Leviticus 18:1-5 Corruption!

 1Then the LORD said to Moses, 2“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: I am the LORD your God. 3You must not follow the practices of the land of Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not follow the practices of the land of Canaan, into which I am bringing you. You must not walk in their customs.

4You are to practice My judgments and keep My statutes by walking in them. I am the LORD your God. 5Keep My statutes and My judgments, for the man who does these things will live by them. I am the LORD.

“I am the LORD”

He knew that the customs and practices of Egyptians and Canaanites would “corrupt” His people and His statutes. 

He knew that if His sheep lived and played among the wolves they would eventually get bit! 

The Lord knew what the Israelites (generations later) would eventually do and warned them but the Israelites didn’t keep His statutes. 

Corruption!

Psalm 106: 34They did not destroy the peoples

as the LORD had commanded them,

35but they mingled with the nations

and adopted their customs.

36They worshiped their idols,

which became a snare to them.

37They sacrificed their sons

and their daughters to demons.

38They shed innocent blood—

the blood of their sons and daughters,

whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,

and the land was polluted with blood.

39They defiled themselves by their actions

and prostituted themselves by their deeds.

Do we apply the word of the Lord to our lives or do we pick and choose only certain statutes that fit our lifestyles?

Blessings, David

Leviticus 17:13-16 Life of all flesh is its blood.

 13And if any Israelite or foreigner living among them hunts down a wild animal or bird that may be eaten, he must drain its blood and cover it with dirt. 14For the life of all flesh is its blood. Therefore I have told the Israelites, ‘You must not eat the blood of any living thing, because the life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it must be cut off.’ 15And any person, whether native or foreigner, who eats anything found dead or mauled by wild beasts must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening; then he will be clean. 16But if he does not wash his clothes and bathe himself, then he shall bear his iniquity.” 

Blood of animals was to be respected, “because the life of all flesh is its blood;”

How much more should we respect the blood of Jesus that was spilled for our sins?

Hebrews 10: 29How much more severely do you think one deserves to be punished who has trampled on the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

Recently while fishing with my brother his forearm caught the corner of the walkthrough windshield on my boat which caused a gash and started bleeding. It taught me a lesson that I need to have a first aid kit handy at all times.

Blood is precious, Jesus’s so much more because He was our sacrificial lamb.

Why do we continue to sin? 

Blessings, David 

The Bible is the book of my life. It’s the book I live with, the book I live by, the book I want to die by.

N. T. Wright

Leviticus 17:10-12 Atonement for the soul!

 10If anyone from the house of Israel or a foreigner living among them eats any blood, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from among his people. 11For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for your souls upon the altar; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul. 12Therefore I say to the Israelites, ‘None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner living among you eat blood.’

A strict command! ‘None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner living among you eat blood.’

Why? “for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.”

“It appears from history that those nations who lived most on it [blood] were very fierce, savage, and barbarous, such as the Scythians, Tartars, Arabs of the desert, the Scandinavians, [and so forth], some of whom drank the blood of their enemies, making cups of their sculls!” (Clarke)

“all animals that were butchered in Israel were drained of blood as much as possible. Not all nations did this.” (Guzik)

When we’ve successfully hunted wild game we hang it for several days to drain all the blood before butchering.

Jesus is our blood sacrifice that makes atonement for the soul.

Is He yours?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 17:5-9 Our Permanent Statute!

 5For this reason the Israelites will bring to the LORD the sacrifices they have been offering in the open fields. They are to bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and offer them as sacrifices of peace to the LORD. 6The priest will then sprinkle the blood on the altar of the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and burn the fat as a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

7They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat demons to which they have prostituted themselves. This will be a permanent statute for them for the generations to come.’

8Tell them that if anyone from the house of Israel or any foreigner living among them offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice 9but does not bring it to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting to sacrifice it to the LORD, that man must be cut off from his people.

Jesus is our permanent statute and He willingly went to the cross as the final sacrifice, spilling His blood 🩸 to cover the sins of all who would accept His gift of salvation.

Those who reject Him will be cut off! 

Have you ever thought about the reasons “why” people reject Jesus?

According to Got Questions.org there are basically four reasons.

Here’s a summary,

1. I’m basically a good person.
2. Social rejection or persecution.
3. The world has more to offer than eternal things.
4. Resisting the Holy Spirit’s attempt to draw them to faith in Christ.

https://www.gotquestions.org/reject-Jesus.html

Look what the scriptures say,

Acts 4: 12Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Matthew 25: 30And throw that worthless servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Why do we resist telling others about Jesus Christ?

Rejection!

