Leviticus 26

In this chapter we see three major sections. 1. God’s promise to those who keep his laws. 2. God’s curses for those who break his laws. 3. God will remember his promise. These are fairly straight forward when we look at this passage. We are blessed and reward because we obey God’s laws. We are in his favor. If we choose to disobey his laws there are consequences for disobeying. The consequences increase the more one refuses to deny God and walk away from him.

What shows God is the same yesterday, today, and forever is the showing of grace and mercy he has. This was not a new concept because of Jesus coming we find an example of his grace in verse 40 through 46. God says that if the people will repent, confess their sins and humble themselves he will remember his promise to Abraham. Look at the end of this chapter. We see that though he forgives them there are still consequences for their sins. We often think that because we ask God to forgive us that he should immediately relinquish the punishment. Just because your kids seek forgiveness do you not still punish them for their disobedience?

Application

Though we are not under the law because of Jesus we still have to adhere to what God commands of us. We are to live holy lives. When we choose to not obey his commands to not live holy lives there are consequences for our sins. God’s blessings and rewards are not because you have prayed a certain way it is more about the fact that you have lived a holy life. Remember also that there may still be consequences for sin even after you have sought forgiveness. A murderer must still be held accountable for the murder even if he has turned his life to God

Leviticus 25

In this chapter we are in general dealing with three sections. The year to honor the LORD, the Jubilee for the land and the jubilee for the people. The over lying them that I see in this chapter is that we must remember who’s we are and who truly owns all that we have. The year to honor the LORD was the first year that they were in the promised land. For this first year they were not to harvest. For the next 6 years they could harvest as normal. The seventh year was to be a year of Jubilee for the land. They were not to harvest or plant during this year. It was to give the land a time of rest. It is similar to working for six days and resting on the seventh. In this case it is a larger scale for the land by working the land for six years and letting it rest in the seventh.

There are many other things connected to this year of Jubilee to include returning land to the one you got if from. The reminder that the Israelite did not have a permanent home but they were travelers with their only permanent home being with God.

The final part of this chapter was the jubilee for the people. No one was intended to remain a slave or servant forever. An individual specifically an Israelite was only to be a servant for a certain period of time and then just like the year of jubilee there was a year of jubilee for the servant and slave. Without getting into the weeds of the chapter the bottom line is that because people are children of God and made in his image we are to treat them with honor and respect.

Application

The application for this chapter is more practical than it is spiritual. I believe that it has spiritual results. We need to remember that all that we have all that we have responsibility for is not ours it or they belong to the LORD. Those we supervise are children of God made in his image. Even if they are not Christians they are still made in God’s image and we are to treat them with respect. We are to care for them and honor them. The land is not ours. We may not have the same standards as far as returning the land but none the less the land belongs to the LORD.

We have a responsibility as Christians to care for the land. It is interesting to me that Christians do more to hurt this land then they do to help. We should be the first to be concerned about what is happening to the land. Not because there is “global warming” (which I don’t believe is the case) but because we have been given the responsibility from God, the creator of heaven and earth, to care for it.

Leviticus 24

Chapter 24 is divided into two sections. Section one is dealing with the duties in the tent, specifically dealing with the bread and the lamps. Section two deals with various types of punishment for various types of offenses. Most of the section deals with what requires capital punishment.

The bread was to be made in a specific way with specific ingredients. The purpose of the bread was to be set aside as holy and was to be eaten only by Aaron and his sons. What strikes my interests the greatest is the fact that the lamps were to be remained lit from dusk to dawn. Providing a physical light in the physical darkness. Possibly a analogy to spiritual light in a spiritually dark world.

Though I am glad that we live under grace and not under the law there is a part of me that can’t help but consider what kind of world would we have if we held to some of the laws. Specifically considering some of the punishments for ones actions spoken of in the second part of the chapter. We have a story of a man that cursed God. The results was him being stoned to death. When you look at the other laws I am sure that it would deter some of the crimes we have today. The bottom line of the laws was that it was a bone for bone, eye for eye, tooth for tooth consequence.

Application

The greatest focus in this chapter is the talking of keeping the lamps lit during the time of darkness. How important it is for us to keep our spiritual lamps lit and shining bright in the spiritual dark world. We must not allow our lamps to dim or go out. The lost world needs to see our light.

We should rejoice that we are not under the law but under grace but does not mean we should not be held accountable for the wrongs that we do. So many people look for excuses or someone else to blame for our actions. We need to accept responsibility for our actions.

Leviticus 23

Leviticus 23 has three sections, “The Day of Worship,” “The Spring Festivals,” and “The Fall Festivals”.

The first section is short dealing with the Day of Worship. It is simple guidance the Israelites are to work only six days and on the seventh day they were to rest. To do no work it is the LORD’s day of worship.

As I consider the two festival seasons we can look at the details of each of the festivals in detail but I am not sure that is what is important here. I think what is important is the purpose of the festivals. As I read through these it is about celebrating God and worshipping him. Giving him the thanks and glory for the harvest along with seeking forgiveness for sins.

Application

We may not do the festivals as they had them then but we need to keep a Sabbath. It is difficult in this day and age for many people to celebrate the Sabbath on Sunday. Some, depending on their faith see the Sabbath on Saturday but even that is difficult to at times celebrate. I believe it is important that we gather together as the body of Christ for fellowship and worship that may be Sunday or Saturday. In Korea we had a service on Friday evenings. I think that we need to also consider what we are doing on that day. As a minister Sunday is often not a day of rest. It is often more work then many other days. I believe it is important you have a day set aside for rest and meditating on God. A day set apart as holy for the LORD.

We don’t have to wait for a certain time of year to give God glory and to celebrate what he has done for us. We do need to make it a point to give God praise for all that he has done and given us.

Leviticus 22

This chapter deals with both the animals that are acceptable for sacrifice and the guidelines that were put in place concerning the eating of the priest’s share of the sacrifice. When the sacrifice was brought to the priests a portion was given to them, kind of like pay. Since the priests only job was to serve in the temple they had to “earn a living” and thus they were given some of the sacrifice.

What is of specific importance in this chapter is found in verses 31 – 33, “Carefully obey my commands, I am the LORD. Never dishonor my holy name. I will show my holiness among the Israelites. I am the LORD, who sets you apart as holy. I brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD.”

