus went, the knowledge of His power brought the crowds. He did not even need to acknowledge the individual. If they but touched his clothing, they were healed. They believed because of the testimony of others, and they were healed. The only place the scripture claims that His power was not displayed was His hometown, amongst those who knew He had grown up just like any man.
What will it take to soften your heart to the Love and Acceptance your Almighty Creator has for you? What anger or resentments do you need to release? Does it seem right to consider Him to be a Prince of Peace, Power, and Healing - and not the God of war so many imagine? Do you believe He is at war for your protection as He is not willing that any should perish? Do you believe He cares about you? Do you believe He wants you? Do you believe He can save you? Do you believe He can give you joy?
Response to Psalm 40:1-10
It's been a while since I suggested you consider Jesus Christ personalizing the Psalm, but this is a good one. I also thought of Jeremiah after he was thrown into the cistern in Jeremiah 38:6-13. Psalm 40:1-2 are the focus verses in our reading today. "I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my fet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand." How many others we have discussed today could have claimed these words? The unclean lepor from Leviticus who has been made clean and pronounced whole and worthy of the Kingdom; The people who's ears were opened by the teachings of Jesus; those who were healed through his healing touch!
We all have a story to tell to the nations. A Psalm, a hymn, a spiritual song. Our song is to the Lord, not to our pride or to doctrines which would separate us from the Love of our Creator!
Verse 6 carries a footnote. Instead of the words "my ears you have pierced" which may represent "opened", the interpretation from the ancient Septuagint document is rendered "a body you have prepared for me". Then it is easy to hear the sacrificial lamb of God continuing to speak in Psalm 40:7; "Then I said, "Here I am, I have come - it is written about me in the scroll.
For all of us who have accepted adoption into the Kingdom of God, we can recite verses 8-10. "I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart." I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know, O Lord. I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly."
Response to Proverbs 10:11-12
War serves a purpose only when evil reigns, yet God does not need our armies. I have seen the hardest hearts softened - talk of Peace must never cease to be an option among men.
Our Proverb today: "The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked. Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.
If the Bible claims "For God so Loved the World... - and Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace.... - Then why do end times philosophies of the religious spell doom and destruction? Even when doom was declared upon Nineva, the people repented and their lives were spared.
The 6th sign...plague...angel of Revelation continues to spell doom and destruction. Yet, this was not the message of Jesus and it defies the fact that men worldwide are seeking after God - and He promises that if ye seek me ye will know me. Jesus fortells in Matthew 24-25 that war does not represent the last day.
The prophecies of Zechariah can easily see fulfillment throught the historical documents of I and II Maccabees, a time when war ruled the world.
Only through our ideologies of war, do we continue to justify it's use to carry out the will of God. At what point, will we lay down our weopons and acknowledge our Creator's Love through the reign of the Prince of Peace? That's what our Children yearn for! Read Isaiah 44-45. God will bring Peace and destroy the ideologies which have separated and governed man for millenia. It finishes with "every knee shall bow and every tongue confess" Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength...In the Lord all the offspring of Israel shall triumph and glory." There are a multitude of verses to back this up and only one mention of Armageddon. If we would join in the valley outside the walls of Jerusalem and everyone would join hands, bow the knee and worship, it would indeed be the final battle. Religion provides forms of worship. Our reverence takes many forms. Check out this video and let your imagination wander! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW8VvXUv_8Q
The grapes of wrath certainly will be processed into new wine to be drunk by all men as we celebrate the wedding feast of our Lord and Savior and d'evil is vanquished once and for all and the eighth day, the first day of the new week, shall have arrived at last.
Of course, you might apply today's Proverb in a much more individual and personal way.
Until Tomorrow;
Rick.
Monday, February 22, 2010
February 22, 2010, Leviticus 13:1-59, Mark 6:1-29, Psalm 39:1-13, Proverbs 10:10
Heavenly Father, Lord of hosts, You have become our righteousness. Before you we humbly bow in repentance, requesting forgiveness and cleansing in your great and Holy name. As your children, we ask that you might nurture us again today through the words and personal insights you have blessed us with from our history. Guide our minds and our mouths as we glorify your Holy name together.
