Category Archives: Repenting from Sin

Faith / Trusting God, Help / Serve Others, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Holy, Holy / Set Apart, Interceding for Others, Obeying God, Offering Sacrifices, Purposeful / Intentional, Repenting from Sin

Cleanse and Purify The Chosen; Let Them Be Separate

There is tremendous depth in the symbolism of scripture. We can read it and gain value at a surface level and also dig deeper and deeper and find more and more treasure of insight waiting to be found. Numbers 8 is no exception. At the very surface level we can appreciate that Jehovah calls some of us to be set aside for His purposes. To do so effectively, we must be cleansed and separated from the world. We can not be set aside to be holy and serve Him and yet still blend in with the world around us.

Do not limit your thinking only to pastors and missionaries as the “chosen”. These roles may be chosen, but so too let us consider all of us chosen to follow Christ. We must cleanse ourselves of sin and the ways of the world. We must be different if we are to honor and glorify God and lead others to Him.

Of course, you can study and find much deeper significance as well in Numbers 8. Why using a razor over their whole body? What is the significance of the offering? Why present the Levites in front of the whole congregation? We see also the coming together of the whole congregation to pray over the Levites as they enter the service of the Lord. What is the significance and tie back to the first born and the exodus from Egypt? Finally, don’t miss verse 22, in which the Bible records that the people obeyed the instructions of God. They did not debate them with God or pick the ones they liked and disregard the reset. They obeyed all He told them to do.

Numbers 8:5-22

Cleansing the Levites

     5Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 6“Take the Levites from among the sons of Israel and cleanse them. 7“Thus you shall do to them, for their cleansing: sprinkle purifying water on them, and let them use a razor over their whole body and wash their clothes, and they will be clean. 8“Then let them take a bull with its grain offering, fine flour mixed with oil; and a second bull you shall take for a sin offering. 9“So you shall present the Levites before the tent of meeting. You shall also assemble the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, 10and present the Levites before the LORD; and the sons of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites. 11“Aaron then shall present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the sons of Israel, that they may qualify to perform the service of the LORD. 12“Now the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bulls; then offer the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the LORD, to make atonement for the Levites. 13“You shall have the Levites stand before Aaron and before his sons so as to present them as a wave offering to the LORD.

      14“Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the sons of Israel, and the Levites shall be Mine. 15“Then after that the Levites may go in to serve the tent of meeting. But you shall cleanse them and present them as a wave offering; 16for they are wholly given to Me from among the sons of Israel. I have taken them for Myself instead of every first issue of the womb, the firstborn of all the sons of Israel. 17“For every firstborn among the sons of Israel is Mine, among the men and among the animals; on the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for Myself. 18“But I have taken the Levites instead of every firstborn among the sons of Israel. 19“I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the sons of Israel, to perform the service of the sons of Israel at the tent of meeting and to make atonement on behalf of the sons of Israel, so that there will be no plague among the sons of Israel by their coming near to the sanctuary.”

      20Thus did Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the sons of Israel to the Levites; according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the sons of Israel did to them. 21The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD. Aaron also made atonement for them to cleanse them. 22Then after that the Levites went in to perform their service in the tent of meeting before Aaron and before his sons; just as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

Take some time to pray for the Spirit to help enlighten your mind to the truth and depth of scripture including its applicability for your life today. Then spend time digging through scripture and studying routinely. It should not be a one time or infrequent activity.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Faith / Trusting God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Loving / Kind, Praise / Worship / Glorify God, Repenting from Sin, Salvation

All Have Sinned and Fall Short of the Glory of God

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. None of us are righteous in and of ourselves when compared to God’s holy standard. Our salvation is not through our good works, whatever they may be, but rather through His grace and mercy. The Father sent Christ to pay the penalty of our sin… death.

There can be no boasting of our own works. Rather we must have humility to come before Him and admit our sinful nature, asking forgiveness and turning toward Him in repentance. Through Christ we are saved.

Note, however, how Paul emphasizes that this does not nullify the law. Scripture tells us the law is good and perfect and shows us what is right and wrong. It is still a useful guide to our steps. But we can not be saved by adherence to the law but through Christ alone.

