What is the Nazirite Vow?

Until this reading, I have never heard the word "Nazirite". Have you?

We are introduced to the Nazirite vow in the sixth chapter of Numbers. This vow is a "special vow... of separation to the Lord". When taking this voluntary vow, an individual Israelite committed to set themselves apart for God for a specific period of time. During this time, they were to abstain from wine and other fermented drink. And just to make sure, they could not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins... nothing from the vine. Additional physical requirements of the vow were that the Israelite was not cut their hair or go near a dead body. This vow was usually for a relatively short period of time (30 -90 days) but could last for years or even a lifetime. We will learn about some Nazirite lifetimers in our future readings (think Samson and John the Baptist). Once a person made a Nazirite vow, it became law, known as the Nazirite Law. A vow taker was held accountable to fulfill the law until the time period was completed and he (or she) presented himself and, of course, offerings to the priests.

The following explanation of the Nazirite vow and the relativity to us today is documented in Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary:

"The Nazirite vow was a part of the old law and is not imposed on modern Christians. But because it was personal and voluntary, we do have much to learn from this Old Testament practice. God wants us to live a separated, holy life and to abstain from things of the world. Christians must be dedicated to God's service not just for 30 days or one year but a lifetime."

Does this sound familiar? It all ties back to being holy and set apart for God. We can clearly see this theme from Leviticus carry over to Numbers as God continues to demand purity for His people.

Backing up a bit to chapter 5, God reminds the Israelites about maintaining holy lives and about the restitution required for wronging others. God also provides instructions for how the Israelites should handle unfaithfulness of a wife. If a wife has been unfaithful OR the husband suspects she has been unfaithful, they are to go to the priest with offerings. I think the action required of the priest is very interesting. The priest puts the woman under oath and instructs her on the curse of the "bitter water" she is to drink. If the woman is innocent, the curse of the water does no harm. If she is guilty, she will lose her child (if she is pregnant) and will bear no more children. This was a huge disgrace and punishment for a woman as the value of a woman in those days was a direct reflection or her ability to bear children. The curse of the "bitter water" speaks to the ultimate judgement and action of God towards the woman. In some cases only God knew what actually happened (or did not happen) and He could affect the outcome of the "bitter water." God promised that a guilty wife would "bear the consequences of her sin."

I'm reminded of a verse in the New Testament that instructs us to "abstain from all appearances of evil" (I Thess 5:22 KJV). Other translations tell us to avoid all kinds of evil, but I like the KJV because it emphasizes that we should avoid situations or temptations that can be misconstrued by others or that are questionable. If others can possibly misinterpret our actions, we are very likely much closer to sin than we should be. When there is doubt or we find ourselves in a gray area, let's run, run, run away!

"Levites Are Counted."

"Levites Are Counted."

This book is about counting the Israelites. These chapters refer to the Levites; the priests. Like many, I would skim over this book because the names and the numbers just overwhelmed me. As I read it this time, I began to wonder why. Why did God ordain this be put in the Bible? Why did I need to read this? How can I put this to use in my everyday life?
There were so many people. Can you imagine the chaos if each one chose to go their own way and do their own thing. Could one man or even two direct that many people? No! They needed help. God directed Moses and Aaron to count the people according to their tribes, then according to their fathers. After the count, God directed them into what they should and should not do. God gave them duties and the ability to do them. God always equips us to do the task He calls us to.  So in place of chaos, there was order in the camp. God is a God of order and decency, thus he directs all things to be done decently and in order. Do we sometimes find our lives in chaos and wonder why? Have we allowed God to number us and give us our duties? Perhaps God has called you to a task, and you're still doing something else. Once we are saved, we are children of the King. Our lives are His and should be given wholly and completely to Him. (Romas 12:1-2) We need to pray and seek God's direction in our lives.(Proverbs 3:5-6) He gives to each of us at least one spiritual gift when we are saved. We need to know what our gifts are and seek His direction on how best to use them for His service.
We need the same order in our lives as the Israelites needed in theirs. As God directed them, He will also direct us if we but ask for His help. He can give us peace and calmness in place of chaos and all we hav

Math again...really???

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! We made it through the third book of the Bible and God has blessed us with some WONDERFUL insights to a notoriously difficult book!! I know several of you feel the same way, but I have a whole new outlook on Leviticus now - We are to be holy as God is holy and God CANNOT, by His very nature, accept ANY sin. So, how are you doing with keeping up? I know I say this every week, but PLEASE do NOT give up! Stay focused and if you are behind, it is NOT too late to catch up! God will bless you beyond measure and speak to you daily as you continue to progress through the Bible.

We are surrounded by numbers everyday of our lives, especially in this "age of information" - statistical information, clocks, gas prices, coupons (Jaybrena :) ), phone numbers, medical numbers, and the list goes on and on. They are a very important part of our daily lives. So how can we incorporate this book CALLED Numbers into our daily lives? It would be helpful first to take a look at some background information on this important book. The book of Numbers is the fourth book of the five books of the Torah or "the Law", as referred to by the Jewish people. These five books are also called the "Pentateuch" or "The Five Books of Moses", as referred to by Christians. Essentially, these five books are a biography of Moses. The book of Numbers makes three important contributions to this biography. First, is shows Moses' unique role as the mediator between God and Israel. Second, it makes some astounding claims about Moses' character (see chapter 12:3). Lastly, it gives the explanation as to why Moses never gets to enter the Promised Land. This book also journals the history of the Israelites' journey from Mount Sinai to Canaan. As we progress through Scripture, you will see many quotes from the book of Numbers, which further validates its importance. (Summarized from notes out of the ESV Study Bible.)

The first chapter of Numbers records the census of the Israelite people. There are two main reasons for taking this census: First, to show through an actual count the fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham that his descendants would be more numerous than the sands on the seashore (Genesis 22:17). Second, it counts the number of men that were over 20 years old who could fight. This large number would aid in giving them confidence in their ability to fight in order to take over the land of Canaan. These numbers were NOT to include the Levites though, as they were to strictly concentrate on their priestly duties, not fighting.

Chapter two sets forth the guidelines for how the camp was to be laid out and the order they were to march in when God told them it was time to move. Interestingly, (and I just LOVE it when God does this kind of stuff), the picture I found of this layout is in the form of...A CROSS! That's is what is so amazing about the Bible - it ALL is about the Cross and about Jesus, from the very beginning!

This got me thinking a little bit about the "layout" of my heart. Is my heart in the layout of a cross? Do people see the cross when they see me? What about at home where we are most comfortable? Do our children, spouses, siblings, or parents see our heart in the layout of a cross? Welcome to the book of Numbers!!!

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P.S. I am so sorry for the lateness of my posts recently, but I have had so much going on! I am still in under the 4:00 deadline though! :) Thanks for your patience!!

Kinda Reminds Me of High School English....

I counted seven promises the Lord gave to the nation of Israel should they choose to take Him at His word and keep covenant with Him....SEVEN! Guarantees of plenty, peace, victory, increase, favor, presence, and covenant grace are some weighty promises backed up by a God who has shown Himself more than capable. Certainly this would be enough incentive to chase after God and never look back? However, the listing of consequences should Israel (as a nation) decide not to hold up their end of the covenant leaves me with a sick feeling.....kinda reminds me of studying "foreshadowing" in high school English classes! God promises that if they reject the covenant promise, the He will turn against them bringing terrible sickness and fear among them. If that doesn't work, He promised to wither crops and allow wild animals to steal precious possessions, even children! If they still don't listen and continue to defy Him, He promises to punish Israel seven times over with plagues in their homes where they huddle in fear! And then, if none of THAT works, the most frightening promise to me is that He would turn against them and bring their cities to rubble, hold His nose at their offerings, and not hear their cries when the enemy takes their land!!! The other things listed in the latter verses are disturbing to even think of! The pain of lost relationship with their God would leave them with nothing short of terror in their spirits, and desperation in their minds.