Response to Leviticus 13:1-59
Did you have a hard time reading that passage? What could talking about infectuous skin diseases have to do with our lives today? Haven't we moved well beyond the health concerns of that day and age? Perhaps a better question is, as we have moved well beyond in the field of health, why have we taken so much longer to move ahead in the fields of faith and spirituality? Why can we apply the teachings of health to our secular educations, but in the fields of faith and spirituality we generally have dismissed the idea of God altogether due to our confusion and relentless selfish attempts to separate Him from the rest of humanity? Why is it today that even within our faith based education systems we are generally asking the students to become experts at religious concepts that have failed to bring people into the Kingdom beyond the short term and are centuries old. I do not feel we need to get down to the basics as they were set 500 - 2000 years ago. Let's seek a firm foundation set "In the Beginning" encompassing all of creation, affecting life as we know it! "Faith expressions classes" belong in Academia, dispelling the modern myth that God does not exist and empowering student development in sharing their faith.
Therefore, in the words of my Priest, I would like discuss Leviticus 13:1-59 in three general areas. 1. how shall we compare this teaching to the Kingdom of God in our modern era? 2. In what way does this passage preach a gospel of repentance and forgiveness of sins? 3. How is this passage a reminder that in His desire for unity and reconcilliation, The Lord has become our righteousness?
Personally, I was feeling leprosy had little to do with today. But how similar is this to aids and cancer which are worldwide epidemics? Ask a patient of either one of these conditions whether they feel like an outcast! Perhaps you are affected, how do you relate to this passage? Within my own lifetime, I have visited a mission outpost in Nigeria and witnessed leprosy firsthand. These are real people who are infected with a wasting disease who desperately want to be healed. So, how about you? Are you sick in any way? Are you wasting away facing imminent death? How are you emotionally? Have you been in to see the therapist or other counselor lately? How about your relationships? Are they all healthy and functional? Where are your worries? Do you suffer the human condition as all of us do? In what ways can you relate to being an outcast?
I trust you realize as we drive this point home that we all suffer the human condition. Much of this we can cure. Go to therapy and fix the emotions or relationships. Go to radiation and suffer serious trauma, but remove the cancer - if you are blessed. Expose yourself to the knife and have the tumor removed. If you have enough money, you can extend life and this human condition for a long time - and then you die. At what point does one admit they are mortal and that death is inevitable? How much money is justifyable to keep one person alive at the expense of all the others footing the bill? How many societies are going bankrupt as we avoid the inevitable? What is the fear in death?
If you did not admit your mortality, I'm sure you understand that you were in denial - the rest of us did. How does this relate to the Kingdom of God? We are fallen. We cannot get up on our own. We carry in our bodies the infection of sin. You know you have it. Denying sin is about as useful as denying mortality. We'll all mess up and we'll all die. The question is - is your sin curable, or is it terminal? Again, we all have some of both. This should not be very difficult to admit, is it? The fact is, before we can function in life and avoid being an outcast, we must confess our weaknesses. We must go to the counselor or the doctor and be made well. Open wounds must be dealt with, but the permanent condition becomes a part of you that must be accepted by society. The greatest strength we have is to be able to admit our shortcomings and our desire to be healed. What we need from each other is encouragement, understanding, love, and support as we persevere through our condition. This will help our dating relationships, our marriages, our families, our employment, our lives in society, our relations with the world. Isn't our ultimate goal to remain viable and have value as members of the human condition?
The message I find in the Bible and that which I wish to share with you is that God understands the human condition. He offers Love, acceptance, help, and support. He offers counseling and healing. Whether you live or die is not of as great a concern to Him as it is to you. Through the sacrifice of His only begotten son, he has granted you the free gift of repentance and forgiveness, reconciling you back into His loving arms. He no longer sees your open wounds, but understands you are white as snow from the top of your head to the end of your toe. He sees all that He has made, and behold, it is very good. He welcomes you into back into the camp upon your request and is the first to run and wrap his loving arms around you. Now, go and present yourself before the others in the Kingdom as a testimony of what the Lord has done for you. If they don't accept you, there are grave consequences for them. They, become the ones with the open wounds in need of repentance and forgiveness. Will you forgive them? They suffer from the Human condition.
