Listening to the Word

Leviticus 10-12; Acts 16 “…’You and your sons are not to drink wine or other fermented drink whenever you go into the Tent of Meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. You must distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, and you must teach the Israelites all the decrees the Lord has given them through Moses.” Leviticus 10:8-11 Fermented drink offerings were a daily part of worship sacrifices at the tabernacle and temple. However, the death of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, who were intoxicated when they offered unauthorized fire/incense in the Tabernacle, was a ‘sober’ statement to the succeeding generations of priests that they could not be casual about their duties in the presence of the Lord. The priests were given the leftover drink offerings. However, when they were in the tabernacle, teaching the people or offering discernment on the application of the law, fermented drink was forbidden. As the people of...

Leviticus 7-9; Acts 15 “Moses said to Aaron, ‘Come to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and the people; Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people… Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell face down.” Leviticus 9:7, 23, 24 For seven days, Aaron and his sons offered sin-sacrifices for themselves and the people. They consecrated themselves to the Lord. On the eighth day, the glory of the Lord appeared, and fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering. Consecration precedes revelation. Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God, made atonement for us so we could approach the throne of grace boldly. However, we must appropriate/apply that sacrifice by faith, repent of our sin, and offer ourselves to God if we, too, desire to e...

Leviticus 4-6; Acts 14   “’Whatever touches any of the flesh will become holy…The clay pot the meat is cooked in must be broken…’” Leviticus 6:27, 28 Anything the sacrifices on the altar touched became holy. They could not be used later for common purposes. Clay pots or dishes used to eat the food offered on the altar during the Jewish feasts, had to be broken, even when that meant hundreds of thousands of dishes in a place like Shiloh. Halfway between Ramallah and Nablus, the historic site of Shiloh has been discovered. For hundreds of years, hundreds of thousands of people would gather at Shiloh, the place of the tabernacle to worship the Lord and offer sacrifices. This site was recently identified by the huge amount of broken clay dishes in the area. Paul described us as clay vessels when he wrote, “we have this treasure in jars of clay,” describing how our bodies contain the very presence and glory of God (2 Corinthians 4:7). We offer our bodies to the Lord as “living sacrifice...

Leviticus 1-3; Acts 13   “Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.” Acts 13:38, 39 This closing statement in Paul’s sermon in Pisidian Antioch deeply impacted the listeners so that the following week “almost the whole city gathered to hear the Word of the Lord” (Acts 13:44). Under the anointing of the Holy Spirit it was the Lord speaking through Paul calling people to both forgiveness and freedom from the power of sin through Jesus Christ. Are we aware of and living the reality of the message that not only is forgiveness found in Jesus, but also freedom from the power of sinful habits and patterns in our life? This deliverance was not possible through the Mosaic Law and its animal sacrifices. How many Christians limit their experience of salvation to forgiveness, and never appropriate deliverance from ...

Ex 39-40; Psalms 15; Acts 12   “The bells and pomegranates alternated around the hem of the robe to be worn for ministering, as the Lord commanded Moses.” Exodus 39:26 The smallest details of the clothing worn by the priests were followed “as the Lord commanded Moses”. The Lord had a detailed plan, or as the writer of Hebrews wrote, Moses’ Tabernacle was a “copy and shadow of what is in heaven” (Hebrews 7:5). These details were all significant and prepared God’s people for their fulfillment once the Messiah would come. More importantly, this pattern prepares God’s people for what he has prepared for us in heaven. The details and design of the elements and components of the Tabernacle are important because they reveal God’s ways to us. We discover the character of the Architect. God’s holiness, revelatory nature, forgiving nature, his order, and his desire for reconciled relationship, are all revealed in the Tabernacle. Pomegranates are the only fruit mentioned in the Tabernacle and...

Ex 37-38; Psalms 19; Acts 11 “But who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Psalm 19:12-14 David’s desire to walk in unbroken fellowship with the Lord meant that he invited the Holy Spirit to expose the sin in his life prevent further sin. David desired his words and actions as well as the hidden meditations of his heart to be pleasing to the Lord. Our primary responsibility, or work as disciples or apprentices of Christ, is to walk in unbroken fellowship with Jesus so he can live in and through us. Hidden meditations that grieve God become sin which eventually become actions that rule over us through habits. Our accountability to others in discipleship is helpful; but our primary accountability is to the indwelling Holy Spirit who ...