What kind of a God would say such things to a people He loves, let alone DO these things? I'll tell you what kind, a God of immeasurable LOVE! A holy and righteous, just God! You've heard it said that a friend loves you where you're at? May I propose that God loves you too much to leave you where you're at! He had something HUGE for them! He wanted to shower them with blessings beyond their wildest dreams, if only they would let Him.

On the other hand....if Israel wakes up and confesses the sin among them, God promised to "remember" the promise made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Be assured that for God to remember, doesn't mean that He ever forgot...it means that He takes action! In spite of their behavior, God will not destroy them but will honor the covenant with their ancestors. Have you noticed how God keeps reminding them that He "brought them out of Egypt" over and over again??? How important this event, or series of events must be to Him! He's proving something here.....for generations to come. The final chapter of Leviticus discusses vows, dedications and redemptions. The final verse simply states, "These are the commandments that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai for the people of Israel."......do you hear a "to be continued...." in that???

I usually ended up skipping Leviticus as a young adult studying God's word.....I guess this God of the Israelites seemed scary to me? It didn't actually fit the picture I had of God in my mind. Having read this, together with so many friends has been a true blessing. I'm not afraid anymore, I'm IMPRESSED!!! The Lord has shown to me a more detailed (dare I use that word, sisters?)..... picture of Himself. I'm so glad to have joined this journey locking arms with you on this pilgrimage. Press on!

Sound The Trumpet - It's the Year of Jubilee!

Don't you just love to hear trumpets blow? It's exciting - makes you feel like something is about to happen - whether it is the Trumpet Voluntary played before the wedding march, the signal of a race at Churchill Downs, or even taps at a military funeral. You listen.

The Ram's horn, called a shofar, was the trumpet used to announce the Day of Atonement and the beginning of the Year of Jubilee. And what was this "Year of Jubilee?" Every seventh year was set aside as a "Sabbath to the Lord," and nothing would be planted on the land. Then, after seven such cycles (7X7), the 50th year would be the Jubilee when slaves were set free, debts were forgiven, property returned to the original owners, and the land was given rest - everything was "reset."

Can you imagine the excitement in the camp the night before the trumpet was sounded - the anticipation, the joy?? Israel had been slaves in Egypt, and Yahweh had set them free. I would imagine that they had not forgotten that feeling. Now, no one could remain a slave forever, and like on the seventh day of Creation - the land was given a Sabbath as well. A fresh start for everyone, a new beginning - we all need that. And God would provide for his people.

The Year of Jubilee is our picture of Christ. Sent to "preach good news to the poor, set the captives free, recover sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, and proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luke 4:18-19).

He is our Jubilee. He is our Sabbath. He is the One who gives us rest, sets us free, forgives our debts. Let the trumpet sound! (Dee Bristin)

And in the words of Michael Card, singer and songwriter:

The Lord provided for a time

For the slaves to be set free

For the debts to all be canceled

So His chosen ones could see

His deep desire was for forgiveness

He longed to see their liberty

And His yearning was embodied

In the Year of Jubilee

Jubilee, Jubilee

Jesus is our Jubilee

Debts forgiven

Slaves set free

Jesus is our Jubilee

Time to Party

In chapter 22, God is giving instructions to the priests in Israel. Their restrictions were even stricter than those placed on the Israelites as a nation, reinforcing that their role was especially sacred. The priests were responsible for representing the nation to God, as well as God to the nation. How do these apply to us today? 1 Peter 2:9 says,

"You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

And again, in Revelation 5:10,

"You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth."

We, as the New Testament church, are all "priests" in that we have the right to come into the presence of God because of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for our sins. What this means for us, is that we are to be "set apart", and we should treat the things of God as set apart. We shouldn't treat the sacred and holy things of God as commonplace. The Word of God, and how we treat it says a lot about how we feel about the holiness of God.

Along those same lines, we need to also realize that the priests were called to be pure when they served in the temple. We've touched on this before, but how do you come into worship on Sundays? How do you come into your personal Bible study and time with God at home? Do you focus on confessing your sins and having the right attitude in approaching God? People watch us. They watch how we live, and how seriously we take God and the things of God- including His name and Word. God wanted the nation of Israel and the priests to be set apart so that they would stand out from the nations around them- and stand out so that the other nations looked to them and said, "I want to know their God." I'm asking myself this question- do the people who watch me want to know my God?

In Leviticus chapter 23 we get into the celebrations. I love that after all the instructions and do's and don'ts God included some party time! This has been something that's been on my heart for a while now. God clearly outlined the festivals the Israelites were to celebrate. In DETAIL. My brain was having a hard time processing it all- I thought about making a chart and maybe I will one day- but God laid something else on my heart to share with you.

God's purpose in having the festivals was at least two fold. The more I read of Leviticus, the more I realize I'm going to get to heaven and understand things on a completely different level, and I'm sure there are reasons and meanings behind so much of this that I will never be able to grasp this side of heaven. But the two purposes I'm sure enough of to share here are this:

1.) God wanted His people to remember what He had done for them.

2.) He wanted them to pass that on and teach it to the generations that followed.

We don't celebrate Jewish holidays, and God gives no indication in the New Testament that we should. We have several holidays that we celebrate that are Christian in origin- namely Christmas and Easter. What if we took those same purposes and applied them to our holidays? How would that change what your celebrations look like? One of the books on Leviticus I read said that "you can tell a lot about people by what and how they celebrate." Our culture celebrates a lot of things besides God on Christmas and Easter. What would people learn about you from your holiday traditions?

Additionally, we could also take the opportunity to use the holidays our culture celebrates that aren't necessarily Christian in origin to celebrate some things of Christ. Take Valentines day for instance. God is love- and any TRUE love we have is made possible by God himself. Thanksgiving is a prime opportunity to count our blessings, and dwell on what it really means to be thankful. Even St. Patricks day was founded basically for a missionary of the gospel to Ireland. How can we incorporate somehow celebrating what God has done for us, and sharing that with others, into these holidays?

Last but not least, God ordained a Sabbath day. A day of rest for his people. A day of "sacred assembly." We are commanded to "keep it holy." God wants us to spend that day resting- not necessarily in a hammock on the beach or even in our beds- but in Him. It's a rest of the heart, and time to refresh ourselves after the world has taken it's toll on us over the course of the week and then prepare ourselves for the week to come. It's a blessing from the Lord and one that we should honor and respect. Many people (myself included) have to work on Sundays. I consider my work on that day something God honors and esteems- but it's still my responsibility to make sure that sometime over the course of that week I get some "rest" time in with God. It's certainly easier on the weeks I can make it to church.

God wants to be involved in the day to day of our lives. He wants us to strive to be holy in the mundane. But, He also wants us to take time out of our day to day lives to celebrate Him and what He has done for us- and pass that on to others. What are some ways you, or your family, use holidays to celebrate what God has done for you and pass that on to others?

