Chapter 4: God says over and over again that even if you break God's commands unintentionally, it is still a sin... that blows the excuse, "I didn't know" (Romans 1:18-20).... but it is interesting to note that God does not require payment for the sin until the person realizes what they did (see verse 14 and others)... why?... well, I would guess because it goes back to the idea that it is our hearts that God is after, not the act of repentence in and of itself... the act holds no power, because without the heart in it we will never remove the barrier that sin has put between us and God... the act can't do that, only a repentent heart... the act is just an outward symbol or sign of what God wants to see in our hearts.... that is why the aroma is pleasing to God because it is the smell (remember the incense comments of Exodus 30?) of repentence and the smell of God's beloved children returning to Him. I did have a question about why the rest of the animal had to be taken outside of the camp, and the Study Notes provide the answer by referring us to Leviticus 16:26-28, and Hebrews 13:11-13 (where Jesus is Crucified outside of Jerusalem)... I am still working through this, and would love to hear your comments and thoughts about the whys of this practice. verse 22... I like how it address the sin offering of leaders separately, because we can sometimes put our leaders, especially those we see as spiritual leaders, on pedestals... this is dangerous for them and for us... it is further and harder for them to fall (which can always cause more damage)... and we can become disillusioned with God by thinking they are somehow closer to God and so wrongly assume their actions reflect on God's character... it is important for us to remember Romans 3:23: for ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God... that is not some, it is ALL (see also 1 John 1:8-10)... we need to pray for our leaders that they will not fall, but we also need to remember that 'all' is 'all', and be willing to pray all the more and provide grace in full when they do fall, as they will since we ALL do... we also must remember that even those seemingly closest to God are still human, and not judge God based on the actions of mere humans...no matter how 'righteous' the human appears, they are still sinful and will never be God, who is perfect and without sin (1 Peter 1:18-20, Hebrews 4:14-15)
Chapter 5: Continues on with the same theme as Chapter 4, but I like how it starts in verse 1... "if any person sins because he did not speak up"... how often do we forget about the sin of omission? how often am I guilty of it? Once last chapter I asked how responsible we were to share God's good news with others... if we fail to do this, are we guilty of the the sin of omission? In my heart, I know, at least, for me, the answer is 'yes'.... I think of Paul's prayer requests in Ephesians 6:19, and Colossians 4:3-4, where He asks that people uphold him to speak God's word fearlessly and clearly... and then he says, "as I should"... I make this same request, because even though I know I should do this, I struggle many times with having the courage to speak, or the clarity of the right words to say... may we all pray for each other in this area. verse 5... "he must confess"... reminds me of the New Testament where God, time and time agains reminds us that we must confess our sins (see 1 John 1:9, and many others), and how, when we do, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins... but, we do have a choice, at least for now... we do not have to confess or accept Jesus as our Lord... but, there will come a day, when that will change and every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11)... the choice is ours, which side do we choose to be on when the line is drawn at the Day of Judgement?...1 Timothy 2:19, reiterates that this confession is all about our hearts, for it does no good to confess and give a sacrifice if we do not turn from the wickedness... it would be like taking and oath (in verse 4)... if we don't mean it, we continue to sin. verse 7-13... I like how God is compassionate about the offerings... His goal is not to "break" a person... God knows we will sin, and does not want it to bankrupt us or whatever... He makes it affordable for everyone to offer a sacrifice... why? because, again, it is all about the heart, not the act or the cost of the gift!... so, that makes me think about tithing... and also reminds me of the story of the poor widow and her offering (Mark 12:41-44)... it does not matter the amount we offer to God, it matters our heart behind it... when our heart is focused on God, then anything we give will seem too small compared to the gift of salvation God gave to us. verse 16... when I think of restitution I have always thought of paying back what was owed, but I like this idea of giving more than what was owed, because it goes along with treating others better than yourself in order to glorify God(Mark 12:33, Philippians 2:3-11)
Chapter 6: verse 8-13... I like how God said that the fire on the alter must burn continually, because it reminds me that God is always willing to reconcile with us, and is always there for us.... so, if we feel far from God, it is not because of God, it is because of us not turning back to God, for He is always there, with arms open wide, waiting for us to return to Him (see Luke 15:11-32) I wonder what God has against yeast in the offerings? (see verse 17 and others)
Chapter 7: Cool how God takes care of those who do His work (see verse 32 and others)... God does the same for us now, too... we have countless stories of how God has always faithfully provided for our needs, and even sometimes our wants, when we have been obedient to Him. Much Love, sandJ
I did wonder one legistics thing... with over a million or two people, and many sinning frequently, if they are anything like me, how did Aaron and the other priests have room for all the sacrifices on the alter, or find the time to get them taken care of efficiently? Just wondered. :)
The IDEA: Romans 1:12-That we may be mutually strengthened, encouraged, and comforted by each others faith. Have you ever read the whole Bible before? We have never done it. We want to share God’s Word, but how can we if we do not know it.
The PLAN: Ecclesiastes 4:12-One person is easily overcome, but two can stand together and conquer. Three is even better, though, as a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. With each others help we can succeed-So, let us team up and read the Bible in a year.
The DATE: We will start Dec 26, 2009 - Dec 26, 2010.