Herein lies our testimony. The Lord is my righteousness. I was sick, but He made me well. I was in prison, but He freed me. I was a stranger, but He welcomed me in. I was naked, but He clothed me. As I share this testimony with the family of God, I do not expect their judgment upon me, but their acceptance, forgiveness, and Love. Perhaps, if they feel up to it, they might share their testimony with me also, helping me to understand that I am with brothers and sisters in Christ. Perhaps they can celebrate with joy anew in the hearing of God at work in my life! Together, we can sing praises and find strength in the joy of the Lord. There was nothing we could do, no matter how hard we tried, but He has made all the difference in our lives. Praise His Holy Name. He loves us. He has cured us. Nothing can now separate us from His Almighty Love! He has accepted us back into His camp and I will praise His name till I meet Him face to face! Oh, Holy Day! Amen.
There may be a catch here that I must add. If you choose not to accept His forgiveness and healing - or if you choose not to offer that same forgiveness in your heart for your brother, you may remain an outcast.
Response to Mark 6:1-29
I mention that Mark 6:1-6 is also reflected in Matthew 13:53-58 and Luke 4:16-30. Note that there is no copyright at the time of these writings and some of them have been written exactly the same. Also note that the events are not always placed in the same order. As I have mentioned before, this is proof that various men wrote of what they saw and heard from their own memory of actual events. The contradiction of historical fact as presented through the memories of the Gospel writers is not a weakness of the Bible, but a strength and a proof of the validity that these events actually took place and were not the concoction of one individual or a group attempting to concur. How many books does the unbeliever need? Here is not only 1, but 4 which have stood the test of time. If you don't like the renditions given by the translators of the early manuscripts, learn Hebrew and check the ancient manuscripts which are availabe in nearly original separate books. Don't take the easy way out and pretend that these proofs do not exist, or that documented history did not occur. For hundreds of years, it has been assumed that Mark was the first gospel, written around 50-65 AD and that other writers used some of His material in their writings, but adjusted them to their fit their personal understandings and memory. Now, back to the historical events reflected in today's reading.
Mark 6:1-6 reflects a separate time that Jesus returned to visit His mother and family. The first was reflected in Mark 3. Luke actually represents this story as the first visit, while Matthew and Mark place it second. It is difficult for me to to understand how anyone could read Mark 6:3 and not realize that Jesus did have siblings. I would be interested to know how this verse is handled by those claiming that Jesus mother, Mary, remained a virgin. Because of their understanding of Jesus childhood, recognizing him as just another man, it was difficult for the townspeople to believe He held such a strong presence of the Spirit of God himself. Because of their knowledge of who he was as a man, he was unable to perform many miracles there. Apparently miracles depend not only on the power of God, but the faith of the community.
As the disciples prepare to go out into the field, blessed with power and authority from on high to perform miracles and cast out demons (Mark 6:7-13, Matthew 10:1-15, Luke 9:1-6), Jesus told them not to pack, but to step out in faith in their fellowman to provide for their needs. Their message was the same as John the Baptists and Jesus. Repentance and forgiveness of sins. Notice that nothing was said about judgement and eternal damnation to the unbeliever.
The ministry of Jesus and his disciples was talked about throughout the countryside because of the great signs and wonders. News of his ministry reached Herod as he had also followed the ministry of John the Baptist. In Mark 6:14-29, Matthew 14:1-12, and Luke 9:7-9 we read of the death of John the Baptist who was Jesus cousin and forbear of preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins. (Luke 1:36-80, Luke 3:1-20, Matthew 3:1-12, Mark 1:1-8, John 1:6-8, John 1:19-28.) Even as an unbeliever - and the focus of John's chastisement, Herod was fascinated by John's message and liked to listen to him. He experienced sorrow and guilt at John's death as he placed the pressures of his earthly desires above the calls of his own conscience. Have you ever given in to earthly passions and placed them over what you knew to be right?