"Love Thy Neighbor as Yourself"

“Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.” These are the words God told Moses to speak to the Israelites in chapter 19 of Leviticus. Most of this chapter instructs the Israelites how to live righteous and holy. Most of the laws listed deal with relationships such as honoring parents, loving the alien, caring for the poor, having respect of the elders and so on. I believe that it can be summed up in the second part of verse 18 which reads, “…love your neighbor as yourself.” According to Jesus this is one of the two great commandments. If we truly love others and care for others the way we love and care for ourselves we would be living holy.

Beginning in chapter 20 the Lord speaks to Moses about the horrible practice of the Ammonites who sacrificed their children to their god Molech. God made it very clear that this practice was strictly forbidden. God said, “I will set my face against that man…” Then He even talks about those who close their eyes to another man in their community giving his child to Molech. How much does this tell us about minding our own business? Our God is the God of the helpless and especially children. Psalm 72:4 says, “He will defend the afflicted among the people and save the children of the needy; he will crush the oppressor.” I believe He has called us to defend the little ones with Him. Without getting too deep into the subject, I just want to throw something out for thought. Could you relate this to the unborn children? There is certainly a practice of sacrificing children in our culture. Are we closing our eyes to them?

Reading on through this chapter God warns against seeking others for guidance such as mediums and spiritists. Also He gives commands against sexual sins that were very common in the pagan nation of Canaan. God did not want the Israelites to adopt the ways of this pagan nation. Every rule was for a very good reason.

Next comes some more instruction for the priests. The Lord God lays out some specifics about the life of a priest. They were to be the closest to holy as possible. Priests were to remain clean and only marry a virgin. The priest who offers up offerings to God must be without defect. In my study notes I read that God was not discriminating against the handicapped but only demanding that the priest match as closely as possible to God, which is perfection.

The Day of Atonement

In Leviticus 16, God gave instructions for The Day of Atonement. This day was later included as one of God's appointed feasts for the Israelites (Lev. 23). Today, The Day of Atonement (or Yom Kippur) is one of the holiest days celebrated by Jewish people.

Atonement is defined as "amends or reparation made for an injury or wrong" or "reconciliation". Throughout Leviticus, we have read how people are to reconcile their wrongs with God through various sacrifices. The Day of Atonement was set apart as a special day for the entire Israelite community to reconcile their relationship with God. This holy day included specific rituals and practices. As the high priest, Aaron was give very specific instructions on how to handle himself. Under no circumstances was he to approach the Most Holy Place "whenever he chooses". He had to very carefully and thoughtfully follow God's instructions for cleansing of himself, offering sacrifices, and making atonement for himself, his family, and the Israelite people. And, as we have read before, the consequences of not following God's instructions carefully was death. We know that Aaron understood this clearly after his two sons perishished because of their disobedience.

I thought an interesting part of God's instructions for this day included a scapegoat. The scapegoat was one of two goats brought to the temple as a sacrifice and was chosen by casting lots. The scapegoat represented the sins of the people and was sent out into the desert (I presume to die) and "symbolized the removal of sin and its guilt" (NIV study notes).

When we started this journey together in January, I pulled out (and dusted off) a few Biblical reference books that I have collected over the years. One of them, "Talk Thru The Bible", states the following: "It is necessary to remove the defilement that separates the people from God so that they can have a walk of fellowship with their Redeemer." From the Old Testament, we know that the Israelites were required to offer animal sacrifices for atonement. In the New Testament, we read that "God presented [Jesus Christ] as a sacrifice for atonement through faith in his blood." (Romans 3:25). We no longer have to offer animal sacrifices, but can be reconciled with God through faith in Jesus Christ.

In Chapter 17, God forbids the Israelites from eating blood. Animal blood was to be used specifically for making atonement and was not to be used for any other purpose. (v. 17:11).

Chapter 18 covers God's instructions regarding forbidden, unlawful sexual relations and He clearly explains the unlawful relations. God warns the Israelites that these forbidden acts result in defilement, which we know separates the Israelites from fellowship with God. God also warns the Israelites that these acts caused other nations AND THEIR LAND to be defiled: Egypt (where they came from) and Caanan (where they were going). This specific sin was all around the Israelites and I can only imagine that they had become desensitized to it just as we are today.

Again, God was instructing His people to be different... set apart for Him. As Christians, we are also God's chosen people. We, too, are to be set apart for Him. Our lives are to be different from those around us. We are to honor Him with our choices and actions.

Unclean! Unclean!

God gave specific instruction concerning leprosy, the issue of the blood or the issue of the flesh and how to treat them.  The priest was to declare the person unclean and set them apart from the camp.  Just as they were set apart by their disease, we are set apart from God by our disease: Sin.  As anyone approached them, they were required to shout out, “Unclean, unclean” declaring their disease so that anyone approaching could prevent themselves from becoming defiled by the disease.  Today we have a conscious that declares to us, “unclean, unclean” when we approach wickedness.  God has always made a way of escape; it’s just that sometimes we choose to defile ourselves.  Once they were declared clean by the priest, they were to wash their clothes and shave off all their hair and wash themselves in water for cleansing.  We too have a cleansing:  the precious blood of Jesus Christ, the righteous.  Once they were allowed to enter the camp they were to tarry abroad and not enter into their tent for seven days.  We too must not enter into the Holy place of prayer until we have made ourselves sanctified, not just saved.  On the eighth day, they were to make sacrifices unto the Lord.  God told them exactly what to sacrifice, how the sacrifice was to be performed.  God also made provision for the poor person to give an offering to the Lord.  They were able to give less and follow the same ritual.  This makes me think of us here today.  Before we are saved, we are like the lepers:  unclean.  We live outside of God’s love and blessing but once we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, He cleanses us from all unrighteousness and welcomes us into his family.  After we are saved, we should bring our offerings to Him; not just money but our time, our talents and our love.  I am reminded of Romans 12:1-2.  We should work for Him so that others may come to know Him and to accept Him as we did.  I am so thankful we are under grace and not under the law.  It would’ve been very difficult to live with all the rules they were under. 

Is it clean or unclean, that is the question.

Okay ladies, another week has gone by and this week we have been in the notoriously tedious book of Leviticus. How are you doing with it? I personally cannot even begin to express how much this blog has helped me stay focused on the "big picture" and not get bogged down by the details. I thank each one of you for the amazing posts and subsequent comments!

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These three chapters deal with clean versus unclean in several different areas: animals, after childbirth, and leprosy. When I was researching about the clean and unclean animals, my ESV Study Bible had a few interesting things to say in the study notes. The reasoning behind exactly why one animal is considered "clean" and the other "unclean" has puzzled commentators throughout time. There is no consensus on why the classification is set up the way it is. However, this quote from the study notes out of my ESV Study Bible is worthy of quoting here, as it gets to the bottom line of why this was important: "Significantly, making these distinctions in the ritual realm would no doubt serve as a constant reminder to the people of their need for making the parallel distinctions in the moral realm as well. Further, adherence to these food laws expresses Israel's devotion to the Lord: just as he separated the Israelites from the other nations, so they must separate clean from unclean foods." Remember, God is ALWAYS concerned about the heart, not just the law-keeping! To connect this to the New Testament, in Acts chapter 10, verses 9-16, Peter has a vision about eating unclean animals and God tells him to "kill and eat" the unclean animals in this vision. What God was trying to do here was tell Peter that NOTHING should get in the way of fellowshipping with the Gentiles and sharing The Gospel with them. Are we letting any thoughts of someone or something being "unclean" keep US from telling them about The Gospel????

