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Dear Father; We humbly come before you as you children. We rest in the assurance of your love and ask your blessing upon us today as we reflect on your Love as found in your word. We come before you with guilt, requesting forgiveness and with praise and thanksgiving for your wonderful gifts to us. Yet, Father, you know the needs of our hearts and we lay them before you. May the words we share and the meditations of our hearts be accepted in your sight. Thank you Father.
Response to Numbers 28:16-29
The offerings of Numbers 28 are also reflected in Exodus 23, Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 16. Tracey R. Rich has produced a great link for understanding the Jewish (Hebrew) lunar years and these festival dates! The first is an explanation of the Hebrew calendar http://www.jewfaq.org/calendar.htm and the second shows the current Hebrew year as it corresponds to the current Gregorian calendar http://www.jewfaq.org/current.htm.
The month of Nissan begins on the first new moon of Spring. Although this is the first month, it is not recognized as the Jewish New Year which is celebrated at Rosh Hashanah at the first new moon of September on the Gregorian calendar. 2010 began in the Hebrew year 5770 which Tracey R. Rich explains on his website. "The year number on the Jewish calendar represents the number of years since creation."
Feast of Unleavened Bread Numbers 28:16-25; Passover begins on the first full moon of Spring (14-15) days after the new moon. ('between the two evenings' according to Exodus 12:6, Leviticus 23:5). The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins on the 15th day of Nissan and extends through the 21st day. This rendering of the feast is more detailed than Leviticus 23:4-8. Numbers 28 includes the festive observations in addition to the continual burnt offering explained in this chapter. In a similar way, we celebrate Holidays and festivals today in addition to our daily devotions and prayer and observance of the Lord's day.
Offering of Harvest or First Fruits (feast of weeks - Pentecost) Numbers 28:26-31; Although First fruits in Leviticus 23 was based on the first harvest of barley, traditionally it has become the 21st day of the month of Nissan. This is also the 7th day of unleavened bread and represents the day one week later than Passover. This also begins the feast of weeks which commemorates 7 sabbaths (Saturdays) following first fruits. On the Sunday following the 7th Sabbath after First fruits, Shavu'ot (Pentecost) is celebrated. The term Pentecost refers to the 50 days considering the 7 weeks plus 1. Christianity now celebrates Pentecost as the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the early church Fathers. For more information on Shavu'ot, see Tracey R. Rich's website @ http://www.jewfaq.org/holidayc.htm
(Jewish New Year - Rosh Hashanah - Sound the Trumpets) Numbers 29:1-6; At the 7th new moon (first day of the seventh month) following the barley harvest (after Spring equinox in modern day) the Jewish New Year is celebrated. This is the observance listed as the feast of Trumpets in Numbers. The observance listed in Leviticus 23 adn Numbers 29 only mark this as a sacred memorial and require additional sacrifices beyond the morning and evening sacrifices and the new moon sacrifice which marks the beginning of each new month.
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) Numbers 29:7-11 (10th day of the 7th month) By visiting the blogs from February 24-25, you can reflect on Leviticus 16 which first introduced us to the Day of Atonement including the scapegoats. The blog from February 28 also dealt with Leviticus 23:26-32. The observance of Numbers 29 requires that these same memorial offerings of one bull, one ram, and 7 male lambs as a sin offering, a burnt offering and the associated fellowship offerings, be offered in addition to normal devotional practices of the day. http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday4.htm "Yom Kippur is probably the most important holiday of the Jewish year."
The Festival of (Ingathering, Tabernacles, Booths) Sukkot Numbers Numbers 29:12-40; (15th day of the seventh month through the 22nd day) http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday5.htm "It is quite a drastic transition, from one of the most solemn holidays in our year to one of the most joyous." This celebration and observance is reflected in our blog from February 28 regarding Leviticus 23:33-44. This is also one of the three feasts mentioned when all the men must appear before the Lord together in unity, celebrating the goodness and blessing of the Lord. The first was passover/feast of unleavened bread. The second was first fruits and the third is the ingathering. These three feasts might be seen as the new life of passover (also seen in atonement - feast of unleavened bread observed for 7 days; the second is first fruits as one begins to experience the Spirit as fulfilled on Pentecost at the end of 7 weeks; and this feast of ingathering as the seeds of new birth have come to fruition in a plentiful harvest - however this day includes that sacred 8th day that may well be a remembrance of Leviticus 8-9 when the people consecrated themselves and on the eighth day, the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell down in worship.
http://www.christcenteredmall.com/teachings/feasts/tabernacles.htm "Tabernacles speaks of the day when the Son of God will tabernacle among men, wipe away every tear, and bring in the "golden age" which men have dreamed of since time immemorial." For Christians, they believe that day has come!