Response to Psalm 39:1-13
It is a dangerous prayer indeed which is found in Psalm 39:8; "Save me from all my transgressions." One of toughest points of our lives is when we are being refined, suffering the consequences of our sin. And yet, we often pray that God would remove our sin from us. It's tough to quit sinning if pain and heartache are not involved. Thomas Paine wrote in his article "Common Sense" in 1776 "These are the times that try men's souls". This was a cry from oppression. A cry for justice and mercy. A cry for release from bondage. The battle would not come without pain. As these times are reflected in nations and on a worldwide scale, so they are reflected within the individual wishing to conquer sin. As in war, our battles with sin are often won with brothers who understand our cause.
If we confess our sins, our brothers can rally to our defense. If we are silent and still, our anguish increases and our hearts burn within us. In this also, God calls us to relationship. There is a battle which we cannot fight alone. David understood God's part in this, "I was silent; I would not open my mouth, for you are the one who has done this!" (vs. 9). No wonder we struggle to understand the Love of God. We experience His scourge from within! We are overcome by the blow of His hand. We are brought to distress and ruin if we do not repent and seek help to overcome our disease. We can yell in anger at our Heavenly Father, or we can be brought to our knees, humbled and reunited with family and friends who have come to our aid.
As we stand guilty as brothers among brothers, what good does it do us to refer to one another as wicked and fool? If we would talk to one another, we would realize that we share similar experiences and concerns. If we would acknowledge God's work in one another's lives, we would understand his purpose within our own. We have but a moment to learn of God's love and compassion and work on earth through one another. Let's not waste it on mockery and warfare. Let's not muzzle our mouths bustling about only in vain heaping up wealth and misfortune and committing blasphemy against God's children in other lands and cultures. Hear our prayer oh Lord, listen to our cry for help and be not deaf to our weeping. We have dwelt on this earth as aliens from one another, strangers as our fathers were. Come into our presence that we might rejoice together in your name before we depart and miss the opportunity.
Be a part of a change in our world. We don't have much time. Our focus verse for today is found in Psalm 39:4-5. "Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing befoe you. Each man's life is but a breath." There is no time to waste.
Response to Proverbs 10:10
If you caught my wink, trust me, it was not malicious. If my chatter proves me the fool, I will accept my ruin.
Until tomorrow
Rick
Response to Leviticus 13:1-59
Did you have a hard time reading that passage? What could talking about infectuous skin diseases have to do with our lives today? Haven't we moved well beyond the health concerns of that day and age? Perhaps a better question is, as we have moved well beyond in the field of health, why have we taken so much longer to move ahead in the fields of faith and spirituality? Why can we apply the teachings of health to our secular educations, but in the fields of faith and spirituality we generally have dismissed the idea of God altogether due to our confusion and relentless selfish attempts to separate Him from the rest of humanity? Why is it today that even within our faith based education systems we are generally asking the students to become experts at religious concepts that have failed to bring people into the Kingdom beyond the short term and are centuries old. I do not feel we need to get down to the basics as they were set 500 - 2000 years ago. Let's seek a firm foundation set "In the Beginning" encompassing all of creation, affecting life as we know it! "Faith expressions classes" belong in Academia, dispelling the modern myth that God does not exist and empowering student development in sharing their faith.
Therefore, in the words of my Priest, I would like discuss Leviticus 13:1-59 in three general areas. 1. how shall we compare this teaching to the Kingdom of God in our modern era? 2. In what way does this passage preach a gospel of repentance and forgiveness of sins? 3. How is this passage a reminder that in His desire for unity and reconcilliation, The Lord has become our righteousness?
Personally, I was feeling leprosy had little to do with today. But how similar is this to aids and cancer which are worldwide epidemics? Ask a patient of either one of these conditions whether they feel like an outcast! Perhaps you are affected, how do you relate to this passage? Within my own lifetime, I have visited a mission outpost in Nigeria and witnessed leprosy firsthand. These are real people who are infected with a wasting disease who desperately want to be healed. So, how about you? Are you sick in any way? Are you wasting away facing imminent death? How are you emotionally? Have you been in to see the therapist or other counselor lately? How about your relationships? Are they all healthy and functional? Where are your worries? Do you suffer the human condition as all of us do? In what ways can you relate to being an outcast?