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The horrible disease of leprosy was bad enough with all of the actual health issues that it brought on and the fact that it was contagious. But more than that were the social implications. Much humiliation, loneliness, and rejection came from this terrible affliction, as the leper had to remain outside of the camp during his infection. You will notice, the chapter on the laws concerning leprosy is VERY long. They even had to walk around shouting "Unclean!" when another person got near. Can you imagine having to walk around while having your period shouting "Unclean!"? How humiliating would that be? Now, once again, let's connect this to the New Testament. In Luke chapter 17, verses 11-19, Jesus has compassion and mercy on 10 lepers and heals them all, but only ONE comes back to thank Jesus for this...ONE! I want to be the ONE that remembers to thank Jesus for ALL that He has done for me! Will you join me in this attitude of thanksgiving??? By the way...the ONE leper that came back to thank Him and praise Him was...a Samaritan (the Jews HATED, I mean HATED the Samaritans!!!!!). Unclean? Not when JESUS cleanses you!!!

For Him, and for Them

Earlier, we studied how the priests were to dress and what they were to do and how they were to be commissioned, thus "set apart" for the work of priesthood. Here we will see it all play out......almost exactly as God instructed. God was training His people, teaching them daily about Himself. When God's instruction is not followed to the smallest detail, the consequences are serious.

The elders have gathered to witness the commissioning of Aaron as High Priest for Israel. The oil was poured on his head, different than the sprinkling we've seen before. Aaron and his sons were to be inside the Tabernacle for seven days, the eighth day meaning the purification was complete. First order of business: purify the High Priest. Did you find it interesting that after all the bulls and goats and sheep and birds, that a calf was chosen for Aaron to sacrifice? Hmmmmm. He, with instruction through Moses, gave sin-offering for himself, and for the people of Israel. After all of the details of the different sacrifices, Aaron lifted his hands up toward the people and blessed them. The glory of the Lord shone before them, and there came a FIRE from heaven upon the altar. God had accepted the service of sacrifice, and forgiven their sin. This was no ordinary fire!

Now, here's where we hit a bump in the road. In chapter 6, there was mention of how the fire should be kept burning and should never go out. Chapter 10 opens with two of the sons of Aaron offering "strange" fire before the Lord and their being immediately devoured by the holy fire of God! They drew near to God, but not on His terms and the consequence was death. (I read that it may have been like lightning, since the bodies were not consumed?) Moses spoke precious few words to his brother, Aaron, offering only a reminder that God gave instruction, and Aaron and his other sons were not to mourn for the loss. This may seem harsh to us, but Aaron seemed to acknowledge God's justice and was submitted to it.....he held his peace. The bodies were carried out, in their priestly clothes outside the camp.

We are about to read some tough chapters in God's word. We will not always understand, certainly because His ways are not ours. We must trust, through faith, that God is holy and just and loves us very much. Everything that is written is to teach us (Rom. 15:4). His purpose is to bring glory to Himself through a relationship with us. Pray and ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you in a new way today.

Sin and Trespasses

In these chapters we have the laws and rules for two of the sacrifices listed at the beginning of this "priestly handbook" - the Sin Offering and the Guilt (Trespass) Offering.

To hear and not testify as a witness, or to touch anything that was "unclean" - unintentionally or through error - required a Sin Offering. Whether a priest or a "regular guy," or even if you were "poor," there was a type of animal that could be offered (or fine flour) to remove this sin - so no excuses could be given. The sin also had to be "confessed." In Lev 5:5 we read,"When a man is guilty in one of these, he shall confess the sin he has committed." (Amplified Bible). How often do we go before God and confess our sins? Do we come into our worship services too casually or with a flippant attitude? Just another Sunday?

The Guilt Offering (or sometimes referred to as the "Trespass Offering") was an offering which required "appropriate compensation" or restitution. If you took something illegally, or lost something that belonged to someone else, or infringed on someone's rights, then you were to repay in full plus 20 percent. (Bet you'd think twice about stealing with those added on penalties! Wonder if that would work today?) Sin always produces consequences doesn't it?

I kept thinking about the priests and how much work they had to do - day after day, sun up to sun down - and it was hard, laborious work. No wonder God provided them with a portion of some of the offerings for themselves. I bet they had muscles. Can you hear the sounds and noises - the bleating rams, mooing bulls, cooing doves, and baas from the lambs? And what about the hair, feathers, and wool flying all about? I have trouble giving my 70# lab a bath outside in the summertime - I can't imagine grabbing a young bull or sheep or goat and trying to keep them still . . .

But thank God, he provided the Lamb, without blemish, for our sins, once for all. Praise God for his blessings continue to flow.

Do your Happy Dance...

Okay ladies, we have made it ONE MONTH! We have made it through the first two books of the Bible and have covered creation, the fall, the Patriarchs, the Exodus and the building of the Tabernacle. That's a lot for one month! Take a second to celebrate! Pat yourself on the back and do your happy dance! Isn't God good? I'm so thankful for the opportunity to get to do this with all of you. It has made reading the Bible so much more REAL somehow. To see how God is speaking some of the same things to you as well- and to see the different things He brings to each of us out of the same passages just confirms to me over and over that He is real-living-and active in each of our lives. Thank you Jesus!

Now, time to buckle in, hold on, and ask God to teach you more. We're moving from the exciting, action packed story books of Genesis and Exodus into the much more technical "how to" book of Leviticus. There is a LOT of good stuff in there ladies, hold on! I'm not trying to scare you away, just want to you know what is ahead of you so you can set your mind on the task ahead. Pretty much the rest of the Old Testament and a good bit of the New references back to Leviticus. Think of it as your "reference material" to help you better understand the rest of the scriptures. This is a book that, if you pull it out of the Bible, the rest of it will crumble. It's the standard for everything else, including our relationship with God.

This was the "employee handbook" for the Levites- or priests- of Israel. It outlined their duties in worship, and was also a guide book for the Israelites on holy living. The overwhelming message in this book is the holiness of God, and what is required of us in order to approach Him in worship. Exodus Chapter 19 to Numbers 10 covers just two years in the history of the Hebrews. They are camped at the base of Mount Sinai after the completion of the tabernacle for a time of resting, teaching, building and meeting with God face to face. We all go through dramatic, action packed times in our lives. How nice that in the middle of all that God gives us a time to "camp" and spend a little time just resettling the foundations of our life. The entire book of Leviticus is set during this time frame, and certainly gives us great instructions on how to build a sure foundation.

The first four chapters outline the instructions for four different types of sacrifices. The burnt offering, the grain offering, the fellowship offering, and the sin offering. Now might be a great time to invest in a study bible if you don't already have one. I love the Life Application Study Bible. Below is a chart from that Bible that sheds some light on those offerings and what they meant.

There was such detailed regulations for each offering so God could teach these people a whole new way of life. They needed to be cleansed from the pagan practices they learned in Egypt, and restored to true worship of the One true God. The details kept Israel from slipping back into their old lifestyle. Each law paints a graphic picture of the seriousness of sins and of God's great mercy in forgiving sinners. I can only imagine how hard it was on the priests to be surrounded by death, blood and fire all day everyday. It must have reinforced to them just how ugly sin was.

The cost for sin is life.

God wanted the Israelites to get that. He still wants us to get that.