Application

Look at these verses what do you see. I see that we are to carefully to obey God’s commands. We are not to dishonor his name. He will show his holiness. He sets the Israelites apart as holy. He brought them out of Egypt. Notice that it is about God not about us. We are part of his plan but our holiness does not come from our ability but from God. He sets us apart and thus we are not to dishonor his name. It is not of our own accord that we are saved but God brings us out of our sinful nature.

It is not about us. It is about Him. I don’t think it can be said enough. We are to be set apart and to be holy as he is holy.

Leviticus 21

This chapter involves the holiness of the priests and remaining holy and clean in order to come into the presence of the LORD. As I read through the list I am glad that we are bound by grace and not the laws because if we were bound by the laws then I would not be acceptable for the priesthood.

The thing to remember when you read this is that though this was directed at a select group of people and we can also apply this chapter to modern day ministers and use it as a reminder that ministers are to be set apart as holy and are held at a higher standard than others because of being God’s representative to the people. It is kind of like when I was a military police officer. As a keeper of the regulations we were expected to not just adhere to the regs but to exceed the regs where we could. For example not just shine our boots but spit shine them. Ministers have a requirement to be holy. Not holier than thou type but holy to the LORD because they are God’s representative.

Here is the catch. We see in scripture that we are a royal priesthood set aside for God’s purpose. This means that these passages apply to all of us as we are God’s representatives to the people.

Application

There is a theme over the last few devotions. Be holy as God is Holy. We must remember that we are God’s representative to the masses thus we must not just meet the standards we must exceed the standards. Many non-Christians meet the standard as far as being good. Excepting Jesus raises us to another level, but we know that there are many that believe yet will not get to heaven. We need to seek to go above the average and seek God’s holiness. To be perfect as Jesus was. This is not done by works but by prayer and walking after God.

Leviticus 20

When you read this chapter consider that fact that if it was not for the grace of God we would still be in this situation. People being killed for their sins. Instead Jesus died for all sins. This does not give us the right or okay to go out and practice these sins. The point is that God was making the Israelites to be a separate holy people. He was distinguishing them from those they were with and those who’s land they were going into.

Look at some of the sins listed. God is making a point of the seriousness of the sin and specifically these sins. We may not put people to death for these sins anymore but it does not mean that they are less important. We have God’s grace. There is those that mistakenly think that God is less concerned about the sin. God does not change. If it was a sin then it is a sin now.

Verses 22 – 26 speaks about being holy as God is holy. To be a separate people. There should be a difference between the Israelites and the other people.

Application

As a Christian can people tell a difference between you and others. I am not talking necessarily how you look but by your actions, what you do, what you say. Do you stand out as being set apart. This does not mean you are not to be a part of the world. We are to be in the world but not of the world. Be holy as God is holy.

Leviticus 19

This chapter can be summed up in verse 2 and verse 37. Verse 2 says, “…Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.” Verse 37 says, “Obey all my laws and all my rules, and live by them. I am the LORD.” In between these two verses are guidelines given by God divided into, Duties of the people towards God, Duties of the people toward each other, and other duties.

In the midst of all these duties there is one that I want to focus in on. This is found in verse 17. It says, “Never hate another Israelite. Be sure to correct your neighbor so that you will not be guilty of sinning along with him.” We are not to turn a blind eye to what others have done. We are to be involved in their lives, especially when we know they are Christians. It is kind of like watching a crime take place but not reporting it, or being willing to be a witness to because they don’t want to be involved. When we turn a blind eye to what others are doing we are just as guilty in the sin.

Application

The application today is as simple as yesterdays. The application for this chapter is found in the beginning of this devotion, verse 2 says, “…Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.” Verse 37 says, “Obey all my laws and all my rules, and live by them. I am the LORD.”

Leviticus 18

It is interesting how much sex is actually mentioned in scripture both in the positive and the negative. As we go through the Bible we will look at the different aspects concerning sex. Unfortunately society both Christian and secular, has put a negative connotation to sex. Sex was created by God for both enjoyment and procreation. The catch is that sex is meant to be enjoyed within boundaries that are set by God. The Bible teaches that of any sin, sexual sins are the worse because they hurt the body and the spirit. Leviticus 18 lays out some of these guidelines.

We see in the first few verses that God tells the Israelites once again that they are unique. They are not to live like the Egyptians where they came from nor the Canaanites where they are going. Verse 5 says, “Live by my standards, and obey my rules. You will have life through them. I am the LORD.”

We can simply look at the results of having sex outside God’s standards. HIV, AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, the list goes on. This is outside the emotional and spiritual results of sex outside God’s rules.

The majority of chapter 18 deals with not having sex with your relatives. It lays out some specifics of who not to have sex with. Most involve blood relatives but also includes step relatives. The last part deals with some other specifics concerning sex. No sex while a woman is having her period, no sex with neighbors wife (adultery? Hmmm). No homosexuality. There are some that want to say that this was involving having sex in a domination way but it is okay to have a homosexual relationship, as long as it is a loving committed relationship. Twist it anyway you may want to justify it but there is not room in scripture for interpretation of this. Never have sex with animals.

What is strange in this is in the midst of this discussion of sex and who and what not to have sex with we see a mention of Molech, a god and the sacrificing of children to Molech. They are instructed not to sacrifice children to Molech. There is much debate over what is involved in the worship of Molech and why he was worshipped. We can make a connection to the fact that children are the product of sex but I think that there is more than that. I think that the inclusion in this here was that there must have been sex that was involved with the worship of Molech. Or Molech may have been seen as a fertility god. The bottom line in all of this though is that children are a precious gift and are not to be so flippantly wasted in a worship ceremony similarly as sacrifices are given to God.

Application

Today applications is simple. It comes from verse 5, “Live by my standards, and obey my rules. You will have life through them. I am the LORD.”

Leviticus 17

We have two sections in this chapter. The first deals with people doing individual sacrifices and the other has to do with eating blood.

Up to the point of the temple many people were in the habit of doing their own sacrifices. Once the temple had been set up God commanded that this practice was to end. All sacrifices were to be done at the temple. Any one that killed an animal for a sacrifice anywhere but at the temple they were guilty of bloodshed and were to be excluded from the rest of the people. It was almost like murder.