I trust you realize as we drive this point home that we all suffer the human condition. Much of this we can cure. Go to therapy and fix the emotions or relationships. Go to radiation and suffer serious trauma, but remove the cancer - if you are blessed. Expose yourself to the knife and have the tumor removed. If you have enough money, you can extend life and this human condition for a long time - and then you die. At what point does one admit they are mortal and that death is inevitable? How much money is justifyable to keep one person alive at the expense of all the others footing the bill? How many societies are going bankrupt as we avoid the inevitable? What is the fear in death?
If you did not admit your mortality, I'm sure you understand that you were in denial - the rest of us did. How does this relate to the Kingdom of God? We are fallen. We cannot get up on our own. We carry in our bodies the infection of sin. You know you have it. Denying sin is about as useful as denying mortality. We'll all mess up and we'll all die. The question is - is your sin curable, or is it terminal? Again, we all have some of both. This should not be very difficult to admit, is it? The fact is, before we can function in life and avoid being an outcast, we must confess our weaknesses. We must go to the counselor or the doctor and be made well. Open wounds must be dealt with, but the permanent condition becomes a part of you that must be accepted by society. The greatest strength we have is to be able to admit our shortcomings and our desire to be healed. What we need from each other is encouragement, understanding, love, and support as we persevere through our condition. This will help our dating relationships, our marriages, our families, our employment, our lives in society, our relations with the world. Isn't our ultimate goal to remain viable and have value as members of the human condition?
The message I find in the Bible and that which I wish to share with you is that God understands the human condition. He offers Love, acceptance, help, and support. He offers counseling and healing. Whether you live or die is not of as great a concern to Him as it is to you. Through the sacrifice of His only begotten son, he has granted you the free gift of repentance and forgiveness, reconciling you back into His loving arms. He no longer sees your open wounds, but understands you are white as snow from the top of your head to the end of your toe. He sees all that He has made, and behold, it is very good. He welcomes you into back into the camp upon your request and is the first to run and wrap his loving arms around you. Now, go and present yourself before the others in the Kingdom as a testimony of what the Lord has done for you. If they don't accept you, there are grave consequences for them. They, become the ones with the open wounds in need of repentance and forgiveness. Will you forgive them? They suffer from the Human condition.
Herein lies our testimony. The Lord is my righteousness. I was sick, but He made me well. I was in prison, but He freed me. I was a stranger, but He welcomed me in. I was naked, but He clothed me. As I share this testimony with the family of God, I do not expect their judgment upon me, but their acceptance, forgiveness, and Love. Perhaps, if they feel up to it, they might share their testimony with me also, helping me to understand that I am with brothers and sisters in Christ. Perhaps they can celebrate with joy anew in the hearing of God at work in my life! Together, we can sing praises and find strength in the joy of the Lord. There was nothing we could do, no matter how hard we tried, but He has made all the difference in our lives. Praise His Holy Name. He loves us. He has cured us. Nothing can now separate us from His Almighty Love! He has accepted us back into His camp and I will praise His name till I meet Him face to face! Oh, Holy Day! Amen.
There may be a catch here that I must add. If you choose not to accept His forgiveness and healing - or if you choose not to offer that same forgiveness in your heart for your brother, you may remain an outcast.
Response to Mark 6:1-29
I mention that Mark 6:1-6 is also reflected in Matthew 13:53-58 and Luke 4:16-30. Note that there is no copyright at the time of these writings and some of them have been written exactly the same. Also note that the events are not always placed in the same order. As I have mentioned before, this is proof that various men wrote of what they saw and heard from their own memory of actual events. The contradiction of historical fact as presented through the memories of the Gospel writers is not a weakness of the Bible, but a strength and a proof of the validity that these events actually took place and were not the concoction of one individual or a group attempting to concur. How many books does the unbeliever need? Here is not only 1, but 4 which have stood the test of time. If you don't like the renditions given by the translators of the early manuscripts, learn Hebrew and check the ancient manuscripts which are availabe in nearly original separate books. Don't take the easy way out and pretend that these proofs do not exist, or that documented history did not occur. For hundreds of years, it has been assumed that Mark was the first gospel, written around 50-65 AD and that other writers used some of His material in their writings, but adjusted them to their fit their personal understandings and memory. Now, back to the historical events reflected in today's reading.