In Eden, the cost of Adam and Eve's sin was death. The Israelites had to sacrifice perfect lambs, bulls, goats or birds. Someone else paid the cost for our sin. Christ was our one perfect offering, covering our sins. But we make the decision daily to show God honor and respect and express our gratitude to Him. This is how we are "living sacrifices." Note that the sin offering and guilt offerings were required, but the grain, fellowship and burnt offerings were voluntary. Do you ask God to make you aware of your sins, so that you won't repeat them? Do you strive to show Him honor and respect with your life choices? Is your attitude toward Him one of gratitude and thankfulness? I'd like to say yes to all of these, but the truth is, some days I just want my ego coddled, to do what I want when I want, and I want to grumble or pout when things don't pan out that way. Truth be told, I started today in that frame of mind. Thank you Lord for some "corrective vision" for my day. Our lives of worship start with the attitude of our hearts toward God, and recognizing that we really have no "right" to come before the Holy God of the universe. It's a gift of grace.

We've had some hard reading this morning. Start easy from here- find something to thank God for this morning. Bring your "fellowship" offering to Him, and enjoy His presence today.

"…the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle."

Well, here we are wrapping up the second book of the Old Testament. Yay! These last few chapters have been a challenge for me because of all the detail to take in. Sometimes my brain felt overloaded with “blue, purple, and scarlet yarn,” and “finely twisted linen.” My closest friends know that I struggle with staying focused on reading. I want to skim and get the main idea. I have made a commitment though to read and soak up all I can of God’s Word. I have been encouraged by all the ladies’ posts to see the significance in the details given. Just knowing that God is very intentional in what is in His word gives me encouragement to make every effort to understand it.

So, what did we learn? These last two chapters give the actual building of the Tabernacle and the making of the priests’ clothing. Remarkably the Israelites did everything God told them to do. Then Moses was to inspect all their work. When he found they had done exactly as they were told he blessed them. Moses was in charge of setting up the Tabernacle after the inspection and when he finished the work the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. The Israelites camped for as long as the cloud was upon the Tabernacle. When it lifted and moved, they followed.

Let’s think about verse 34 of chapter 40. It reads, “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” The Israelites visibly had the presence of the Lord with them, in front of them day and night. How amazing is that? Then think about how unfaithful, fearful, and whiny they were at times. What do you think about that? I think it is important to think about and then apply it to our own life. While the Israelites had to build a Tabernacle for the Lord’s presence, we are the Tabernacle with the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of us (if you are a believer). What excuse do we have for our shortcomings?

Forgive me Lord for my complacency, unfaithfulness, and complaining. Help me to fully recognize who I am in Christ, the power that lives within me and that I would be a worthy Tabernacle to bring you glory. Help us all to press on and draw nearer to you in reading your Word.

Building of the Tabernacle

Do you feel like you have already read these exact verses? Were you like me and felt déjà vu? My NIV study notes tipped me off to the reasoning behind this. "Such repetition was a common feature of ancient Near Eastern literature and was intended to fix the details of a narrative in the reader's mind." Details anyone? In light of this explanation and trying to be a faithful reader, I read the tabernacle details again. I have to admit, it was somewhat difficult to stay focused. :)

The tabernacle was constructed with the very best of everything: offerings, supplies, skilled laborers, and of course, the most perfect design. There were so many offerings from the Israelites that Moses actually had to tell the people to stop giving. What a wonderful problem to have!

Each person had a God-ordained role to play in building the tabernacle... from Moses' oversight to the highly skilled Bezalel and Oholiab to those giving offerings. There must have also been people who carted supplies and prepared meals for the workers. I can only imagine the excitement and anticipation among the Israelites as they worked together to follow God's instructions for this very special and beautiful building. God's work is very exciting to those involved when people come together willing to use their gifts and talents, are cheerful givers, and are obedient to God's direction and commands. Moses' instructions for the tabernacle workers were to "do the work just as the LORD has commanded" (36:1). No more, no less.

The tabernacle was where God would dwell among the Israelites. It was to be their central place of worship... their sanctuary. I love to worship God with my church family on Sundays. I'm so thankful that today God dwells within me and I can also worship God wherever I am. Check out this video and spend a few minutes singing and praising our God with me!

God is Merciful

The Lord refused to go with the people because there were a stiff-necked people, but he also gave them a warning. He gives us warnings when we do wrong and His gracious and merciful to forgive us as well when we do wrong.
Moses found grace in the eyes of the Lord because he sought to do His will. Moses in his anger destroyed the first two tablets that God had made with his own hands. The second set God told Moses to hew out of the stone. At this point, Moses is over 80 years old and this certainly must've been a lot of work for Moses. When we do wrong, it is never without a sacrifice. God will forgive us but there are always consequences to our actions. Samuel told King Saul, "Behold it is better to obey than to sacrifice."
Moses told the people, by inspiration of God, "whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord, gold and silver and brass." As the willingness of the people brought forth all their offerings as the Lord had commanded, God gave them skills and knowledge to build the tabernacle. Every skill we have, no matter how big or small it may be, comes from the omnipotent gracious hand of God. He gave them even the very breath to do it. Just as He gave them the breath to do it, He gives us the breath to serve Him, and sometimes He even allows us to use that breath to wrongfully accuse Him. He is so good to us.
Do we come to God with a willing heart saying, "Here I am God! Use me!" We will never know how much God can bestow upon us if we don't ask. Are we ready for all God has to offer us? I know I want to be ready.

"...and out popped this calf!"

Okay Ladies...we are at the end of our 4th week together. How are you doing with your reading? Are you staying caught up? If you need to catch up, DO NOT GIVE UP!! The readings are not that long for each day, so if you get behind you CAN catch up! I promise you and more importantly, GOD promises you, that if you persevere you WILL be blessed! God is using this blog in a MIGHTY way for HIS purposes and I want all of you to be a part of this SPECIAL work of the Holy Spirit! Stay with us daughters of the KING!

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"I don't know what happened Moses! While you were gone on that mountain for so long with God, these crazy Israelite people starting partying. They wanted something to worship while you were gone, so all I did was tell them to give me all their gold. I threw it into the fire and out popped this calf! I just don't understand it! I am not sure what happened and I just can't handle these people all by myself!" This is Mindy's version of chapter 32 verses 22-24. This is one of the funniest, if not THE funniest, lines in the Bible! I crack up every time I read it! Okay...a calf! Why not a lion, a tiger, a horse, or even an elephant? SOMETHING with a little power to it! But a calf! I mean, if you are going to worship an idol and bring the wrath of God upon yourself, make it something worthwhile. Not a weak little calf! Interestingly enough, God wanted to destroy all of them and make a great nation out of Moses. But instead of saying, "Okay great! Let's get rid of these idolatrous people and start over. Great plan!" He was humble enough to implore the Lord, or beg the Lord, to not destroy the people. My ESV Study Bible says this in the study notes about Moses at this point: "While illustrating the unfaithfulness of many of the people, the account highlights the faithful maturing of Moses as a leader and shows him bearing aspects of the Lord's character." I wonder what it sounded like when Moses broke the tablets with the 10 Commandments on it? I think I would have thrown it AT the crowd of them, not at the ground? Are you feeling me on that? About 3,000 men died that day because there is ALWAYS payment for sin.