The FYI: We will read 3-4 chapters each day, starting in Genesis, and post thoughts daily. If you do not have a Bible, you can access many translations at www.biblegateway.com. You can also download an audio for each chapter at: http://www.audiotreasure.com/webindex.htm
Read it and will comment tomorrow.
ReplyDeletesandJ
Chapter 4: God says over and over again that even if you break God's commands unintentionally, it is still a sin... that blows the excuse, "I didn't know" (Romans 1:18-20).... but it is interesting to note that God does not require payment for the sin until the person realizes what they did (see verse 14 and others)... why?... well, I would guess because it goes back to the idea that it is our hearts that God is after, not the act of repentence in and of itself... the act holds no power, because without the heart in it we will never remove the barrier that sin has put between us and God... the act can't do that, only a repentent heart... the act is just an outward symbol or sign of what God wants to see in our hearts.... that is why the aroma is pleasing to God because it is the smell (remember the incense comments of Exodus 30?) of repentence and the smell of God's beloved children returning to Him.
ReplyDeleteI did have a question about why the rest of the animal had to be taken outside of the camp, and the Study Notes provide the answer by referring us to Leviticus 16:26-28, and Hebrews 13:11-13 (where Jesus is Crucified outside of Jerusalem)... I am still working through this, and would love to hear your comments and thoughts about the whys of this practice.
verse 22... I like how it address the sin offering of leaders separately, because we can sometimes put our leaders, especially those we see as spiritual leaders, on pedestals... this is dangerous for them and for us... it is further and harder for them to fall (which can always cause more damage)... and we can become disillusioned with God by thinking they are somehow closer to God and so wrongly assume their actions reflect on God's character... it is important for us to remember Romans 3:23: for ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God... that is not some, it is ALL (see also 1 John 1:8-10)... we need to pray for our leaders that they will not fall, but we also need to remember that 'all' is 'all', and be willing to pray all the more and provide grace in full when they do fall, as they will since we ALL do... we also must remember that even those seemingly closest to God are still human, and not judge God based on the actions of mere humans...no matter how 'righteous' the human appears, they are still sinful and will never be God, who is perfect and without sin (1 Peter 1:18-20, Hebrews 4:14-15)
Chapter 5: Continues on with the same theme as Chapter 4, but I like how it starts in verse 1... "if any person sins because he did not speak up"... how often do we forget about the sin of omission? how often am I guilty of it? Once last chapter I asked how responsible we were to share God's good news with others... if we fail to do this, are we guilty of the the sin of omission? In my heart, I know, at least, for me, the answer is 'yes'.... I think of Paul's prayer requests in Ephesians 6:19, and Colossians 4:3-4, where He asks that people uphold him to speak God's word fearlessly and clearly... and then he says, "as I should"... I make this same request, because even though I know I should do this, I struggle many times with having the courage to speak, or the clarity of the right words to say... may we all pray for each other in this area.
ReplyDeleteverse 5... "he must confess"... reminds me of the New Testament where God, time and time agains reminds us that we must confess our sins (see 1 John 1:9, and many others), and how, when we do, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins... but, we do have a choice, at least for now... we do not have to confess or accept Jesus as our Lord... but, there will come a day, when that will change and every knee WILL bow and every tongue WILL confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11)... the choice is ours, which side do we choose to be on when the line is drawn at the Day of Judgement?...1 Timothy 2:19, reiterates that this confession is all about our hearts, for it does no good to confess and give a sacrifice if we do not turn from the wickedness... it would be like taking and oath (in verse 4)... if we don't mean it, we continue to sin.
verse 7-13... I like how God is compassionate about the offerings... His goal is not to "break" a person... God knows we will sin, and does not want it to bankrupt us or whatever... He makes it affordable for everyone to offer a sacrifice... why? because, again, it is all about the heart, not the act or the cost of the gift!... so, that makes me think about tithing... and also reminds me of the story of the poor widow and her offering (Mark 12:41-44)... it does not matter the amount we offer to God, it matters our heart behind it... when our heart is focused on God, then anything we give will seem too small compared to the gift of salvation God gave to us.
verse 16... when I think of restitution I have always thought of paying back what was owed, but I like this idea of giving more than what was owed, because it goes along with treating others better than yourself in order to glorify God(Mark 12:33, Philippians 2:3-11)
Chapter 6: verse 8-13... I like how God said that the fire on the alter must burn continually, because it reminds me that God is always willing to reconcile with us, and is always there for us.... so, if we feel far from God, it is not because of God, it is because of us not turning back to God, for He is always there, with arms open wide, waiting for us to return to Him (see Luke 15:11-32)
ReplyDeleteI wonder what God has against yeast in the offerings? (see verse 17 and others)
Chapter 7: Cool how God takes care of those who do His work (see verse 32 and others)... God does the same for us now, too... we have countless stories of how God has always faithfully provided for our needs, and even sometimes our wants, when we have been obedient to Him.
ReplyDeleteMuch Love,
sandJ
I did wonder one legistics thing... with over a million or two people, and many sinning frequently, if they are anything like me, how did Aaron and the other priests have room for all the sacrifices on the alter, or find the time to get them taken care of efficiently? Just wondered. :)
ReplyDelete