Mark 6:1-6 reflects a separate time that Jesus returned to visit His mother and family. The first was reflected in Mark 3. Luke actually represents this story as the first visit, while Matthew and Mark place it second. It is difficult for me to to understand how anyone could read Mark 6:3 and not realize that Jesus did have siblings. I would be interested to know how this verse is handled by those claiming that Jesus mother, Mary, remained a virgin. Because of their understanding of Jesus childhood, recognizing him as just another man, it was difficult for the townspeople to believe He held such a strong presence of the Spirit of God himself. Because of their knowledge of who he was as a man, he was unable to perform many miracles there. Apparently miracles depend not only on the power of God, but the faith of the community.
As the disciples prepare to go out into the field, blessed with power and authority from on high to perform miracles and cast out demons (Mark 6:7-13, Matthew 10:1-15, Luke 9:1-6), Jesus told them not to pack, but to step out in faith in their fellowman to provide for their needs. Their message was the same as John the Baptists and Jesus. Repentance and forgiveness of sins. Notice that nothing was said about judgement and eternal damnation to the unbeliever.
The ministry of Jesus and his disciples was talked about throughout the countryside because of the great signs and wonders. News of his ministry reached Herod as he had also followed the ministry of John the Baptist. In Mark 6:14-29, Matthew 14:1-12, and Luke 9:7-9 we read of the death of John the Baptist who was Jesus cousin and forbear of preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins. (Luke 1:36-80, Luke 3:1-20, Matthew 3:1-12, Mark 1:1-8, John 1:6-8, John 1:19-28.) Even as an unbeliever - and the focus of John's chastisement, Herod was fascinated by John's message and liked to listen to him. He experienced sorrow and guilt at John's death as he placed the pressures of his earthly desires above the calls of his own conscience. Have you ever given in to earthly passions and placed them over what you knew to be right?
Response to Psalm 39:1-13
It is a dangerous prayer indeed which is found in Psalm 39:8; "Save me from all my transgressions." One of toughest points of our lives is when we are being refined, suffering the consequences of our sin. And yet, we often pray that God would remove our sin from us. It's tough to quit sinning if pain and heartache are not involved. Thomas Paine wrote in his article "Common Sense" in 1776 "These are the times that try men's souls". This was a cry from oppression. A cry for justice and mercy. A cry for release from bondage. The battle would not come without pain. As these times are reflected in nations and on a worldwide scale, so they are reflected within the individual wishing to conquer sin. As in war, our battles with sin are often won with brothers who understand our cause.
If we confess our sins, our brothers can rally to our defense. If we are silent and still, our anguish increases and our hearts burn within us. In this also, God calls us to relationship. There is a battle which we cannot fight alone. David understood God's part in this, "I was silent; I would not open my mouth, for you are the one who has done this!" (vs. 9). No wonder we struggle to understand the Love of God. We experience His scourge from within! We are overcome by the blow of His hand. We are brought to distress and ruin if we do not repent and seek help to overcome our disease. We can yell in anger at our Heavenly Father, or we can be brought to our knees, humbled and reunited with family and friends who have come to our aid.
As we stand guilty as brothers among brothers, what good does it do us to refer to one another as wicked and fool? If we would talk to one another, we would realize that we share similar experiences and concerns. If we would acknowledge God's work in one another's lives, we would understand his purpose within our own. We have but a moment to learn of God's love and compassion and work on earth through one another. Let's not waste it on mockery and warfare. Let's not muzzle our mouths bustling about only in vain heaping up wealth and misfortune and committing blasphemy against God's children in other lands and cultures. Hear our prayer oh Lord, listen to our cry for help and be not deaf to our weeping. We have dwelt on this earth as aliens from one another, strangers as our fathers were. Come into our presence that we might rejoice together in your name before we depart and miss the opportunity.
Be a part of a change in our world. We don't have much time. Our focus verse for today is found in Psalm 39:4-5. "Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing befoe you. Each man's life is but a breath." There is no time to waste.
Response to Proverbs 10:10
If you caught my wink, trust me, it was not malicious. If my chatter proves me the fool, I will accept my ruin.
Until tomorrow
Rick
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