The second part of this chapter had to do with eating blood. We understand this even better in light of Jesus’ death upon the cross. People were not to eat blood. Blood is life, as we know it both physically and spiritually. If someone eats blood God will exclude them from the people. The final part of this section has to do with what I will refer to as road kill. God commands that no animal that dies of natural causes or is killed by another animal is to be eaten. If that animal is the individual is to wash themselves and their clothes and would remain unclean until evening.

Application

For application the last two are pretty self explanatory for us. We may not be excluded but there are health reasons we should not practice these things. What I want to focus on is the first part of this chapter.

There are many people that I run into that seem to think that there is not a need for corporate worship. I often hear, “I can be a question and worship at home. I don’t need to go to church.” Yes it is true that we can be a Christian and worship at home. We don’t stop being a Christian by not going to Church but it certainly helps when we do. I believe that by involving ourselves in corporate worship there is a greatness in the worship. I also believe that we cannot grow in a vacuum. We need fellow believers to aid us in our spiritual walk. There is a greater chance of wrongful interpretation of scripture when we don’t include others and sit and learn with others. So we may not need to go to church to be a Christian but it certainly helps make us stronger.

Leviticus 16

As I read the beginning of this chapter I am saddened for Aaron and the other Israelites but also realize how blessed we are because of Jesus.

Chapter 16 starts off talking about the Aaron’s sons that came into the LORD’s presence and died. Verse 2 we see that God tells Moses to tell Aaron that he cannot go into the holy place whenever he wants. If Aaron does he will die. God then gives guidelines of what he has to do to be able to go into the holy place. Special clothes, a sacrifice and if this is all done correctly he then can go into the holy place.

Can you imagine having to put on special clothes and then giving a sacrifice just to enter into God’s presence. We enter into God’s presence weekly, without special clothes and without bringing a sacrifice. I am afraid sometimes we take the fact of entering into the holies of holies too lightly. I am not saying that we have to be all stiff. God ask that we come as we are but many times we come into his presence flippantly. When we come into God’s presence we must enter humbly and deal with our sins first. We are entering into the presence of the almighty God.

Something that was interesting in this chapter is the name Azazel. I did some studying of this word and found it is a noun and a proper name. Some scholars see it more as a symbolic illustration of what God does with our sins when he forgives them. He sends them far away from us, never to be seen again.

When we look at the word and Hebrew tradition this goes beyond symbolism. The word itself is referring to and evil spirit of the wilderness which the scapegoat was sent. This evil spirit had little to do with the atonement of the sins that came through God. It is from this passage that we get the term scapegoat. The purpose of the scapegoat was to send the sins away. Not unlike the way an individual is used by someone so they can get away with someone.

The rest of the passage continues the requirements that must be done by Aaron. We come to the end of the chapter and we see that on the 10th day of the 7th month the Israelites and all who are with them were to humble themselves and not do any work. On this day Aaron was to make peace with the LORD. Then they would be clean from all their sins. This is the most important worship festival.

Application

We are a blessed people because we don’t have to do the things Aaron did to enter into the holy place. This does not mean that we should be flippant about entering into God’s presence. We must take and seek forgiveness for our sins when we enter into God’s presence. This does not mean just on Sunday but daily. We have the blessings of entering into God’s presence at any time. Because of this we must take care and enter it humbly.

God restored unto us the ability to enter in to his presence through his son, Jesus, dying on the cross. We should treat this as a privilege and an honor not a right. Let us go boldly but humbly into God’s presence and realize what we enjoy is only because God gives us the ability to do so.

Leviticus 15

Today’s devotions is of a sensitive nature and so I recommend caution in sharing this devotion.

There are some things in the Bible that causes one to say why do we need to talk about this? Leviticus 15 is one of those that caused me to ask that question. It also caused me to say gross. We find in this chapter a discussion about discharges from male and females. We see that with the male it is dealing with discharges brought about by both disease and that of discharge of semen. For female it is dealing with the normal discharge caused by a period and one of excessive discharge not related to a woman’s period.

Obvious care should always be taken when dealing with discharges caused by disease. Modern science gives us reason for discharges from the male. The most common reason for a discharge from a male is because of a sexual transmitted disease. This type of discharge is unclean because of the disease but is also because the most common cause for it is because of it being a sexually transmitted disease most often caused by promiscuity. The other type of discharge comes from the discharge of semen. As I read this it does not matter if the discharge is from sexual intercourse or from a natural discharge designed to expel excess semen either way the discharge is considered unclean. When the discharge is through sexual intercourse both the man and wife is considered unclean.

For the woman chapter 15 seems to deal specifically with the discharge of blood connected to both her period and when not connected with her period. This brings to my remembrance of the woman who had the issue of blood.

Again we are dealing with distinguishing the children of Israel from everyone else. We also are dealing with discharge of body fluids. When there is a discharge there is risk of contamination. So besides being set aside as holy we also have the care over the spread of disease.

Application

Possibly the greatest challenge I have had with this chapter is what is the application. The understanding of the passage was challenging but simple. We are dealing with the fact of discharging of body fluids that alone says we need to be careful. We must look at the causes of some of these discharges. Sin. The discharges other than through sexual intercourse and natural emission often times generate from sin. More specifically sexual sin. We must guard our bodies from unclean discharges but more importantly we must guard ourselves from sexual sin. The thing that will destroy both our body and our spirit.

Leviticus 14

At the end of chapter 14 we find the purpose of chapter 13 and 14 is to help distinguish between what is clean and what is unclean. Chapter 14 is dealing more with the outcome once a person or an item has been declared clean. The first two thirds of the chapter deal with the requirements to be considered clean. What an individual is to bring to the priest for a sacrifice once it has been determined they are clean.

In reading this chapter you will see that there is two different requirements concerning an individual found clean of a skin disease. The second requirement is for those that are poor and cannot afford the requirements that were laid out in the first section.