Romans 3:21-31

Justification by Faith

     21But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; 25whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; 26for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

      27Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. 28For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. 29Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, 30since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one.

      31Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.

Come humbly and thankfully before our Father, the Lord of the universe and creator of all things. Praise Him for making a way through Christ for us to be reconciled to Him. Accept Christ as Lord and Savior today. No one is beyond His offer of salvation, no matter what sin has been committed. To learn more about accepting Christ, read The Message of the Cross.

May His name be holy. May His kingdom come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Humility, Loving / Kind, Merciful, Peace / Rest, Repenting from Sin, Righteous, Teachable

In Him There Is No Darkness

We live in a dark, sin-filled world. Let us not forget, however, that sin entered through man, not God. There is no darkness in Jehovah. If we fellowship with Him, then we too will walk in the light and not darkness. This is not because of our own righteousness, but because of the righteousness of Yeshua who died for our sins so that we may be cleansed and be in close fellowship with a holy Father. We must confess our sins rather than deny them if we are to be cleansed.

1 John 1:5-10

God Is Light

     5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

The world is not generally comfortable with “absolute” truth, but nonetheless it exists. One can deny gravity but it acts upon each of us the all the same. So too with Jehovah… though you accept or reject Him, He exists all the same and so does His truth about what is good and what is sin. We can be greatly comforted though and need not remain in doubt about forgiveness. He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Compassionate, Consequences of Sin, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Guide, Holy / Set Apart, Merciful, Peace / Rest, Repenting from Sin

Cleanse and Separate Yourself from Sin

People are very attentive to keeping lepers separate from those who are not affected by the disease. It is in their very tangible self interest to be vigilant on this subject. The Lord wants us to be equally vigilant to segregate those who defile Him through sin until such time as repentance is complete. The greater the claim of a person, family, or group of people to holiness, the greater the need for separation and cleansing from sin.

Our loving Father anticipates that people make mistakes and sin. He provides some instructions for how a person may seek forgiveness and again peace with the Lord and their conscience. We often talk about a “New Testament” God who forgives, but God has not changed. Forgiveness through repentance has always been His way. However, that does not mean there are not lasting consequences even after someone repents and is forgiven.

Numbers 5:1-10

On Defilement

     1Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Command the sons of Israel that they send away from the camp every leper and everyone having a discharge and everyone who is unclean because of a dead person. 3“You shall send away both male and female; you shall send them outside the camp so that they will not defile their camp where I dwell in their midst.” 4The sons of Israel did so and sent them outside the camp; just as the LORD had spoken to Moses, thus the sons of Israel did.

      5Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 6“Speak to the sons of Israel, ‘When a man or woman commits any of the sins of mankind, acting unfaithfully against the LORD, and that person is guilty, 7then he shall confess his sins which he has committed, and he shall make restitution in full for his wrong and add to it one-fifth of it, and give it to him whom he has wronged. 8‘But if the man has no relative to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution which is made for the wrong must go to the LORD for the priest, besides the ram of atonement, by which atonement is made for him. 9‘Also every contribution pertaining to all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel, which they offer to the priest, shall be his. 10‘So every man’s holy gifts shall be his; whatever any man gives to the priest, it becomes his.’”

Think about sin as you would a severely contagious disease. Do you separate yourself from unrepentant sinners or sin (even your own) with as much attention and energy as you do keep yourself separate from a disease? You should. Perhaps more so, since unrepentant sin separates us from the Father spiritually and relationally. A physical disease affects only our body.

Prayerfully consider who and where you are accepting or normalizing sin in your life or the lives of others around you. Ask God’s help for how to separate yourself from this sin. Wholeheartedly seek repentance and reconciliation with the Father.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

 

Discipline / Correction, Father / Yahweh, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Holy, Holy / Set Apart, Holy Spirit / Ruach HaKodesh, Justice / Judgment, Obeying God, Repenting from Sin, Study the Word, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Your Body Is The Temple for the Holy Spirit

It is amazing to reflect on how much care God demands for things which are holy, set apart for His purpose. The items of the temple were set apart to glorify Jehovah and communicate very specific elements of how he wanted His people to relate to Him. It was a place for worship of our Holy God. Numbers 4 (included at bottom of article) outlines just a handful of duties and instructions that were to be carried out with utmost respect and obedience. Violation could result in death.