Response to Luke 3:23-38
I have been able to track my geneology back into the 1600's! Can you imagine being able to track your ancestry back as far as Luke 3:23-38? This is the second geneology in the canonical gospels. The first was found in Matthew 1-17. As I mentioned on March 17, Luke focuses on Mary's account of the Christmas story while Matthew focused on Joseph, the same is true when it comes to the geneologies. According to custom, geneologies are generally linked through the Father's line. Luke begins with Joseph, but then backs the line through Mary's father, Heli. Although Joseph's ancestry rewinds through Judah's royal line in Matthew, Luke's account meets that line at Zerubbablel and Shealtiel and then follows the line back through Solomon's brother Nathan, both sons of King David.
Again, many have looked at the differences in the lines over the centuries, but if they were of such major importance to proving the books of the Bible, the early church certainly would have changed them. As we find them as they are, once again, we realize these are legitimate separate books regarding the events of one life as seen and as documented by two different men. For more discussion on the apologetics of this debate and to see some cool graphics comparing the two lines, go to http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/1834
Seeing that there are many more members of the account in Luke's gospel - and considering that Luke focused more on the women within the life and times of Jesus, it is possible he followed the mothers throughout the line as the Jewish bloodlines flowed through the Mother. As women married younger, this would explain the greater lines. It would also explain the separation of the lines once again between David and Shealtiel. Therefore, Jesus royal Abrahamic Davidic line has been traced by Matthew and His Jewish bloodlines have been traced by Luke. Not bad for a Greek and a tax collector!
In consideration of this maternal line, it is quite possible also that records of David's descendants were well documented as the Israeli people expected the promised Messiah to come from that line and knew the importance of the maternal line. I Chronicles 3:4b-5 states: "David reigned in Jerusalem thirty-three years, and these were the children born to him there: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan and Solomon. These four were by Bathsheba daughter of Ammiel." As Ammiel did not reflect David's parentage, and as the maternal line certainly would not have been as well documented before David (albeit Ruth the Moabitis), the two lines follow one another back to Abraham and Luke's back to God.although the story of Ruth was well known.
It is believed the prophet Amos lived about 200 years after Solomon's son Rehoboam took the throne of Judah in the eighth century BC. The prophet Nahum prophecied around the time of Jeremiah around the middle of the seventh century BC. Therefore, "Amos the son of Nahum" would not reflect that Jesus descended from these two prophets as the prophet Amos was the predecessor of the prophet Nahum.
Response to Psalm 62:1-12
This is the second Psalm of which the heading mentions "Jeduthun" the first was Psalm 39. He will not be seen again until Psalm 77. These are the only 3 Psalms which mention Jeduthun, who is regarded with Asaph and Heman as the leaders of music. http://www.answers.com/topic/jeduthun For more information on the variety of the Psalms, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psalms "Psalms 39, 62, and 77 are linked with Jeduthun, to be sung after his manner or in his choir."
Did you notice that verse 1 and verse 5 start very similar? Perhaps this is the chorus of the chant or the verse repeated by the congregation. verse one speaks of salvation, verse 5 speaks of hope: "
(vs. 1) My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. (vs. 2)He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.
(vs. 5) Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. (vs. 6) He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
Following these two chorus lines there is a contrast of depending on man and depending upon God.
(vs. 3-4) lean on a man to break him - he is but a leaning wall, a tottering fence. Faith in a man is but a deception.
(vs. 6-7) But God is worthy of honor, for He can save! He is a mighty rock of refuge!
Therefore:
(vs. 8) Trust in God - pour out your heart to Him! He is your place of refuge! He will not break your confidence, He will be therapeudic! He will deliver your soul from bondage.
(vs. 9-10) In contrast, you cannot trust in men. Whether rich or poor, they are but a breath. Here today, gone tomorrow. The same is true of wealth, whether through honest means or dishonest, it cannot save you when the ultimate wrath and decay of this mortal life overwhelms you.
(vs. 11-12) Strength and power belong to God our Father. He requires our steadfast love! Should we Love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, strength, and being - and in His honor Love our fellow man - He will shower us with blessings both now and forevermore.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2VqF9v80Ik&feature=related Psalm 62 ESV
Response to Proverbs 11:18-19
Psalm 62 ended with the words: "you, O Lord, are loving. Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done."
Proverbs 11:18-19 states: "The wicked man earns deceptive wages, but he who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward. The truly righteous man attains life, but he who pursues evil goes to his death.
What more can be said? Choose righteousness, the reward will last for eternity
Until tomorrow;
Rick
Friday, March 19, 2010
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