The final section of this chapter deals with two things, the requirements once a home is declared clean and what to do if the house is unable to be declared clean. In the case of the house not being able to have the mildew removed the whole house is to be scraped of plaster and removed. Interesting much like one would have to do if mildew were not able to be removed in a home today. Once a home has been declared clean the owner must bring a sacrifice to be presented to God.

The Application

As we talked about yesterday there is an importance to protect ourselves physically as well as spiritual from being unclean. Today we may not need to bring a sacrifice for skin diseases but we need to seek forgiveness for those things that would destroy our spiritual man.

Leviticus 13

Leviticus 13 deals with two issues, skin diseases and mildew on clothing and leather.

In both of these we can look from the our position and say no kidding in dealing with the treatment of such things as mildew and skin conditions. We have modern science that tells us that skin conditions can be contagious and that mildew on things is unhealthy. They did not have that luxury back then. They simply were unsure of what to do with those things and so God set out a law to protect the people from things that would harm them or kill them.

When you consider mildew there are some mold that for some people just breathing it in let alone touching it can cause such breathing problems that it can kill them. There are skin diseases such as mrsa that is spread easily and can be very deadly. This is not about exclusion as much as it is about staying clean and holy to the Lord, even physically.

The Application

How do we apply this today. I see two very important applications one being the physical aspect of good hygiene and being careful around skin disease and mold. God not only wants us spiritually holy but physically well too. Often we ask for healing when we could have prevented the disease through careful medical care and not holding on to mildewed things. We instead are careless or think the thing is more important than our physical well being.

The other application is spiritual. There are spiritual skin disease and mildew that we need to remove from our midst. We need to stay away from it and declare it unclean and remove it. We think that we can play with sin a little and be okay with it. It is okay if I flirt with this woman, yet in doing so it slowly eats away at your marriage. Or it is okay if I have a little sex outside of marriage or multiple partners and yet it eats away at your soul and at times your physical body because of the disease that come from doing so.

Our bodies are a temple and we should maintain them that way spiritually and physically.

Leviticus 12

A short chapter with a large punch. Don’t see many sermon or discussions on this chapter. I think many ministers, especially male ministers. Why, because we are dealing with a controversial subject of why there is a difference between the length of time that a woman is unclean for a daughter and the length that she is unclean for a son. The ultimate thing that this stirs up is why is a woman considered unclean in the first place. I in fact was not necessarily looking forward to addressing this chapter. I pray that I have addressed in the best way possible that brings understanding and glorification to God.

Let’s deal with the fact of the woman being unclean because of this. What we have here is the spilling of blood. For this reason alone it was considered to be unclean. As I began researching this subject to understand why a woman was considered unclean and bring understanding to this chapter I found an interesting thing, much like some of the other laws there is a medical conditions connected with this. Many years ago, before the standards we have in medical care now, there was a study done concern woman who gave birth in the hospital and woman who gave birth at home. What was discovered is the death rate of mothers were less for those at home who had little contact with others then those that had more contact with others in the hospital. There is a specific disease that a woman can catch if there is not proper sanitary conditions maintained. Since medical science was not as far as advanced this was not understood during that time.

The second issue to address in this passage is the difference concerning the length of being unclean between a male and a female child. As I read this chapter my first thought is that seems unfair and very chauvinistic. As I pondered this chapter more I began to realize that I was simply looking at the difference of the gender not of the whole situation. As I prayed about this what came into focus is that besides the difference in time is that the male child is circumcised on the 8th day after being born. This seems to be the key to the difference. Without the circumcision then all things would be equal.

When it comes to the sacrifices mentioned in this chapter I have struggled with because what is the sin that a woman committed in having a child. I did not find much explanation in the various resources. The best explanation I could find was not what I thought could be the best explanation. One commentary referred to the sacrifices being a fact of the remembrance of the original sin and the woman be saved through child birth. I will have to say I am not sure. I don’t know about this. What I do know is that God required it so through obedience God’s blessings were given.

The Application:

There are some things that are not easy to explain. What we do know is though we don’t understand the reason of some things that we are asked to do by God obedience is better than sacrifice. In our modern minds and finite understanding we may not be able to understand God’s directive in this chapter but what was importance is that in obeying they were identifying themselves as children of God.

Leviticus 11

Leviticus 11 discusses the clean and unclean food that the Israelites are allowed to eat. Instead of discussing the types of food I want to consider the why more than the what. Why were there laws about the foods to be eaten or not eaten?

These laws have probably been more debated and discussed than any of the other laws. Many people have adjusted their diet to more resemble these foods. The assumption is that by holding to these original food laws I am going to be closer to God and healthier. It can be debated about being healthier or not. We know that through modern science that many of these animals can be dangerous if not handled correctly. Shell fish are scavengers and pigs if not slaughtered and handled correctly can cause poison to be released throughout the pig and thus be harmful to us.

With modern science also comes knowledge on how to safely prepare some of these foods that were once forbidden. We can see in the New Testament that some of the forbidden foods in the Old Testament were presented to Peter by God in a dream. Peter said he could not eat that food it was unclean. God said that what he has made unclean he can make clean.

The next place to look at concerning the food is that possibly that some of the foods were used by other in that region for sacrifices and pagan worship. It is true that some of these were used in rituals by other groups in that region but not all.

So if it was not so much about the safety and healthiness of the food, and it was not completely about the rituals of other nations why separate the food. How about being set a apart as a people as holy, to show a distinction between the Israelites and others in the world. It is a matter of being willing to do as God has requested to be called his children. It was symbolic to show that Israel was to be holy in an unclean world.

The Application

Since we are not bound by the dietary laws found in chapter 11 the question remains how we set ourselves a part as holy in an unclean world. There are other ways that we set ourselves apart as holy to God. By what we do, say, places we go all ways that we set ourselves apart. Can the world tell the difference between you and them?

Leviticus 10

We see in Leviticus 10 the importance of doing what God says to do. In the first part of this chapter we see two of Aaron’s sons took it upon themselves to offer incense to the Lord. They did not follow the instructions that were given concerning offering incense. The immediate result was that they were killed instantly by fire from God.

The bodies were removed from the tent and Aaron and his remaining sons were instructed to not grieve the death of these two sons. The Israelites were allowed to grieve but Aaron and his sons were not.