I’ve had a family member tell me, I’ve been a good person and if I can’t go to heaven for being good, I don’t want to go. 

Please pray for the “good” people who reject Jesus Christ.

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 17:1-4 Cut off from among his people.

 1Then the LORD said to Moses, 2“Speak to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites and tell them this is what the LORD has commanded: 3‘Anyone from the house of Israel who slaughters an ox,a a lamb, or a goat in the camp or outside of it 4instead of bringing it to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting to present it as an offering to the LORD before His tabernacle—that man shall incur bloodguilt. He has shed blood and must be cut off from among his people.

Things have changed for the Israelites, no longer could a man worship by sacrificing anywhere he wanted. Now it’s become centralized and the responsibility of sacrificing an ox, lamb or goat has been given to the priests. 

This command is contrary to our modern culture, individualistic approach to God where each person makes up their own rules about dealing with God as they see Him. Making up your own rules won’t get you into heaven.

Jesus saves and without Him there is no salvation, no forgiveness of sin, no heaven!

Will you be accepted through His Son’s sacrifice or cut off from among his people?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:32-34 We need not wait!

32The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest shall make atonement. He will put on the sacred linen garments 33and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, and for the priests and all the people of the assembly. 34This is to be a permanent statute for you, to make atonement once a year for the Israelites because of all their sins.”

And all this was done as the LORD had commanded Moses.

“For us there is no waiting for an annual day of atonement. We need not wait, with sin undealt with for an hour. Our Priest abides in the holiest, and we have access there through Him at all times.” (Morgan)

I don’t know about you but I can’t wait to be in the presence of the Lord! The world is disintegrating around us at a faster pace than ever before, every day there’s a new crisis screaming at us from the television!

But those of us in Christ know better because we have His word (Bible) and it tells us to be anxious for nothing!

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Pray for a revival, pray for those that need salvation and preach Jesus! 

Spurgeon wrote, “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.”

What have you been waiting for?

Blessings, David

Leviticus 16:29-31 Day of Atonement, Once and for all!

 29This is to be a permanent statute for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month, you shall humble yourselveseand not do any work—whether the native or the foreigner who resides among you— 30because on this day atonement will be made for you to cleanse you, and you will be clean from all your sins before the LORD. 31It is a Sabbath of complete rest for you, that you may humble yourselves; it is a permanent statute.

“For us there is no waiting for an annual day of atonement. We need not wait, with sin undealt with for an hour. Our Priest abides in the holiest, and we have access there through Him at all times.” (Morgan)

Hebrews 9: 24For Christ did not enter a man-made copy of the true sanctuary, but He entered heaven itself, now to appear on our behalf in the presence of God.

25Nor did He enter heaven to offer Himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26Otherwise, Christ would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself.

“Once and for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself.”

Our Lord Jesus Christ was the final sacrifice for our (your) sins!

To accept His gift of salvation all you need to do is acknowledge Him as your Lord and Savior.

Billy Graham‘s Version of the Sinner’s Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name. Amen.

He sacrificed Himself for you, if you haven’t accepted Him what are you waiting for?

Blessings, David 

Speak Truth

I would rather have someone be upset with me for telling them that they are 

a sinner, need to repent and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus than to 

have a peaceful relationship in silence and let them go to hell. There is a 

change coming to our world. More importantly, Jesus is coming back. We need 

to take the words of the Lord Jesus seriously. It is written in *Mark 16:15 

And He said to them, Go into all the world and preach and publish openly 

the good news (the Gospel) to every creature [of the whole human race].* If 

hell is as bad as the bible says it is, no Christian should be silent and 

let someone go there without a fight. Charles Spurgeon wrote “If sinners be 

damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they 

perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring 

them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our 

exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for.” I am not trying 

to be an alarmist or a survivalist, I want to be a REVIVALIST. Who is with 

me?    Douglas 

Leviticus 16:23-28 Must bathe himself!

 23Then Aaron is to enter the Tent of Meeting, take off the linen garments he put on before entering the Most Holy Place, and leave them there. 24He is to bathe himself with water in a holy place and put on his own clothes. Then he must go out and sacrifice his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering to make atonement for himself and for the people. 25He is also to burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

26The man who released the goat as the scapegoat must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may reenter the camp.

27The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp; and their hides, flesh, and dung must be burned up. 28The one who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and afterward he may reenter the camp.

After sacrificing the burnt offering, making atonement for sins, releasing the scapegoat with the sins placed on it and burning up the remainder of the bull sin offering 

A reoccurring theme....

Aaron the priest, the man, the one, must bathe himself with water.