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Now, let's back up a little bit. Chapter 30 finishes up the instructions for the items for the Tabernacle. In the middle of all that though, in verses 11-16, the Lord commands Moses to take a census of the people and tax them. This tax was to be an offering to the Lord either as a ransom or to make atonement for their lives. But King David took a census of the people in 2 Samuel 24: 1-17 out of pride with disastrous consequences. God ALWAYS looks at the heart! In chapter 31 God does something REALLY cool. He puts His Spirit on two very special people, Bezalel and Oholiab, to make all of the items for the Tabernacle and complete all the work for setting up of the Tabernacle. Notice that God had to PUT His Spirit on certain people on whom He chose to put it on for specific purposes. We will see this sprinkled throughout the Old Testament. But now, we have the AWESOME privilege of having His Holy Spirit living IN us and NEVER to be removed once we receive His Son into our heart! ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!!!

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Check out this web site page that explains wonderfully how the Old Testament Tabernacle is symbolic of all that Jesus does for us. It is WELL worth your time! Also, Beth Moore has a fantastic study on the Old Testament Tabernacle called "A Woman's Heart: God's Dwelling Place". It is one of the first ones she did, if not the first one, and it is definitely a study to take should you ever get the chance!

Dress Accordingly:

So, I'm thinking that any one of us who has torn through her closet looking for just the right outfit for an important event will appreciate today's reading. God was very clear about what the priests would wear as they ministered before the Lord on behalf of the nation of Israel. Having just read about the incredible tabernacle in all of its detail, we now move to a section discussing the duties of the priests who serve there, and their responsibilities. Don't think for a minute that God would go to so much trouble communicating the specifics of the Tabernacle, then let them come and go as they please. We serve a God of order, one of discipline and holiness. Praise Him for it! He did not want to be their "far away" provider, protector, comforter, and friend, but wanted to come and live among them.....us.

The priesthood is discussed here in two areas, their wardrobe and their ordination service. Did you catch all those details on the wardrobe alone??? Wow! I've attempted to find a picture, just to give an idea of what we're picturing. I was moved by the references of the names of the 12 tribes worn on the shoulder of the ephod garment.....is this because the priest bears the burden of the sins of the people before their God when making sacrifices? I thought it was really interesting about the 12 jewels on the breastplate representing the tribes, too. When I think of a gem, I think of the reflection it casts. You know, we have no real light of our own, just the light reflected by the glory of the Light of the World living in us! Those gems, in my mind, represented people meant to reflect their God! Incidentally, Peter later identifies us as a "royal priesthood", the church....think on that for a minute.

The next chapter discusses the actual service of ordaining Aaron and his sons as priests before the Lord. The required bloodshed of three animals was the major part that struck me. (My study Bible helped with understanding this.) The blood of the ox, a sin offering symbolizing the atonement and forgiveness of sin. The blood of the first ram, a whole offering symbolizing Aaron giving all of himself to the Lord's service. And, the second ram as the fellowship offering. This one was strange to me with the rubbing of blood on the ear and thumb and big toe??? Did that strike you as odd? Maybe it was because Aaron would fellowship with God by listening and doing? Whatever the reason, rest assured there is one!

I also noticed all the "consecrate this, consecrate that" commands by God. All along the passage we see these, and then all of the sudden (v.44) God says, "I will consecrate...." I was so glad to read this, because I mean really... who but a holy God can make anything holy? I don't know if that's the reason, but it sure makes me think on Him and His ways more and more.

I don't think God was ever meant to dwell with us in the tent forever, do you? I think He meant to live in and through us! What a joy to see this relationship unfold. This passage reminds me that whatever we sacrifice by this earthly body is our reasonable act of worship for our heavenly Father. That's why Romans 12:1-2 is so very special to me, I cling to it. All this detail, just for the people to worship....and mark this....on HIS terms. It's all about worship, ladies, and He's worth it.

Housekeeping post...

Hello ladies. I needed to give you a few "housekeeping" updates. Please note that today's post for the reading is just below this one. Don't miss it!

Many of you are accessing the blog via our church website, www.oakhillbaptist.org. At present, the link remains up on the main page of the website. However, because the main page is meant to be for the most recent news items and upcoming events, it will not be there much longer. At some point in the hopefully near future, we will have a ladies ministry page, and there will be a "permanent" link to the blog on that part of the website. In the meantime, I want to encourage you to "bookmark" the blog page on your web browser so that you will be sure to have access to it. Here's how you do that.

1.Access the Planted homepage at www.plantedatoakhill.blogspot.com

2. Highlight the web address in your browser window. (The long bar at the top of the screen: starts with http://www.)

3. Right mouse click and select "copy".

4. Somewhere under your "file" "edit" "view" tabs or perhaps you have an actual "bookmarks" tab. Select "add bookmark" and right mouse click and select "paste" the web address into the window.

5. Hit enter. You should now have the address saved in your web browser and should be able to access it by finding it in your bookmarks file.

I hope that helps. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me (click on my name under "contact contributors" and select my email address). We're terribly sorry for any inconvenience, and hopefully we will have a new ladies ministry site up and running soon.

Happy reading!

Natalie

The LORD'S Perfect Patterns

I love to sew and knit, and certainly I’m no expert, but I definitely have to have a pattern! Otherwise it would be a mess. And here in these chapters we have God’s perfect patterns for his sanctuary-on-the-go.

Moses tells the people to bring specific items that the Lord will use – gold, silver, bronze, fine twisted linen, goat’s hair, tanned rams skins, spices, olive oil. – a freewill offering – but only from “hearts that are willing.” Are our offerings always made with “willing hearts” – had to think about that one for a minute.

I once had a Bible teacher that used to say, “The Old Testament is in the New revealed, and the New Testament is in the Old concealed.” These chapters certainly are a portrait of Christ in each and every article that was placed in the tabernacle.

• The ten richly decorated curtains and the coverings for the tabernacle made from specific materials and in specific colors. The veil for the Holy of Holies with the cherubim. We are clothed in righteousness because Jesus took on our sin.

• The Table and the Shewbread – 12 loaves of bread symbolizing the twelve tribes of Israel. Enough for all. A place of communion. The priests would replace the bread every seven days with new bread and stand in the Holy Place and eat the bread in communion with each other – the same as our observance of what we call the Lord’s Supper – ready and waiting for our Lord.

• The Lampstand – seven branched with almond flowers– the only illumination in the Holy Place. The lamps were trimmed with olive oil and were kept burning day and night. Jesus is the Light of the World and the oil represents the Holy Spirit.

• The Ark of the Covenant with the Mercy Seat – a wooden chest overlaid with gold that served to guide Israel in their wanderings. The cover was the “mercy seat” and symbolized the place where the presence of God would dwell. “There I will meet with thee and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat.” (Ex. 25:22)

The “Mercy Seat” is most meaningful to me of all the items we have read about today. It brought to mind a song that the Oak Hill Choir sang recently . . .

Come runnin’, Come runnin’, Come runnin’ to the Mercy Seat, where Jesus is calling, He said his grace would cover me, his blood will flow freely, He will provide the healing, I’m runnin’ to the Mercy Seat . . .

I'm running.

Rules were made to be broken

You've probably all heard that saying before, spoken cavalierly and persuasively to try and get whoever else they can to go along with breaking whatever rule they have deemed unnecessary. What they may as well be saying is, "That rule is unnecessary, whoever made it up had a ridiculous reason for it, and I know better than them." When you look at it in those terms it doesn't sound quite as convincing. Especially when you think about the person saying it "knowing better" than anyone.