We see in verse 8 and following we see the first instructions to priests being the teachers of God’s word. Aaron and his sons were to teach the Israelites concerning all the laws that God had given. We also see here that no wine or liquor were to be drank when they went into the tent of meeting.

The chapter closes with Moses being upset with Aaron for not offering a goat for the sin offering. Moses found out it was burned instead of eating it in the holy place. Moses questions Aaron and his sons and Aaron responds to Moses with, “If I had eaten the offering for sin today, would the LORD have approved?” Aaron was essentially telling Moses that I am taking responsibility for what my sons did earlier today and since the sin offering was already offered for the day I am not clear to eat of this other offering. God would disapprove.

The Application

This chapter shows the importance of following God’s direction. We may not die immediately as Aaron’s sons did but we do die spiritually. As men we need to also need to consider Aaron’s example and take responsibility for what takes place in our household.

I was watching Dr. Phil (insert laugh track here) the other day where he was speaking to the family of a 14 year old young lady (use the term loosely) who refused to wear anything that was not sexy and somewhat revealing. As I read this chapter I cannot help but compare this father to Aaron. The father on Dr. Phil blamed everyone but himself. Aaron’s sons were grown and yet he took responsibility for their actions.

Men we will be held accountable for what happens in our home. Each individual will be held accountable also but you have the responsibility.

Leviticus 9

In chapter 9 we have Aaron performing his first sacrifices. In reading in through this chapter we see somewhat of an on the job training taking place for Aaron and his sons and Moses walks them through the steps required for each type of sacrifice.

When these sacrifices are done they are done with the whole congregation in place observing for the sacrifices were also in order to cover their sins.

Probably the most important thing in this chapter is at the end. In verse 23 Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meetings then came out and blessed the people. At the end of this verse we see that the LORD’s glory appeared to all the people. We see in verse 24 that fire came out from the LORD’s presence and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar. When all the people saw this they bowed before the LORD.

Why is this significant? It shows to the people first God’s acceptance of the offering. Secondly it shows that these requirements were not just Moses coming up with them but it was what God expected to take place. It gave legitimacy to the sacrifices.

The Application

When we allow God in our lives we become a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to him. God consumes us with his fire and the power of the Holy Spirit. He sets us on fire for his purpose our lives should be a sweet smelling savor to him.

Leviticus 8

Chapter 8 is the dedication/ordination ceremony for Aaron and his sons as priests of the Israelites. The thing to see as you look at this chapter is the significance of the preparation and the ceremonial cleaning. This is an in-depth process that began with Moses washing Aaron and his sons. Once washed they were then clothed in the white linen robes. After this cleaning the animals were slaughtered for the sacrifice for sins, a burnt offering and finally for the ordination offering. The final step of this process was that Moses sprinkled some of the blood on the priests dedicating them and their clothes to the Lord. He also took some of the blood and put it on the right ear lobe, right thumb and the big toe of the right foot.

After all of this they cooked the meat and at it and the bread from the ordination offering. The priests were than instructed not to leave the tent of meeting for 7 days for it will take 7 days to complete the ordination process. They were to serve night and day during that time as the Lord directed so that they would not die.

The Application

Moses is acting in the place of Jesus. Jesus is our advocate he washes and covers our sins with his blood and ordains us for his purpose and stands between us and the Father and says we are acceptable to him. Moses did the same for Aaron and his sons through the washing of them and the sacrifices he then stood before God and says they are acceptable to you. Through Jesus we are a royal priest hood set aside for God’s purpose. We should not take our responsibilities lightly.

I am going to forgo the study on Leviticus today. What I want to talk about today is relationships, specifically marriage. I may have spoke about this before but it is heavy upon my heart again. De’Dee and I are involved in a study on Wednesday evenings where we are working through the study based on the movie, “Fireproof”. Tonight we watch the movie. What a powerful well made movie. If you have not seen it I recommend it to you.

Based on that fact I wanted to talk to you today about marriage. Ephesians 5 says the following:

21 Place yourselves under each other's authority out of respect for Christ. 22 Wives, place yourselves under your husbands' authority as you have placed yourselves under the Lord's authority. 23 The husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. It is his body, and he is its Savior. 24 As the church is under Christ's authority, so wives are under their husbands' authority in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it. 26 He did this to make the church holy by cleansing it, washing it using water along with spoken words. 27 Then he could present it to himself as a glorious church, without any kind of stain or wrinkle--holy and without faults. 28 So husbands must love their wives as they love their own bodies. A man who loves his wife loves himself. 29 No one ever hated his own body. Instead, he feeds and takes care of it, as Christ takes care of the church. 30 We are parts of his body. 31 That's why a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will be one. 32 This is a great mystery. (I'm talking about Christ's relationship to the church.) 33 But every husband must love his wife as he loves himself, and wives should respect their husbands.

Many of us skip over verse 21 and jump right on to verse 22 and yet leaves the rest of the verses alone. What we get is not a marriage but a dictatorship. We claim to be Christian husbands yet we don’t do what scripture says. We allow the world to crowd out what God says about marriage.

The first thing to notice is that there is a mutual submission of one to another. That makes it a partnership. The second things is wives submitting. Now this is not intended to give men the right to sit around their home ruling with an iron fist like a dictator. The fact that the wives are to submit to the husband should humble the husband not make him proud and a dictator. You see by having the wives submit that means those of us as husbands are responsible for what happens and will be held accountable for what we do and how our home is.

More important than either of the above is the verses of 25 – 33. In these verses it commands the husband to love his wife and it says how that love is to be demonstrated.

1. Love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it.
2. He did this to make the church holy, washing it using water and spoken words.
3. Husband love must love their wives as they love their own bodies.
4. No one ever hated his own body. Instead he feeds and takes care of it.
5. Every husband must love their wife as he loves himself.

Notice in the above there is no room for a husbands selfish demanding for servitude from his wife. In fact it requires a humble caring for his wife. You see men the fact is that it is not about you. It is about your bride. I will guarantee that if you give to your bride you won’t have to worry about your needs being met.

I recommend that you rent, buy or borrow the movie and sit and honestly watch it. I also recommend that you pick up the book “Every Man’s Marriage”. These two resources will have an impact in your life. Above all else take a true look at what scripture says about marriage. Don’t allow the influence of society or the world to impact how you interpret scripture.