Sin defiles us, so we must wash ourselves to be clean.

What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QrsqoN2Lhuk

Has He washed away your sin?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:20-22 Red Turned To White!

 20When Aaron has finished purifying the Most Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he is to bring forward the live goat. 21Then he is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the iniquities and rebellious acts of the Israelites in regard to all their sins. He is to put them on the goat’s head and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man appointed for the task. 22The goat will carry on itself all their iniquities into a solitary place, and the man will release it into the wilderness.

What if the scapegoat was encountered in the wilderness? What if the Lord didn’t accept the Jewish day of atonement?

But, what if.....

“On the head of the scape-goat a piece of scarlet cloth was tied, and the tradition of the Jews states that if God accepted the sacrifice the scarlet cloth turned white while the goat was led to the desert; but if God had not accepted this expiation, the redness continued, and the rest of the year was spent in mourning.” (Clarke)

“And the ancient Hebrews write, that forty years before the destruction of the temple, which was about the time of Christ’s death, this red string turned no more white” (Poole).

This tradition was a precursor to Jesus! His blood red body was buried in the tomb and He rose in white garments. 

“When Jesus’ blood red body rose from the dead, clothed with white garments, it was proof forever that the red had changed to white - and atonement at the cross was perfect and complete.” (Guzik)

Have you made atonement at the cross?

If not, how will your red be turned to white?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:15-19 pesa!

 16So he shall make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the impurities and rebellious acts of the Israelites in regard to all their sins. He is to do the same for the Tent of Meeting which abides among them, because it is surrounded by their impurities. 17No one may be in the Tent of Meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he leaves, after he has made atonement for himself, his household, and the whole assembly of Israel. 18Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make atonement for it. He is to take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar. 19He is to sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.

“The priest who cleanses others is himself unclean, and he and his fellows have tainted the sanctuary by the very services which were meant to atone and to purify.” (Maclaren)

“The word pesa, translated [transgressions], is the most grievous word for sin in the Old Testament. The term refers to sin in its grossest manifestation. It indicates a breach of relationship between two parties and was probably borrowed from the diplomatic realm, where it indicated a covenant-treaty violation.” (Rooker)

Most people believe priests are holy appointed messengers of the Lord, in fact they are just mortal sinful men just like you or I.

How do you rectify your pesa with God?

Do you believe good works or being a good person will gain you entrance into heaven?

If so, why would a priest need to cleanse himself and the house of God?

Because man’s constant touch (his pesa) made the house of God ceremonially unclean.

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:11-14 Such a High Priest!

 11When Aaron presents the bull for his sin offering and makes atonement for himself and his household, he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. 12Then he must take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense, and take them inside the veil. 13He is to put the incense on the fire before the LORD, and the cloud of incense will cover the mercy seat above the Testimony, so that he will not die. 14And he is to take some of the bull’s blood and sprinkle it with his finger on the east side of the mercy seat; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the mercy seat.

Before the high priest made atonement for the nation he had to make atonement for himself.

But look what Hebrews says about the Son (Jesus).

Hebrews 7: 26Such a high priest truly befits us—One who is holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 27Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer daily sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people; He sacrificed for sin once for all when He offered up Himself. 28For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.

Do you put your trust in the law or the Son?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:5-10 Azazel / Scapegoat!

 5And he shall take from the congregation of Israel two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.

6Aaron is to present the bull for his sin offering and make atonement for himself and his household. 7Then he shall take the two goats and present them before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

8After Aaron casts lots for the two goats, one for the LORD and the other for the scapegoat,c 9he shall present the goat chosen by lot for the LORD and sacrifice it as a sin offering. 10But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the LORD to make atonement by sending it into the wilderness as the scapegoat.

"What is the meaning of Azazel / the scapegoat?"

“Laying his hands on the scapegoat, the high priest was to “confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites – all their sins – and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness”

Foreshadowing of Christ, Jesus was our scapegoat!

2 Corinthians 5: 21God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

“Jesus embodied what the scapegoat represented – the removal of sins from the perpetrators.”

https://www.gotquestions.org/Azazel-scapegoat.html

Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?

If not, how will you bear the punishment for your sins?

Blessings, David

Leviticus 16:3-4 (No) Right of Access!

 3This is how Aaron is to enter the Holy Place: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4He is to wear the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments. He must tie a linen sash around him and put on the linen turban. These are holy garments, and he must bathe himself with water before he wears them.