With the tabernacle and temple now no longer in place, and with gift of the Holy Spirit to come dwell inside followers of Christ, our bodies have actually become temples for the Holy Spirit. We should take seriously how we care for and respect the bodies He has provided us.

1 Corinthians 6:13-20

13Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them.Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. 14Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! 16Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH.” 17But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. 18Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. 19Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

Let us not be reckless or careless but rather good and attentive stewards. That includes spiritual discipline to study the word and prayer and praise to draw us closer to God. It means we should  eat well and exercise appropriately.  Let us not wreck our bodies with toxic substances such as drugs and excessive alcohol. Remain free from sin without exception… adultery, lust, anger, foul speech, etc.  Let us treat our bodies as if they are holy and set apart for God’s purpose dwelling inside us as believers.

Numbers 4

Duties of the Kohathites

     1Then the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 2“Take a census of the descendants of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ households, 3from thirty years and upward, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tent of meeting. 4“This is the work of the descendants of Kohath in the tent of meeting, concerning the most holy things.

      5“When the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and they shall take down the veil of the screen and cover the ark of the testimony with it; 6and they shall lay a covering of porpoise skin on it, and shall spread over it a cloth of pure blue, and shall insert its poles. 7“Over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall also spread a cloth of blue and put on it the dishes and the pans and the sacrificial bowls and the jars for the drink offering, and the continual bread shall be on it. 8“They shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet material, and cover the same with a covering of porpoise skin, and they shall insert its poles. 9“Then they shall take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand for the light, along with its lamps and its snuffers, and its trays and all its oil vessels, by which they serve it; 10and they shall put it and all its utensils in a covering of porpoise skin, and shall put it on the carrying bars. 11“Over the golden altar they shall spread a blue cloth and cover it with a covering of porpoise skin, and shall insert its poles; 12and they shall take all the utensils of service, with which they serve in the sanctuary, and put them in a blue cloth and cover them with a covering of porpoise skin, and put them on the carrying bars. 13“Then they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread a purple cloth over it. 14“They shall also put on it all its utensils by which they serve in connection with it: the firepans, the forks and shovels and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread a cover of porpoise skin over it and insert its poles. 15“When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.

      16“The responsibility of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest is the oil for the light and the fragrant incense and the continual grain offering and the anointing oil—the responsibility of all the tabernacle and of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.”

      17Then the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 18“Do not let the tribe of the families of the Kohathites be cut off from among the Levites. 19“But do this to them that they may live and not die when they approach the most holy objects: Aaron and his sons shall go in and assign each of them to his work and to his load; 20but they shall not go in to see the holy objects even for a moment, or they will die.”

Duties of the Gershonites

     21Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 22“Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers’ households, by their families; 23from thirty years and upward to fifty years old, you shall number them; all who enter to perform the service to do the work in the tent of meeting. 24“This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in carrying: 25they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with its covering and the covering of porpoise skin that is on top of it, and the screen for the doorway of the tent of meeting, 26and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the doorway of the gate of the court which is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service; and all that is to be done, they shall perform. 27“All the service of the sons of the Gershonites, in all their loads and in all their work, shall be performed at the command of Aaron and his sons; and you shall assign to them as a duty all their loads. 28“This is the service of the families of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their duties shall be under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

Duties of the Merarites

     29“As for the sons of Merari, you shall number them by their families, by their fathers’ households; 30from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, you shall number them, everyone who enters the service to do the work of the tent of meeting. 31“Now this is the duty of their loads, for all their service in the tent of meeting: the boards of the tabernacle and its bars and its pillars and its sockets, 32and the pillars around the court and their sockets and their pegs and their cords, with all their equipment and with all their service; and you shall assign each man by name the items he is to carry. 33“This is the service of the families of the sons of Merari, according to all their service in the tent of meeting, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

      34So Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathites by their families and by their fathers’ households, 35from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tent of meeting. 36Their numbered men by their families were 2,750. 37These are the numbered men of the Kohathite families, everyone who was serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD through Moses.

