Tag: Owned by God - Leviticus 25-27

Leviticus 25:55

For it is to me that the people of Israel are servants. They are my servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

Tag:  Owned by God

The entire book of Leviticus (and the entire Law, for that matter) is based upon the premise that God "owns" the people of Israel.  God "redeemed" them when He rescued them from Egypt.   God "choose" them when they were but seed in Abraham.   In Acts 7 when Stephen preached his one and only sermon, he spoke of the fact that God chose the nation of Israel:

Acts 7:2-3

And Stephen said:

“Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.’

You can't read the OT without understanding that God "owns" the nation of Israel.  Therefore, He, and He alone, can place claims on them.   In the NT believers in Christ are called, by Paul and other writers, Servants of Christ.  We are redeemed and therefore "owned" by Him.  We may operate under grace and not law, but the premise is still true: We are not our own, but we are "bought" with a price - the blood of Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:20).   It is only after we confess, believe and live in light of our redemption can we fully understand and follow God's demands for living.  We are His.  Therefore our serving Him is out of gratitude for what He did for us in the redemption process.  

Tag: Growing to Know Him More and More - 1 Thessalonians 4-5

1 Thessalonians 4:1-2

A Life Pleasing to God

Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.

Tag:  Growing to Know Him More and More

There is a fundamental aspect of life to reach "completion" in something.   We go until the work is "done."  We strive until a goal is "reached."  We are measured and when we meet the measurement there is a sense of pride in the accomplishment.  We want 100% on the paper, project or path.   For then we know that we have done the job.   We tend to look at life like bowling.  The score of 300 is called a perfect game.  We can't do better than that.  In golf, however, there is no "perfect" score - there is just a lower score.  In that sport we are measured agains the score of others.   The Christian faith is more like golf and less like bowling.   In faith we have no score it hit to say we made it.  That was Paul's fear, however, for the Thessalonians when he wrote the above passage.  He wanted them to know that they have done a good job, SO FAR.  But, that they were to strive to know God and obey Him, MORE and MORE.  They were not to be content with a score better than others.  They were to strive for the holiness of God.  That is not a measure on this side of heaven we can reach.  So, we are always striving for it, "in the Lord" (meaning that only through the power of Christ can we strive and reach holiness).  Our desire is to know Him, however, more and more.  Each day to grasp a new facet of His character.  We are to "please" Him. Our goal is not to "please" others, but our goal is to please Him.  To make Him glorified in our lives.  That is the goal.  It can't be reached, but is to be strived for.  It will be reached in glory.  But, for now, we strive each day to know Him more and more. 

Tag: Signs and Belief in Jesus - John 1-2

John 2:11

This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

John 2:18

So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?”

John 2:23

Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing.

Tag: Signs and Belief in Jesus

In these three verses we have the same English word, "signs" used to describe a miracle of Jesus.  The first miracle was the water into wine. It was a manifestation of Christ's glory.   The reason? Christ would take a simple thing of water and turn it into a useful thing of wine to celebrate the wedding.   Christ work in our lives would be to turn our useless bodies into something for His glory.   Christ was demonstrating the transforming power He has.  The Pharisees would want a sign to know they should believe in Him.    At the Passover He healed and changed people's lives.   These "signs" would be the evidence that others needed to believe.   The final sign was Christ's resurrection from the dead.  That gives us the greatest sign we need.   When we realized He overcame and defeated death, what more of a sign does anyone need?   Later we would read from the words of the angel at the tomb, "He has risen!"    That is the final sign.   Today people want miracles.   The only miracle we need is that HE HAS RISEN!

Tag: The Hoiness of God and our Shame - Ezekiel 42-48

Ezekiel 43:10-12

“As for you, son of man, describe to the house of Israel the temple, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and they shall measure the plan. And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, that is, its whole design; and make known to them as well all its statutes and its whole design and all its laws, and write it down in their sight, so that they may observe all its laws and all its statutes and carry them out. This is the law of the temple: the whole territory on the top of the mountain all around shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

Tag:  God's Holiness shames us!

In this section of Ezekiel, it might be hard to find some practical and relevant truth to live by.  The section has just ended with the measurements of the Temple and will now move into the Law to be practiced in the land and the framework for the city.   However, the above verse gives us some insight into the reason and the meaning of all the measurements.   Why has God given us such a description of the Temple and the City?   Note one commentator's take:

World Biblical Commentary, OT.:

This opening section of the law code provides the necessary introduction to the ideas and principles that will characterize the entire unit. Verses 10–12 introduce the idea of temple ordinances. Then, at the beginning of the code, verses 13–17 describe the altar in detail, and verses 18–27 describe the ritual for its consecration.

The transition from the vision of the temple to the Law of the Temple begins with an idea common in Ezekiel: “Son of man, describe the temple to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their sins” (v. 10). Elsewhere in Ezekiel, it is God’s forgiveness and deliverance that lead to shame, as the people look back regretfully on their sins and realize their unworthiness (see the discussion of 6:9–10 and 16:60–63). Here, it is the perfection of the temple the prophet has envisioned that leads to shame. But, in response to their shame, Ezekiel is to set the temple before them all the more—its arrangement, its exits and entrances (v. 11; see the Additional Note on this difficult verse)—setting these down in a written document.