“The day was the most solemn of all the Old Testament rituals. So significant was it that in later Jewish tradition it came to be called just that, ‘The Day’ (Yoma).” (Rooker)

“Every arrangement was intended to impress the mind with the solemnity of approach to God and to emphasize the fact that man as a sinner has no right of access save as he approaches through sacrifice.” (Morgan)

Pastor Robert would preach if someone tells you they don’t sin that they just lied 🤥 therefore they just sinned!

We are born with sin because of the fall of Adam and Eve and it becomes evident when you see two young children playing with toys, MINE!

Fortunately we have right of access through our faith in Jesus Christ. He bore our punishment for our sinful life!

Are you a sinner?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 16:1-2 Or Else!

 1Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of two of Aaron’s sons when they approached the presence of the LORD. 2And the LORD said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron not to enter freely into the Most Holy Place behind the veil in front of the mercy seat on the ark, or else he will die, because I appear in the cloud above the mercy seat.

Nadab and Abihu were struck down by the LORD because they came into the Holy Place and offered profane firebefore the LORD. (Leviticus 10)

Aaron couldn’t enter the Holy Place anytime he wanted, only at Gods invitation or at an appointed time and place.

The Lord is holy and because we are sinners we can’t approach Him. 

Sin equals separation!

But with our faith in His Son we become justified and gain access!

Romans 5: 1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Have you become justified?

Blessings, David 

Leviticus 15:28-33 My Tabernacle!

 28When a woman is cleansed of her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. 29On the eighth day she is to take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 30The priest is to sacrifice one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her before the LORD for her unclean discharge.

31You must keep the children of Israel separate from their uncleanness, so that they do not die by defiling My tabernacle, which is among them.

32This is the law of him who has a discharge, of the man who has an emission of semen whereby he is unclean, 33of a woman in her menstrual period, of any male or female who has a discharge, and of a man who lies with an unclean woman.’ ”

When studying this chapter one comes to wonder why our Lord is so strict considering discharges but our answer is in verse 31.

“31You must keep the children of Israel separate from their uncleanness, so that they do not die by defiling My tabernacle, which is among them.”

What is the Tabernacle?

“The word Tabernacle means “dwelling place” or “tent”. The Tabernacle was a portable sanctuary that accomplished two goals. It allowed God’s people to draw near and worship Him, while at the same time clarified and established the magnitude of God’s holiness.” (Melissa McLaughlin)

https://melissamclaughlin.org/2019/04/30/what-is-the-tabernacle-8-ways-jesus-is-our-tabernacle/

The above link is a refresher course of what we already studied with some new insight. Enjoy.

Blessings, David 

Psalm 23 The Lord Is My Shepherd!

 The LORD Is My Shepherd

(Ezekiel 34:11–24; John 10:1–21)

A Psalm of David.

1The LORD is my shepherd;a

I shall not want.

2He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

3He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

for the sake of His name.

4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,b

I will fear no evil,

for You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

6Surely goodness and mercy will follow me

all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD

forever.

Ever have a bad day? Where do you find your comfort?

How about a bad year? What has the year 2020 been like for you?

How about a bad year and a half?

Last year my neighbors husband was hospitalized for several months.

Last fall their family dog died.

Then they adopted a rescue greyhound.

Last spring her husband was hospitalized again for several months and passed away.

Their son has been making trips moving her household to his state but it’s taking longer than time allows.

She put her house up for sale, had a buyer but they backed out on the purchase.

Last Wednesday her greyhound suddenly died of kidney failure.

What sorrows has life thrown at you?  

Look at comments on Psalm 23.

"I like to recall the fact that this Psalm was written by David, probably when he was a king. He had been a shepherd, and he was not ashamed of his former occupation." (Spurgeon)

"It has charmed more griefs to rest than all the philosophy of the world. It has remanded to their dungeon more felon thoughts, more black doubts, more thieving sorrows, than there are sands on the sea-shore. It has comforted the noble host of the poor. It has sung courage to the army of the disappointed. It has poured balm and consolation into the heart of the sick, of captives in dungeons, of widows in their pinching griefs, of orphans in their loneliness. Dying soldiers have died easier as it was read to them; ghastly hospitals have been illuminated; it has visited the prisoner, and broken his chains, and, like Peter's angel, led him forth in imagination, and sung him back to his home again. It has made the dying Christian slave freer than his master, and consoled those whom, dying, he left behind mourning, not so much that he was gone, as because they were left behind, and could not go too." (Beecher, cited in Spurgeon)

My neighbor text’d me that she couldn’t call because she would cry 😢 and informed me her greyhound died.

I text’d her a prayer.

Her response was, “to be prayed for is the ultimate gift to be given”.

Please pray for her and her son.

Blessings, David