Leviticus 6 -7

I have to admit that I have not actually looked at Leviticus in my life time as close as I am looking at now. There are some powerful things that we miss out on when we choose to skip through the book of Leviticus. Some things that I found in chapter 6:

1. Sinning against God by failing to do your duty

2. Lying to your neighbor about something you were supposed to take care of or lying about something that was stolen or seized from your neighbor is a sin.

3. Finding something that someone lost and lie about it under oath, or commit any other sin like this.

Aside from instructions of taking care of the fire on the altar which was to never go out, the rest of chapter 6 and 7 deals with aspects of the various offerings that we already discussed from other chapters. Don’t take that to mean they have little values or importance for discussion or understanding to the offerings and sacrifices as a whole. They provide greater emphasis in the purpose and the care for the offerings. In going through this devotional study I don’t see the need to rehash what has already been discussed in this setting.

That said I encourage you to look at the two chapters and make sure for yourself that I am not missing something. If you have questions please ask so that we all can benefit and learn from the questions you may ask.

The Application

We all too often through aside the Old Testament as not being relevant to us today, the reality is that it is very relevant in what it has to say. No we don’t sacrifice offerings but consider the first part of chapter 6. In this chapter it talks about doing our duty, not lying under oath or for that matter at all. And also it answers the question of what to do when you find something that someone lost.

We are to do our duty. Whatever that duty is to not do our duty we are committing a sin against God. We are not to lie under oath or any other time for that matter. Finally it is not finder keepers, losers weepers. We are to take the effort to locate and return what we found. For to fail to do so based on what I see here it is a sin and you are stealing.

Leviticus 4 and 5

The more that I look at this book what I realize is how blessed that we are that we don’t have to bring an animal sacrifice for the various reasons. I have come to appreciate the old Hymn that said Jesus paid it all. This book has a sacrifice for just about anything and everything.

Chapter 4 deals with the offerings for unintentional wrong doings. What grasps me in this chapter is the realization that whether you intended to commit a sin or not you are still guilty. Many times people will simply say I did not mean to as if that is supposed to mean that they are not guilty and thus forgiveness from those they sinned against and from God is not needed because it was unintentional. As we see in this chapter the intent is not as important as the fact that a sin has been committed and forgiveness needs to be sought after.

Chapter 5 deals with other sin offerings. I think what is interesting in this chapter is not the sins offerings but what the sins are.

1. Verse 1: “…if you are a witness under oath and won’t tell what you saw or what you know, you are sinning…"
2. Verse 3: If someone touches a human uncleanness of any kind and then ignore it
3. Verse 4: “If you hastily take a vow about what you will or will not and then ignore it…”
4. Verse 15: “If any of you fail to do your duty by unintentionally doing something wrong with any of the Lord’s holy things…”
5. Verse 17: “If any of you do wrong – even one thing that forbidden by any of the Lord’s commands, but you didn’t know it – when you realize your guilt, you must be punished.

The Application

Though we do not bring animal sacrifices anymore that does not change the fact that these are still sins. We are still responsible for our actions. The difference is that Jesus paid the price for our sins. We still have the responsibility to seek God’s forgiveness.

Leviticus 3

Chapter 3 deals with fellowship offerings also known as peace offerings. The fellowship offering was an optional offering that could be used as an offering of thanksgiving, to fulfill a special vow, or as a freewill offering.

The only animal that could be eaten by the Israelites was one that was offered as a fellowship offering. We see in other places in scripture that if an animal was slaughtered but was not offered as a fellowship offering it at the tent of meeting was guilty of shedding blood. (Leviticus 17). Blood and the fat was God’s. So if anyone wanted to have meat for dinner they were to first offer the animal as a sacrifice to the LORD. We see twice in this chapter that it says about these offerings of being food.

There are animals that were offered for fellowship offerings, cattle, sheep, and goat. There were slight differences in each but the general offering was of throwing the blood against the altar and removing the fat, the two kidneys and the lobe of the liver as the burnt offering. In verse 17 we see it says that the Israelites were not to eat any fat or blood.

The Application

When we look at the various offerings and sacrifices that there are it took all those sacrifices to equal the one offering of Jesus. The Israelites maintained fellowship with God because of this sacrifice. They make peace with God through this sacrifice. We have Jesus that through his death and resurrection is our peace offering. We have fellowship with the God the father because Jesus is our advocate.

Leviticus 1 and 2

Leviticus, to many of us we skip over this book. For many lawyers and people that are about rules this book is intriguing. For most of us we just simply want to know why should we be concerned about a book on the law because Jesus came to fulfill the law? The fact is that the Bible says that all scripture is important for us. That said as we go through Leviticus the greatest challenge we will have is to avoid getting bogged down in the weed of this book. To avoid being bogged down we will consider larger chunks as we go through this book.

Leviticus Chapter 1 and 2

In these chapters we are going to look at the burnt offering of cattle, sheep or goats, and birds along with uncooked grain offerings, cooked grain offerings, other ingredients, and offering of the first grain harvested.

The thing to realize is that each of these offerings were treated differently, the bold areas are the major difference between the animal offerings.

Burnt Offering of Cattle
1. Male with no defects
2. Offered at the entrance to the tent
3. Place hand on animals head and make peace with the LORD
4. Slaughter the bull in the LORD’s presence
5. Offer the blood by throwing it against all sides of the alter
6. Skin the bull and cut into pieces
7. Start a fire and lay wood on the fire.
8. Lay the pieces along with the head and the fat on the wood.
9. Wash the internal organs and legs and burn all of it on the alter.

Burnt Offering of Sheep or Goat
1. Male with no defects
2. Slaughter it on the north side of the alter
3. Throw the blood against all sides
4. Cut it into pieces
5. Lay head and fat on alter
6. Wash internal organs and legs then burn it all.