God has given us, in this section, the measure of perfection.  God does not cut any curves.  He has a measurement of what it should look like.  The purpose is to show how we are and how we would fail in comparison.   This is not, however, like the perfectionist father who always raises the bar for the failing son.   No, this is the God of the Universe expression a desire for perfection and then, through Christ, providing a way for us to reach it.  The Law was there to show us we CAN'T reach it.  The Law is the measurement of perfection.  We are supposed to keep the Law, but can't.  But, the Law MUST still be kept.  So, we, in Christ, keep the Law and reach the perfection that only Christ can accomplish and provide us.  He kept the Law for us.  When we see God's holiness we should be ashamed of our sin.  But, in Christ we have God's righteousness applied to us and we are declared Holy, even as He is Holy.  

Tag: Fear of the Lord - Proverbs 14-15

Proverbs 14:26-27

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,

and his children will have a refuge.

The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,

that one may turn away from the snares of death.

Tag:  Fear the Lord

It is obvious from the above text that Solomon thought the Fear of the Lord was a key to the believers life.   In Proverbs 9:10 we read the the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Solomon uses the phrase 15 times in Proverbs.   It is used 102 in Scripture.   There are typically "promises" connected to the Fear of the Lord (It should be noted that some commentaries do not believe the Proverbs are promises, but feather general principles to follow ... I do not share that thought).  In the above proverb the Fear of the Lord is connected to several "outcomes."   The first is that those who Fear the Lord will have "strong confidence."  Because this is Hebrew poetry you can't interpret one line without the other.  In the second line we have another promise: Our children will find refuge in our fearing the Lord.   Both the first and second line speak of a confidence and refuge that is based NOT on our own efforts and/or skills, but on a faith in the awesomeness of God.   The second verse adds two more outcomes to fearing the Lord:  We find, in Him, a fountain of life and strength to turn away from the snares of life that lead to death.   The key here is that when we put our faith and trust in God and when we fear Him, we see sin as the evil that it is and we have the strength to turn from it.   Fearing the Lord has the aspect of seeing Him in the awesomeness He is, but also seeing His anger for sin.  Both aspects of Fearing the Lord are necessary to experience the outcomes mentioned.  The key in this is that when we Fear the Lord we can and do experience a different life from those who don't.  

Tag: In the Presince of Evil but Protected from it!! Psalm 90-92

Psalms 91:13

You will tread on the lion and the adder;

the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

Tag: In the Presence of Evil but Protected from it!

In Psalm 91 we have a great hymn of praise that God is doing in the lives of those who put their hope and love on Him.  If we trust in God the Psalm DOES NOT say that we will sit in a bed of roses and soft grease and eat candy all day long.  The Psalm states, especially the above verse, that we will, often, be surrounded by danger and peril.  In an earlier verse it says we "will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by the day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday."  That means THERE WILL BE "terror, arrows flying, pestilence and destruction" all around us.   So, we see that God is on our side but that doesn't mean we won't have danger all around us.  In the above text we read that we will be in the very presence of the "lion" and the "adder" (a cobra like snake).  The key in the believers life is, by faith, to recognize that despite what I see with my eyes and my real life circumstances, my eyes of faith simply trust that God is going to direct me through it.  Think of the story of Daniel in the lions den.  He may have been rescued, but, during the night he probably kept one eye open as the lions sat there trying to figure our why their appetitive suddenly disappeared and they had lunch right in front of them.   Or, think of Daniel's three friends that were tossed into the fiery furnace.   They saw flames all around them.  They never once felt the heat or burn of the fire, but that doesn't mean they didn't see it.  But Daniel and his friends decided to believe in God's protection despite the sights, sounds and smells around them.  We are not weak when we fear the sights, sounds and smells.  We only fail when we quit trusting that God will bring us THROUGH it.  When we think He should take us FROM it, that is wrong thinking.  God never promises to take us FROM something. He only promises to take us THROUGH something.   We can praise HIM for that deliverance.   

Tag: Revival begins with God's Word in our Heart - 2 Kings 22-25

2 Kings 23:1-3

Josiah's Reforms

Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him. And the king went up to the house of the Lord, and with him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the prophets, all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant that had been found in the house of the Lord. And the king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.

Tag:  Revival begins with God's Word in the Heart

In the above passage we read about Josiah's reforms.   The King, at a young age, is impacted by the Word of God.   It is God's Word that begins to change His life and, as a result, the life of the nation.   We are not going to have any significant change in our lives absent God's Word.   In this passage we see that He read the Book of the Covenant.  The Book of the Covenant could mean the entire Torah (Genesis - Deuteronomy) or, better, portions of the Torah where the Law was given to Moses a second time.   The point of the verse is to show that God moves in the hearts of men with the Word of God, even the law.   God uses His Word to convict and guide mankind.  Those who respond to it are blessed.  Those who do not, are cursed.  It is that simple.  God's Word mixed with faith and, then, obedience is a formula for all kinds of success in the Christian life.  Josiah shows us in these chapters.  Joshua said it to the entire nation in the beginning of his book:

Joshua 1:8-9

This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”