      38The numbered men of the sons of Gershon by their families and by their fathers’ households, 39from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tent of meeting. 40Their numbered men by their families, by their fathers’ households, were 2,630. 41These are the numbered men of the families of the sons of Gershon, everyone who was serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD.

      42The numbered men of the families of the sons of Merari by their families, by their fathers’ households, 43from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered the service for work in the tent of meeting. 44Their numbered men by their families were 3,200. 45These are the numbered men of the families of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of the LORD through Moses.

      46All the numbered men of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel numbered, by their families and by their fathers’ households, 47from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who could enter to do the work of service and the work of carrying in the tent of meeting. 48Their numbered men were 8,580. 49According to the commandment of the LORD through Moses, they were numbered, everyone by his serving or carrying; thus these were his numbered men, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

Take seriously God’s call for us to take care of those things that are holy and set apart. Keep in mind that above all else we, as followers of Christ, are called to be holy. We should take great care in how we live our lives and actively study and pray to understand and obey the instructions of God in all aspects of our lives.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Discipline / Correction, Forgive Others / Seek Forgiveness, Grace / Forgiveness, Grace / Patience, Guide, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Justice / Judgment, Merciful, Mercy, Rebuke Wrong Behavior, Repenting from Sin

Balancing Judgment and Mercy

The subject of law and judgment can be a difficult one. We look to Jesus’ example and see immediately a call for grace and forgiveness of the repentant, but we need also recognize that God also gives instructions to hold people accountable for their actions. Sometimes it feels harsh to us, but God is a just God.

The scripture in Leviticus 24 is in the context of responding to a man who cursed God. It is worth considering… if we curse God, He simply lets us bear the burden of our own sin, in accordance with our rejection of Him and His grace and mercy.  The penalty is death.

Leviticus 24:15-16

15“You shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If anyone curses his God, then he will bear his sin. 16‘Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

Scripture continues to record additional instruction provided at the time for other crimes along the lines of “an eye for an eye”. We can have a vigorous debate about what we think are the right punishments in balancing “an eye for an eye” with the example of grace and mercy shown by Jesus toward repentant sinners. It is particularly difficult as man is not very good at judging the heart of other men in the genuineness of their repentance, or lack thereof. But we can clearly see that God is showing us that accountability for our actions against others call for accountability and judgment. For many it is only through this accountability and judgment that they will be encouraged not to harm others. It also sets a clear standard and communicates it to the broader population for what is acceptable and will be tolerated… and what is not.

Leviticus 24:17-23

“An Eye for an Eye”

     17‘If a man takes the life of any human being, he shall surely be put to death. 18‘The one who takes the life of an animal shall make it good, life for life. 19‘If a man injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so it shall be done to him: 20fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; just as he has injured a man, so it shall be inflicted on him. 21‘Thus the one who kills an animal shall make it good, but the one who kills a man shall be put to death. 22‘There shall be one standard for you; it shall be for the stranger as well as the native, for I am the LORD your God.’” 23Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp and stoned him with stones. Thus the sons of Israel did, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

Let us neither dismiss accountability and judgment, nor grace and mercy. If we are to reflect the image of our Father we must harness both in proper balance. Pray for His help in your life personally and to influence our culture and government toward His ways.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Put On A New Self… With the Help of the Holy Spirit

Want a quick, objective check on your personal relationship with Jehovah? Read through Colossians 3 with me. Let the Spirit guide you toward the areas in your life where you fall short and encourage you in the areas where God is transforming your life.

First, if you are made new through Christ, keep seeking the things of God. Set your mind on the His ways rather than the world’s.

Colossians 3:1-17

Put On the New Self

     1Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

      5Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. 6For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, 7and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. 8But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. 9Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, 10and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him— 11a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.