Burnt Offerings of Birds
1. Mourning Dove or Pigeon
2. Priest bring it to the alter
3. Break its neck
4. Drain the blood against the side of the alter
5. Remove the gizzards with its filth and throw them on the east side on the place for the ashes
6. Pull the birds wings to tear the bird open without pulling the wings off
7. Burn it on the alter

Grain Offerings: Of the grain offerings the requirements were generally the same, unleavened, olive oil and incense. The differences tended to be in the way that it was or was not prepared and how much if any was the priests allowed to take of the offering. In general there is no difference between the cooked and the uncooked grain offerings. It was to be a burnt offering to God

We see that there is a mandate from God that said neither honey or yeast were to be burnt before God. They were allowed to be brought as an offering of first fruits but never placed on the alter.

The other mandate of the other ingredients for the grain offerings is that salt was to be put on the grain offerings. It was to never be left out of the grain offerings. It was considered the salt of God’s promise.

Offering the first Grain Harvested: The grain was to be roasted over fire and have olive oil and incense added. The priest were than suppose to burn it as an offering to God.

The Application: Just like these offerings we are to be prepared as an offering to God. Not to be literally burnt but as a living sacrifice. We should be making sure that we are doing what we can not to be unworthy to God. Our salt is Jesus in us. Scripture says we are the salt of the earth. We make the earth acceptable to God.

Exodus 40

Let’s all celebrate together. 1, 2, 3, YEA!!! We have reached the final chapter of Exodus. For me the celebration is twofold, 1. As much as I enjoy doing a study on each book sometimes it can seem that the book does not end and that can get mundane. I pray that I have been able to keep the studies interesting for you. The second reason is that we get to get into a new book to study.

Chapter 40 is divided into three sections. Section one is verses 1 – 15 deals with the instructions for setting up the tent. Section two is verses 16 – 33 and deals with actually setting up the tent. The final section is verse 34 – 38 and here we see the LORD coming to the tent.

Section 1: We see a specific time and order of setting up the tent in this section. God instructed Moses to set up the tent on the first day of the first month of the year. God then lays out the order of the setting up the tent through the washing and dressing of the priests. Notice in the setting up of the tent includes the anointing of the tent and the priests, a sign of setting the priest and the tent aside for God as holy.

Section 2: Goes through the process of Moses setting up the tent. What I see as important in this section is the repeating of the words, “…following the LORD’s instructions.” I think this is very important. We don’t have the tent of meeting to be able to say whether there was a easier, quicker way to set it up. We only have scripture that says how it was to be set up. Moses could have had a simpler way to set up the tent. There could have been steps that could have been combined any number of things but he made the choice that he was going to do as God had instructed.

Section 3: Once the tent was set up we see that God moves in. This is evident by the fact that the column of smoke that had been with them settled over the tent covering it. The glory of the LORD filled the tent so that Moses was not able to go into it. Just as the column was smoke by day and fire by night as it lead the Israelites through the desert so it was while over the tent. When the column moved the Israelites packed up and moved. When the column stopped they stopped and set up the tent of meeting.

The Application

This whole chapter as I see it is about following instructions. It may not seem like the easiest or the simplest you may even think you have a better way. The bottom line is, are you willing to follow God and the instructions he gives you. For in the following of instructions that is when Gods glory is revealed in your life. That is when God’s blessings are poured out. God’s ways are not ours they are higher. What has he instructed you to do? Are you following his instructions to the letter?

Exodus 39

Chapter 39, just like the previous two chapters speaks of things that were discussed earlier when God was giving instructions to Moses. In this case we see the description of the priestly garments. There are five sections to this chapter the first four sections deal with the priestly garments, the remaining section deals with all the items being brought for Moses to inspect. As I did with the last two chapters I will show the corresponding chapters and then hit the highlights of what I find of importance.

1. The Holy Clothes: 39:1 (Exodus 28:1 – 5)
2. The Ephod: 39:2 – 7 (Exodus 28:6 – 14)
3. The Breastplate: 39:8 – 21 (Exodus 28:15 – 28)
4. Other Clothes: 39:22 – 31 (Exodus 28:31 – 43)

What is different in this chapter that is not in the previous chapter is the descriptive detail of how they created the clothes. Take a look at the verses dealing with the Ephod. The detail work that had to go into creating the cloth and creating this piece of clothing, it is amazing. Specific is the fact that the gold thread is not just gold color thread but actually handmade gold thread. The gold was hammered thin, cut then woven in.

Another point that I find fascinating is found in verse 30. Here we see a crown that is fastened to the priest’s turban that says, “Holy to the LORD”. 1. It is placed on the head and that seems to me to be important in the fact that sometimes it is our head that gets us in trouble. 2. It declares the priest Holy to the LORD. It is declaratory that the priest belongs to the Lord.
The point in this is that God is in the details. He cares about the finest of thread that is put into the making of these clothes.

In the final section, verses 32 – 43, the craftsmen bring all the things to Moses for him to inspect. (I can imagine the clothes being passed on to Aaron and his and as they pull each piece out a tag falling out inspected by MOSES.) We see in verse 43 that Moses found everything was made to the LORD’s instructions and so he blessed them.

The Application

Two things that I see one God is into the details. Since he is into the details so much with these clothes and what is put into them don’t you think that he is even more into the details with you. God cares about you greater than he cares about these clothes. The second thing I see is that God declares us as holy to himself. We are a holy, royal, priesthood set aside for his glory and his purpose.

Exodus 37 - 38

We are speeding through Exodus 37-38. I caution you that I don’t want you to think that these passages are not important but we have dealt with the things in these chapters earlier.

1. The Ark: 37:1-9 (Exodus 25:10-20)
2. The Table: 37:10-16 (Exodus 25:23-30)
3. The Lamp Stand: 37:17-24 (Exodus 25:31-39)
4. The Altar for Incense: 37:25-29 (Exodus 30:1-5)
6. The Altar for Burnt Offerings: 38:1-7 (Exodus 27:1-8)
7. The Bronze Basin: 38:8 (Exodus 27:9-19)
8. The Courtyard: 38:9-20 (Exodus 27:9-19)

Some interesting facts out of these two chapters, or at least I find them interesting.

1. Verse 37:34 – the lamp stand and all the utensils were made out of 75 pounds of pure gold
2. Verse 38:8 – The basin and its stand were made out of the bronze mirrors given by the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meetings.
3. Verses 38:21 – 29: An inventory was taken of the material used.

a. Gold: 2,193 pounds (approximately over 1 ton)

b.Silver: 7,544 pounds (Over 3 tons) approximately one fifth of an ounce for each person 20 years old or 603,550 people. 7500 pounds of silver to cast the 100 bases, 75 pounds per base. 44 pounds of silver to make the hooks, bands, and tops of the posts.

c. Bronze: 5,310 pounds.

