Listening to the Word

Leviticus 26-27; Acts 23   “’I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.’” Leviticus 26:13 God’s redemption of his people from slavery in Egypt inspired the American slaves to pray for their own freedom. God hears those cries for freedom from slavery of every kind, no matter where they issue from. Christ is our Redeemer, the salvation of all who call out to him for forgiveness and freedom from the slavery and penalty of sin. The evidence of our freedom is evident in how we walk and carry ourselves. Freedom from the yoke or bar of slavery enables us to walk with our heads held high. Our Redeemer is “our glory and the lifter of our heads” (Psalm 3:3). What enslavement are we crying out to be freed from?   Are we walking with our heads held high, or are we bowed down under a yoke? “Lord Jesus, you are my Redeemer and glory, the lifter of my ...

Leviticus 25; Psalms 25-26; Acts 22 “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; in you I trust…He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way…Who, then, is the man that fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way chosen for him…My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare…May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you.” Psalm 25:1, 9, 12, 15, 21 Our primary enemy is sin and the temptation of Satan to get us ensnared in a sin-stronghold. It is in humility that we learn how to live in God’s ways and avoid the snares of sin. The fear of the Lord positions us to obey him, listen to his Word, and value unbroken fellowship with him. When we fix our eyes on Jesus, we “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (Hebrews 12:1). It is in pursuing Jesus as our primary focus each day, that integrity and uprightness will protect us. Jesus is our shield and defender. Our hope is in the Lord. “Lord Jesus, y...

Leviticus 23-24; Psalms 24; Acts 21   “…’When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest. He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. On the day you wave the sheaf you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect, together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the fine flour mixed with olive oil – an offering made to the Lord…” Leviticus 23:9-13 The resurrection of Jesus the Messiah on the day after the Sabbath during the Passover Feast is the fulfillment of the firstfruits offering. Jesus was the firstfruit of the resurrection, with the spiritual harvest of the churches from every nation to follow. Jesus was the sacrificial lamb offered in atonement for our sin. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit is the oil offering which binds the grain flour of the Church toge...

Leviticus 20-22; Acts 20   “’Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.’” Acts 20:25-27 When ministry is primarily a job, we may hesitate to proclaim the whole will of God because we might offend someone and put our job at risk. Paul’s freedom came from his burning inner sense of call from the Lord, his self-funded tent-making approach to ministry, and his awareness that if he failed to preach repentance and the whole will of God as related to his kingdom, he would be held accountable for lives the of his listeners. This is why Paul instructed Timothy to “correct, rebuke, and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction” because the lives and eternal destinies of people were at stake (2 Timothy 4:12). Do we love people, and particularly those in the family of faith, eno...

Leviticus 18-19; Psalms 13; Acts 19   “’Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled. Even the land was defiled; I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.’” Leviticus 18:24, 25 In 2 Chronicles 7:14 God promised Solomon that he would listen to his people, forgive their sin, and heal their land. However, his people first needed to humble themselves, pray, seek the Lord’s face, and turn from their wicked ways. This promise to heal their land was connected to the defilement of the land through their sin and idolatry. The gospel of the kingdom of heaven that Jesus came to bring includes reconciliation with God, with our neighbor, and with creation. This last dimension of renewed and restored relationship with creation breaks the defiling curse of sin and the worship of created things rather than the Creator. In what ways are we living this good news of restoration and rene...

Leviticus 15-17; Acts 18   “But when the Jews opposed Paul and became abusive, he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, ‘Your blood be on your own heads! I am clear of my responsibility. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.’” Acts 18:6 Paul was an evangelist. He knew the prophetic writings of Ezekiel and that accountability was needed when carrying a word from the Lord. The Lord had spoken to Ezekiel, saying that he was a watchman for the people of Israel. When he saw the sword coming, he was to blow the trumpet to warn the people. If the watchman didn’t warn the people, he would be held accountable for their blood (Ezekiel 33:6). Paul’s gospel witness to the Jews in each city he went to was as a spiritual watchman who desired more than anything for his people to be saved from their sins. There are many spiritual watch-people today who have responsibility before the Lord to pray, witness to, and warn their people about the consequences of sin. Are we aware of the ete...