      12So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; 13bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. 14Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

This scripture serves as a great summary of some key character traits we should demonstrate as new creations in Christ and a list of traits we should not be demonstrating anymore. Pray for the Spirit to help you in areas where you are struggling. Praise Him and thank Him where He is helping you. What a wonderful Lord we serve that He is mindful of us! He sends His helper to dwell with us to transform us. Let us live in the world but apart from the world so as to glorify the Father.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Immoral Behavior Is Offensive To God and It Is Wrong For Everyone

Jehovah could not make it much more clear… He wants us to follow His statutes and not those of the pagans who reject Him. We are not to blend in in this world. He takes sin very seriously. There is absolute right and wrong and many in this world are doing wrong. He does not promise us His blessing regardless of our behavior. He does lay out clear consequences and accountability for those who choose to sin, to live outside of His statutes and guidance. Jehovah has not changed His mind on what He approves of since Leviticus. He is unchanging in His character.

Leviticus 20

On Human Sacrifice and Immoralities

     1Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2“You shall also say to the sons of Israel:
‘Any man from the sons of Israel or from the aliens sojourning in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech, shall surely be put to death; the people of the land shall stone him with stones. 3‘I will also set My face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given some of his offspring to Molech, so as to defile My sanctuary and to profane My holy name. 4‘If the people of the land, however, should ever disregard that man when he gives any of his offspring to Molech, so as not to put him to death, 5then I Myself will set My face against that man and against his family, and I will cut off from among their people both him and all those who play the harlot after him, by playing the harlot after Molech.

      6‘As for the person who turns to mediums and to spiritists, to play the harlot after them, I will also set My face against that person and will cut him off from among his people. 7‘You shall consecrate yourselves therefore and be holy, for I am the LORD your God. 8‘You shall keep My statutes and practice them; I am the LORD who sanctifies you.

      9‘If there is anyone who curses his father or his mother, he shall surely be put to death; he has cursed his father or his mother, his bloodguiltiness is upon him.

      10‘If there is a man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, one who commits adultery with his friend’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. 11‘If there is a man who lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death, their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 12‘If there is a man who lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death; they have committed incest, their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 13‘If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 14‘If there is a man who marries a woman and her mother, it is immorality; both he and they shall be burned with fire, so that there will be no immorality in your midst. 15‘If there is a man who lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; you shall also kill the animal. 16‘If there is a woman who approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them.

      17‘If there is a man who takes his sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the sons of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he bears his guilt. 18‘If there is a man who lies with a menstruous woman and uncovers her nakedness, he has laid bare her flow, and she has exposed the flow of her blood; thus both of them shall be cut off from among their people. 19‘You shall also not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister or of your father’s sister, for such a one has made naked his blood relative; they will bear their guilt. 20‘If there is a man who lies with his uncle’s wife he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness; they will bear their sin. They will die childless. 21‘If there is a man who takes his brother’s wife, it is abhorrent; he has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They will be childless.

      22‘You are therefore to keep all My statutes and all My ordinances and do them, so that the land to which I am bringing you to live will not spew you out. 23‘Moreover, you shall not follow the customs of the nation which I will drive out before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I have abhorred them. 24‘Hence I have said to you, “You are to possess their land, and I Myself will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples. 25‘You are therefore to make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean; and you shall not make yourselves detestable by animal or by bird or by anything that creeps on the ground, which I have separated for you as unclean. 26‘Thus you are to be holy to Me, for I the LORD am holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.

      27‘Now a man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones, their bloodguiltiness is upon them.’”

There is quite a list of immorality and rebellion identified in this scripture. Our Father is trying to be very clear about these sins. They are unacceptable. No excuses. No rationalizing. He has not changed His mind about these things being wrong. Take care in reflecting on these. Just because it is no longer common that someone may be sacrificing their child to Molech does not mean this is an obsolete passage. People today sacrifice their unborn children through abortion essentially to the god of self. For their own selfish desires they kill their unborn children rather than care for the children and raise them, taking accountability for past mistakes and showing respect for life. Globally there are over 40 million abortions a year. By the numbers, it is a much greater horror than any singular event in history, even the Hollocaust which was gruesome and killed 6 million. God is not pleased with sacrificing children through abortion any more than He was in killing them before Molech.