Maybe you've said that exact phrase a few times in your life. If I haven't actually said the phrase, I know I've acted on the principle of it plenty of times before. Like when I'm driving down a quiet straight stretch of road and I see a speed limit sign for "25 mph." In a fraction of a second I've thought "25 mph??? Seriously? You've got to be kidding me, that's ridiculous. Whoever decided that was insane. No way am I going under 25 mph here!" My older brother, who is now a responsible father and husband, and probably better at always obeying rules than I am, had a saying as a teenage driver. "No cop, no stop." We tend to think that unless the authority figure is present, we know better and can bend the rules or make our own. It's probably not likely that we actually DO know better. People are usually in an authority position for a reason and have a perspective on things we don't. But when it comes to the law of God, we CERTAINLY don't know better, and he DEFINITELY has a perspective on things we don't.

God has laid out some pretty strict laws here. They invade every area of the Israelites life. From what they eat, to how they cook it, to what they say and who they make deals with. He doesn't just give it to them and say "follow this or else," He enters into covenant with them. A covenant is a "solemn binding agreement". It always involves blood. It always involves a promise. And the breaking of the promise is punishable by death for the one who broke their end of it.

The Israelites read God's law and they agreed as a nation "Everything the Lord has said we will do, we will obey." Moses then sacrificed young bulls and sprinkled the blood on the altars representing the 12 tribes of Israel and the people themselves. This was a reminder or symbol of the blood required of them should they break their end of the covenant. God promised them that if they upheld the covenant, God would fight for them against their enemies, bless their food and water so they were never sick or lost their children or babies, and give them a "full life span". Wonderful promises indeed. And God would fully uphold His end of the deal. He always does.

We see the most amazing blessing of being in covenant with God at the end of Chapter 24. Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up the mountain and saw God. Wow. By being in covenant with God, we are able to come into his presence. Covenant removes the "enmity" between the two parties. Basically it puts them on common ground.

The problem is...our tendency to break the rules. Our tendency to think we know better. And when we break the covenant- someone's blood is required. I feel for the Israelites. I can't imagine living with the weight of all those laws, and the guilt of failing to keep just one. The fear of knowing I had brought the judgement of such a mighty God down on myself and my family. Thankfully, this wasn't the end of God's plan.

"Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord, "when I will make a new covenant

with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,

not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day

I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt,

My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them," declares the Lord.

"But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,"

declares the Lord, "I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it;

and I will be their God and they shall be my people.

"They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying,

'Know the Lord,' for they will all know Me,

from the least of them to the greatest of them," declares the Lord,

"for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Only the elders and leaders of Israel got to see God that first day after the covenant. Now we all have the opportunity to know God and come into His presence. The same God who went ahead of the Israelites to guard them and bring them to the place He prepared, who drove out their enemies and blessed them desires to do the same for you. Do you think you know better than Him? Lord help us to say, "We will obey."

The Giving of the Law

God is so amazing and such a mystery. As I read through these verses I want to imagine being there as one of the Israelites. I want to see the amazing things they saw. The image of Mt. Sinai had to be incredible and frightening at the same time. Before the Lord came he gave specific instructions for His people, to prepare them for this special day. One thing that stuck out to me about their preparation was that they were to wash their clothes and be consecrated. We must prepare ourselves to meet the Lord. Make an intentional act of dedication to Him. I have also read that the washing of their clothes was a symbol of washing away sin.

Growing up, I never really had a problem with dressing up for church on Sunday. I never really questioned it until I was older. I am not about to tell anyone what to wear to church, but how we enter a place of worship is something to think about. My point is, in our personal choice for what to wear to go to worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, does it matter how we look? More importantly, does it matter to Him? God is looking at the heart. How do you prepare to meet with the Lord?

Mount Sinai was a very significant place. This is where God met with Moses in the burning bush and this is where God gave Moses the Ten Commandments.
The first four commandments tell us our duty to God. He must be FIRST no matter what. The other six tell us our duty to ourselves and to others. The fifth commandment is the only one with a promise attached. “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Isn't that interesting?

God gave these laws to the Israelites to direct them on meeting needs of others and to guide them to a lifestyle of holiness. We should make every effort to be holy but understand that it is not by our law-keeping that earns God’s grace. These laws also make us aware that everything we do has a consequence. We should be mindful of how we treat others and how they see us.
These laws are God’s standards. Having the knowledge of it also brings the knowledge that we need repentance and the Savior! Thank you Jesus!

God Provides

After a month of being freed from slavery in Egypt, the Israelites continue to grumble to Moses and convey their distrust in God. They were not content in their new circumstances and were fearful that God would not sustain them. If left to their own choices, they would have chosen death over their new-found freedom (Ex. 16:3). God "heard their grumbling" and again demonstrated His power through the miracles of manna and quail provided daily. Can you imagine how much food was needed to provide for 650,000 men AND their families? What a contrast between the plagues where God covered the land with death to God covering the land with daily provisions of sweet bread and quail.

God supplied these provisions daily for 40 years and commanded that each person take only what was needed for the day. Some took more and some took less and for each person that was enough. God wanted to provide for each person only what was needed for the day. God wanted the Israelites to trust Him daily and He wants the same from us.

Now that their bellies were full, the Israelites were thirsty. Again, the Israelites grumbled to Moses. Again, God provided. Can you imagine Moses' position while dealing with "these people"? Millions of Israelites were complaining to him again and again. Moses must have had incredible patience to be the leader of these people. This part of the scripture challenges me to take inventory and evaluate my grumbling. God knows our needs and hears our grumblings. There is no positive thing that can come from grumbling (or complaining) to others. I want to be an encouragement to people in leadership positions and to others around me. In Philippians 2:4, God commands us to "do everything without grumbling or complaining". Wait... does it say EVERYTHING???? Yes, it does. Let's encourage each other to strive for this goal.

Next, we meet Joshua who becomes a warrior that God eventually uses to deliver the Israelites to the promised land. Through Joshua's physical fighting and leadership in the battle, and Moses' oversight and continued submission to God (in this case through literal hands lifted up), God allows them to defend themselves against the Amalekites. I look forward to reading more about Joshua, don't you?

Moses spends some time with his father-in-law (Jethro) who delivers what must be some very welcome and wise words for Moses. He basically tells Moses that he (Moses) cannot do everything. Jethro wisely tells Moses to select capable men...key instruction coming up... "who fear God". My NIV study notes explain this word "fear" as "sense of reverential trust in God that includes commitment to his revealed will." Jethro was telling Moses to expand his leadership circle and to delegate the responsibility of judging among the Israelite people. I imagine that Moses was encouraged by the time he spent with his father-in-law as well as the fact that he had learned he could share some of his burden with other Godly men. We can do the same... we are not alone in our journey with God as he has provided a family for us to share in worship, fellowship, ministry, and encouragement. What a blessing!

Bonus Reading - 10 points :)

Psalm 105 is a wonderful summary of our readings so far and a reminder of all that God has done for His people. Take a couple minutes to enjoy this bonus reading for today and join me in praising God for his faithfulness!