Think about this for a minute, the weight of the items made from this material alone, let alone all the other material of wood and fabric used in the construction of the tent of meetings. What an amazing sight to see in the desert, this beautiful tent used in the worship of the LORD.

The Application

Now that you have considered what was put into this tent that was temporary consider what God has put into you. Scripture says our bodies are a temple. Psalms 139 says we are wonderfully made. Genesis says we are created in God’s image. God cares about you. He designed you himself just as he designed this temple. He is the only craftsman that touched you. Treat your body with the same respect you treat his holy of holies.

Exodus 36:3 - 38

We looked at Exodus 36:1 – 2 when we looked at Exodus 35. We start this section in verse 3. Chapter 36, aside from the first two verses, can be divided into two sections. Section one deals with a problem that many pastors would love to have, that of excessive contributions. The second deals with the construction of the tent.

I don’t know a pastor out there, especially in the middle of a building project, which would not want to be in the position Moses and the craftsmen were in. We see that in verse 3 that every morning people continued to bring freewill offerings every morning. The offerings had gotten so numerous that the craftsmen had to stop working and go tell Moses to tell the people to stop. It was not until Moses said something that they stopped. What a moving and listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

The second section describes the construction of the tent. Verse 8 to the end of the chapter corresponds with Exodus 26:1-37 where we see God describing how the tent is to be constructed. The craftsmen here proceed to construct the tent just as the design was given to them by God. When you consider the detail that was put into this it was no small feat. The size was very large. It took men gifted by God to not only build this but to understand God’s guidance and design.

The Application

Two things that we can see in this chapter. 1. The freewill offerings that the people gave. How many times have you been told to put a certain amount into the offering and you were more concerned about how much money you would have left. We should be giving with a joyous heart. We need to be listening to what God wants us to give not what we want to give to him.

2. Following God’s directions. God gives us directions in his word and specifically for our lives. When we follow God’s directions for our lives we can’t go wrong.

Exodus 35:10 - 36:2

This section is matched to Exodus 31:2-6. In chapter 31 we see God telling Moses who was going to be the skilled craftsmen in charge of building the tent of meeting. In this section we have Moses bringing the people together and telling them that Bezalel and Oholiab were going to be in charge of all aspects of crafting the tent of meeting. We see in this passage that there are others involved in building this tent. Aside from the people bringing their gifts other craftsmen would assist.

Notice that both of these men are talented in all types of trades and crafts. They were skilled craftsmen. It appears in this passage that Bezalel is going to be the chief craftsmen guiding the rest in the construction of the tent. We get a hint of Oholiab’s other reason for being chosen. Look at verse 34, it says that along with being a skilled craftsman he also had the ability to teach. So as I look at this Bezalel was going to oversee all construction and Oholiab was going to teach those that were not as skilled in how to do some of the construction.

The most important thing to notice above all things is where their skills come from. Check out verses 31 and 35. In both these verses it speaks of being given or being filled with, verse 31, “The LORD has filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God, making him highly skilled….” Verse 35 says, “The LORD has made these men highly skilled in all trades.” Their abilities were not attributed to being raised with these skills. It doesn’t come from their own abilities or observing their father’s it came from God.

The Application: We must not forget where our abilities come from. We are to care for them, hone them, and use them for his glory and always give him the praise for our abilities. You are gifted in various ways. Scripture says that there is one Spirit but different gifts are given. Your capabilities are not a mistake but a gift from God. The minute you forget this is when you are headed for a fall. Give God praise today for those abilities you have been given no matter how simple or complex they may seem.

Exodus 35:1 - 9

In chapter 35 the prep work is done. All the directions have been given to Moses and it is time to put God’s plan into action. This chapter is divided into three distinct sections I am going to look at the first two sections in this devotion and the third section the next time. Verses 1 – 3 deals again with the rules about the Day of Worship. Verses 4 – 9 deals with the peoples contributions of their wealth. The third section deals with the craftsmen for the tent this section extends from verse 35:10 – 36:2.

We have in the first part of chapter 35 another emphasis on the rules of worship. At this point in our devotions you should have begun to see a theme when it comes to the Sabbath. It is a day set aside as holy. A day that is to be a day of rest. A precedence was set by God in the opening verses of Genesis when where we find that God rested on the seventh day. We have seen it mentioned a number of times in Exodus and we see it once again mentioned here. This will not be the last time we see the Sabbath emphasized. All of scripture is important and one thing should not be considered less important than another, but when something like this is mentioned so many times we must take note and see what is being said and understand why it is being emphasized. When you considered what our world is like we see that we are a 24/7 society. Society as a whole goes directly against God’s directive by not having a day that is set aside as rest. We then wonder why we are so warn out.

In the second section sets out the contribution of the Israelites for the making of the tent of meetings. This section corresponds with Exodus 25:1-7. Something I want you to notice here there is not set amount that the people are to give. It says in verse 4, “This is what the LORD has commanded: Choose something of your own to give as a special contribution to the LORD. Let everyone who is willing bring this kind of contribution to the LORD….” It then spells the items that God listed as the materials to be used for the building of the tent.

This is what I want you to notice in that section. This is free will. There is no manipulation no begging. God simply said to give something. No specifications just something. We also see the words who is willing. This means that God was not wanting someone to give grudgingly. He wanted it to come from a joyful and giving heart.

The Application

I have said this time and time again. Each time that the Sabbath is mentioned in scripture I will speak of the fact that you need to create a day that is a day of rest once a week. We are not better than God. God rested we need to do that. For some of us Sunday is not a day of rest because we are teaching and ministering on that day. Then set another day aside. Believe me I need to hear this as much as some of you.

When it comes to giving to the ministry. Whichever ministry it is you should be giving from a willing and joyful heart. Yes there is talk in scripture about tithe and we will talk about that when we come to it, but the first thing is to come and give willingly something. God is more interested in ones heart than the amount that they give.