I do not believe that we are still commanded to execute those specific punishments, in light of Christ’s death and resurrection for our sins. But we are called to rebuke wrong behavior and call evil what it is and good what it is. We should not call what is evil good and what is good evil, as so many do today in our society. We should have laws against most of these behaviors, though some should need no laws, because our laws should reflect our Christian values. There should be punishments for these crimes to help discourage others from embracing sin and harming themselves and others.  Some should be laws, some should be active engagement from the Christian society to rebuke offenders (in love) so that they should repent. We should not cheerfully embrace offenders of these laws as if what they do is acceptable before God.

We can also bring forth the good news of forgiveness that is offered through Christ to those in sin. Jesus Christ died for our sins. We need to admit we are sinners who can not save themselves and accept His offer of forgiveness through grace by faith. Turn from our sinful behavior. Ask forgiveness from the Father. Turn toward the Father’s ways and ask for His help through the Spirit.

Take time to read the list thoroughly. Some of the sin covered here are rejected widely by society for now, but others have already been deemed acceptable and “good” by the world. Given a chance, the world will continue to redefine all of these sinful behaviors to caste them as “good” and caste those who rightly denounce them as “intolerant” and “cruel”.  We must repent personally, pray for God’s help for our nation and local government and the people, and stand against what is evil boldly by confronting it in our communities, churches, and influencing our legal system by actively engaging as a voters or in public office as followers of Christ.  We should never separate church and state. That is just an excuse to open the door for evil to prosper and it was never the intent of our founding fathers of the USA and is certainly not Jehovah’s desire. The founding fathers embraced Christian values and principles and teaching and integrated it into all aspects of the government they created (but that is a topic for another day).

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Atonement: Getting Right With God

All of us should set aside time to consider atonement for our sins. Leviticus 16 describes animal sacrifice and ceremonial laws which were relevant to God’s people prior to the death of Christ. There is much focus on atonement, even ending with instructions to take a day each year to do no work just to reflect on atonement.

We all sin, even believers. The more we are sanctified by the Holy Spirit, the less we sin perhaps but none the less any sin is punishable by death. That is inherently a reminder built into the animal sacrifices. The penalty for sin is death. Prior to Christ’s death on the cross, animals were substituted for us and ceremonially paid the price for our sin for us to get atonement. Notice there is much detail in regards to approaching God. It is not just slaughtering an animal. There is a process to be followed in coming into God’s presence. We are to be cleansed and purified as we come into His presence.

Now, Jesus Christ has paid the price for our sin with His blood, shed on the cross. Through His sacrifice, our debt for sin is paid. We need not sacrifice animals. His sacrifice was sufficient. However, we do well to set aside time to reflect on atonement, which is simply the reparation for a wrong… the price to be paid for our sin. We should thankfully accept the gift God has offered us in Christ Jesus. Turn from our sins… our wrong attitudes and actions. Let us seek after God to do things His way… asking forgiveness for our wrong doing and wrong thinking.

Leviticus 16

Law of Atonement

      1Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they had approached the presence of the LORD and died. 2The LORD said to Moses:
“Tell your brother Aaron that he shall not enter at any time into the holy place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, or he will die; for I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. 3“Aaron shall enter the holy place with this: with a bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4“He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments). Then he shall bathe his body in water and put them on. 5“He shall take from the congregation of the sons of Israel two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering. 6“Then Aaron shall offer the bull for the sin offering which is for himself, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household. 7“He shall take the two goats and present them before the LORD at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 8“Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, one lot for the LORD and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9“Then Aaron shall offer the goat on which the lot for the LORD fell, and make it a sin offering. 10“But the goat on which the lot for the scapegoat fell shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make atonement upon it, to send it into the wilderness as the scapegoat.