The Journey Begins

At the end of the last chapter we learned that the "Lord did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt. Now they are to begin their journey to the land of milk and honey. As they begin their journey, Moses reminds them to remember this day in which they came out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage by the strength of the hand of the Lord. He tells them that the Lord is leading them to a land flowing with milk and honey. They are to eat unleavened bread for seven days and on the seventh day they shall have a feast unto the Lord. This is still practiced today in Jewish homes as the celebration of the passover.
The Lord led them through the wilderness with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. We all know the story of how God led them through the Red Sea on dry land as he parted the waters. When Pharaoh's heart was hardened once again, he went after the Israelites. Pharaoh's armies followed the Israelites into the sea and God closed the waters and the army perished. Once back on land and seeing what the Lord had done, they sang songs of praise and danced in happiness and joy.
This journey will lead them through good times and bad times. When times were bad for them, they would whine and complain. Better to be in Egypt as slaves than to die in the wilderness. We read this and wonder could they not see all the miracles that God had already performed. How could they not think God would not lead them safely through the wilderness.
We are just like the Israelites; it is easy to praise God when things are going good for us but do we praise him when times get rough; or are we like the Israelites whinning and complaining when things don't go our way.
"For the God of the mountain, He's still God in the valley. When things go wrong, He'll make them right. For the God of the good times, He's still God in the bad times. For the God of the day, He's still God in the night."
God tells us He will never leave us nor forsake us so why is that so hard to believe when things aren't going our way.

Plagues to Passover

Please understand that there is SO MUCH that could be written about the beginnings of the Jewish holiday of Passover. The Jewish heritage is RICH in its history...but I am going to TRY (notice I said try) to keep things a little more general and not get bogged down too much in the details of this AMAZING story. The symbolism is SO rich and the connections to our Savior are striking!

I do not want to miss, however, the last three plagues that have to be endured. My ESV Study Bible makes this comment about the plagues, "...the plagues are not solely for Egypt but primarily for what they reveal to the people of Israel." Interesting... The eighth plague, the plague of locusts, finishes off what was left behind from the hail storm plague. I just have to say that the whole insect thing really hits home with me. Having horses, insects are a constant bother and are VERY annoying even in small amounts. I cannot even BEGIN to fathom what it was like to have gnats, flies, and locusts in such numbers that they are in your bed and all over your clothes. That would TRULY be a nightmare! And the fact the Pharaoh continued to harden his heart through all of this shows that God was in fact the One causing this, because I can tell you for a fact no human being in their right mind would want to continue with these awful plagues after the gnats! Huh? Am I right?

The ninth plague, the plague of darkness, was a foreboding event which would lead to the last plague, the plague of death. Please keep in mind that in those times, there were not street lights, electricity, cars with lights, flashlights, or any of these modern conveniences to help us see in the dark. It was PITCH BLACK. The kind of darkness in which you cannot even see your hand in front of your face! Have you ever experienced this kind of heavy darkness? I am sure you could almost feel the heaviness of the darkness. One final thing I want to add here, I am sure you noticed that God made a "distinction" between the Egyptians and the Israelites during these plagues. He does the same thing with Christians today. We should be "distinct" from those around us so that they notice that something is different about us and their curiosity is piqued. If we are not "distinct" from those around us as Christians, then we are doing something wrong!

The final plague, the plague of death, leads into the beginning of Passover. Notice that God spells out for the Israelites the specifications to be done during Passover from that point forward BEFORE the tenth plague even happens. The Israelite homes are "passed over" and no death occurs other than the sacrificial lamb that was to be killed in place of the firstborn child. They had to take the blood from this lamb and wipe it onto their two doorposts so that the Lord would "pass over" that household and not bring death to it. Here are a few key points to remember about the Passover:

• Passover would mark the beginning of a new year for the Jewish people.
• The unleavened bread was to symbolize the haste with which the Jewish people would leave their homes during the Exodus from Egypt. They would leave so quickly that they would not have time to pack up their dough before it was leavened.
• The bitter herbs would represent the extreme bitterness of their time as slaves in Egypt.
• The Passover lamb would "take the place" of the death of the firstborn child in each of the Israelite homes.

Just a few connections from Passover to our Lord and Savior. He is OUR Passover Lamb - He was perfect, without blemish, and NONE of his bones were broken. Remember that when they came to break Jesus' legs on the cross, He was already dead and therefore the perfect Passover Lamb of all time and for all people remained intact. One of the bitter herbs used during Passover was hyssop, which was offered to our Lord on the cross as well. Because of this perfect Lamb, those who accept his gift will be "passed over" and will not die but will have eternal life. Have you accepted this Perfect Lamb so that eternal death will "pass over" you? There is NO OTHER question as important as this one! It will determine where you spend all of eternity!

Oh, and then the Israelites were OUT OF THERE!!!! One of the most significant events in ALL of history! All honor and glory to you Lord!

P.S. I still have not been able to figure out how to separate out the paragraphs on the posts. I tried everything that was suggested to me, but nothing worked! SORRY!!!

"Pharaoh, Pharaoh!"

"Pharaoh, Pharaoh, ohhhhhhh! Let My people go!" was the battle cry. The Lord God had assured deliverance for Israel, and He came down to see it through. I find it interesting the exact detail God gave Moses when preparing him for his meeting with Pharaoh.....go here, say this, do this, when he says that then you say this. I'm so glad that the Lord was very clear. One thing we know, all of Egypt would soon know the God in the great I AM. Whether they chose to recognize it, is another story entirely.

These chapters cover the ten plagues God brought upon the land of Egypt for the continual refusal of Pharaoh to "Let My people go, that they may serve Me." I find it interesting that the plagues were seemingly aimed at the ten deities in Egypt. When the water was turned to blood, the Egyptian god of the Nile was silent. When the frogs came upon the earth in Egypt, the frog-faced goddess of fertility said nothing. The Egyptian god of the earth was speechless when the dust turned to lice and the god of creation said nothing as the flies tormented the people, animals, and homes of the Egyptians. (It was at this point that Pharaoh attempts to "bargain" with the God of Israel.) Bargaining didn't work of course, but as the diseased livestock began to die during the fifth plague I wonder where the goddess of protection was? Do you think the Egyptians cried out to their goddess of medicine when the ashes turned to boils on their skin? Do you think they heard an answer? When the hail and fire rained down, the goddess of sky was silent. Nothing was heard from the god of disorder when the locusts consumed everything in sight. The sun god was helpless in three days of darkness. Certainly Pharaoh, a god himself....supposedly the "greatest of all Egyptian gods", was proven powerless when his own son died in the final plague.

The answer here is that there is only one God.

I also think we should mention the continued hardening of Pharaoh's heart during these events. With the plagues of water, frogs, lice, flies, and diseased livestock, Pharaoh's heart grew hard. He didn't want to believe his gods weren't real, or that the God of Israel was the one true God. I also find it interesting that some of the miracles, the pharaoh's magicians were able to falsify. I wonder why? And, how cool that the plagues affected the Egyptians only, and not the Israelites? You can almost hear the people asking, "Who is this God?" As the plagues continued with boils, hail, locusts, and darkness, I noticed "the Lord hardened his heart" and Pharaoh would not release the children of Israel to serve their God. Finally, the most devastating plague that proved total inability for Egyptian gods to protect their subjects...the death of the firstborn children. Indeed, God holds the heart of the king in His hand! May we not harden our hearts toward Him.

There are even a few Psalms written about this time in history of Israel. My favorite is Psalm 105:14, "He permitted no one to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, saying, 'Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.'" God brought His people out with joy and His chosen ones with gladness. Oh, praise Him!

We shouldn't judge this Pharaoh.....I can't help but ask some days, what will it take for us to believe God is who He says He is?