      11“Then Aaron shall offer the bull of the sin offering which is for himself and make atonement for himself and for his household, and he shall slaughter the bull of the sin offering which is for himself. 12“He shall take a firepan full of coals of fire from upon the altar before the LORD and two handfuls of finely ground sweet incense, and bring it inside the veil. 13“He shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the ark of the testimony, otherwise he will die. 14“Moreover, he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; also in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

      15“Then he shall slaughter the goat of the sin offering which is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. 16“He shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the impurities of the sons of Israel and because of their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and thus he shall do for the tent of meeting which abides with them in the midst of their impurities. 17“When he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, no one shall be in the tent of meeting until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household and for all the assembly of Israel. 18“Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and of the blood of the goat and put it on the horns of the altar on all sides. 19“With his finger he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it seven times and cleanse it, and from the impurities of the sons of Israel consecrate it.

      20“When he finishes atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall offer the live goat. 21“Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and he shall lay them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands in readiness. 22“The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a solitary land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.

      23“Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there. 24“He shall bathe his body with water in a holy place and put on his clothes, and come forth and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people and make atonement for himself and for the people. 25“Then he shall offer up in smoke the fat of the sin offering on the altar. 26“The one who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body with water; then afterward he shall come into the camp. 27“But the bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be taken outside the camp, and they shall burn their hides, their flesh, and their refuse in the fire. 28“Then the one who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body with water, then afterward he shall come into the camp.

An Annual Atonement

     29“This shall be a permanent statute for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall humble your souls and not do any work, whether the native, or the alien who sojourns among you; 30for it is on this day that atonement shall be made for you to cleanse you; you will be clean from all your sins before the LORD. 31“It is to be a sabbath of solemn rest for you, that you may humble your souls; it is a permanent statute. 32“So the priest who is anointed and ordained to serve as priest in his father’s place shall make atonement: he shall thus put on the linen garments, the holy garments, 33and make atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tent of meeting and for the altar. He shall also make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34“Now you shall have this as a permanent statute, to make atonement for the sons of Israel for all their sins once every year.” And just as the LORD had commanded Moses, so he did.

My family and I have started setting aside a day of Sabbath rest once a year consistent with God’s instructions at the close of this chapter in scripture. It serves well as a reminder to be humble and remember our sin and be thankful as we accept God’s gift of forgiveness through Christ. So, too, it reminds us that we continue to sin and should come before God humbly and thankfully, asking for His help to more fully commit our lives to Him and His ways… letting go of our own sinful and selfish desires. I encourage you to do the same.

If you are interested to participate in the day of Atonement, it usually comes in late Sep or early Oct. Because man changed the calendar we mostly find it confusing to follow these Biblically commanded days. There are many Jewish websites which try to maintain the Jewish calendar in the same way as Moses and the Israelites did in the past. You can search for day of atonement and probably find some websites to help you. Else you can search “Jewish holidays”. Do not be discouraged, just because the world labels them this way… and you are Christian. The facts are that God did not change the calendar, man did. They are not Jewish holidays… they are Jehovah’s holy days. The exact day is less important than the act of setting aside time to spend with our Father reflecting and praying regarding atonement for our sin and continuing our journey to repent from sin and become more like Jesus.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

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Walk in the Light Rather Than the Darkness

When we walk in light we see things as they really are. Light also represents truth and goodness, even God Himself, whereas darkness represents evil and sin.  Let us not fool ourselves by convincing ourselves we are free of sin on our own achievement. Only through Christ can we be deemed righteous as we are cleansed by His blood shed for us.  We can not walk in sin and darkness and yet claim fellowship with Him.

John 3:16

19“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20“For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21“But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

1 John 1:5-10

God Is Light

     5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

Let us see clearly. We have a sin problem… yes all of us. We can not overcome it on our own. We can not live in close fellowship with the Father while living in disobedience and rebellion… in sin. We must turn from our sinful ways, ask forgiveness, and accept Jesus as Lord knowing that He died for our sins and rose again. If we claim that we are in fellowship with the Father, and yet our actions and attitudes reflect sin and disobedience from His word… the truth is not in us.

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Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? Are you living today filled with the peace and joy of truly knowing and following Jesus Christ? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.