Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

“CLEAN EATING”

Posted on January 6, 2025 by randscallawayffm

It’s the first of the year! We claim we will change our habits “beginning right now”! After our two month eating binge that begins Thanksgiving and take us through January 1, and a few days after until the leftovers are gone because it would be sinful you know to waste food; we declare a moratorium on unclean foods. What are the unclean foods? Anything that leaves a sugary, waxy film on your teeth from fudge, cookies, cakes, and pies or anything fried and dipped in gravy that leaves extra “luggage” on your hips and thighs. I’m no expert, but am I right? We all do it. Well, most of us. We declare to the world that we will begin new habits of eating clean and exercising because the world of media is commanding and compelling us to get our act together at last! But unhealthy habits take diligent work to replace them with healthier habits.

What is clean eating? Generally, clean eating is assumed to refer to foods that are as close to their natural state as possible, maybe organic, and most likely with minimal use of any chemical additives and preservatives. And yes, they are more expensive which I don’t understand if less is added and the process more pure. But what do I know?

Unclean eating for us is to leave the gravy made from meat renderings off your biscuits! It also means to stop frying everything in sight. Frying a vegetable coated in breading doesn’t make it healthy! It’s tasty for sure but not good for us!

And, You’re welcome.

God’s people are making their way through the desert wilderness, cooking over campfires, trying to keep their families fed on their journey with God to the land He has promised. They are traveling with a few hundred thousand of their closest friends and family along with all their herds of animals. God, their God, is now teaching them what to eat and what not to eat on their journey to keep His people healthy…and holy!

They are the FIRST people to be told about “clean eating” with what is “unclean eating! Well, there was that time with Adam and Eve…

Leviticus 11

Clean and Unclean Food

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ²“Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: ³You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud.

⁴“‘There are some that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. ⁵The hyrax, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. ⁶The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. ⁷And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. ⁸You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.

⁹“‘Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams you may eat any that have fins and scales. ¹⁰But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to regard as unclean. ¹¹And since you are to regard them as unclean, you must not eat their meat; you must regard their carcasses as unclean. ¹²Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be regarded as unclean by you.

¹³“‘These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not eat because they are unclean: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, ¹⁴the red kite, any kind of black kite, ¹⁵any kind of raven, ¹⁶the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, ¹⁷the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, ¹⁸the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, ¹⁹the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.

²⁰“‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be regarded as unclean by you. ²¹There are, however, some flying insects that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. ²²Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. ²³But all other flying insects that have four legs you are to regard as unclean.

²⁴“‘You will make yourselves unclean by these; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. ²⁵Whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.

²⁶“‘Every animal that does not have a divided hoof or that does not chew the cud is unclean for you; whoever touches the carcass of any of them will be unclean. ²⁷Of all the animals that walk on all fours, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. ²⁸Anyone who picks up their carcasses must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening. These animals are unclean for you.

²⁹“‘Of the animals that move along the ground, these are unclean for you: the weasel, the rat, any kind of great lizard, ³⁰the gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink, and the chameleon. ³¹Of all those that move along the ground, these are unclean for you. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean till evening. ³²When one of them dies and falls on something, that article, whatever its use, will be unclean, whether it is made of wood, cloth, hide or sackcloth. Put it in water; it will be unclean till evening, and then it will be clean. ³³If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything in it will be unclean, and you must break the pot. ³⁴Any food you are allowed to eat that has come into contact with water from any such pot is unclean, and any liquid that is drunk from such a pot is unclean. ³⁵Anything that one of their carcasses falls on becomes unclean; an oven or cooking pot must be broken up. They are unclean, and you are to regard them as unclean. ³⁶A spring, however, or a cistern for collecting water remains clean, but anyone who touches one of these carcasses is unclean. ³⁷If a carcass falls on any seeds that are to be planted, they remain clean. ³⁸But if water has been put on the seed and a carcass falls on it, it is unclean for you.

³⁹“‘If an animal that you are allowed to eat dies, anyone who touches its carcass will be unclean till evening. ⁴⁰Anyone who eats some of its carcass must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening. Anyone who picks up the carcass must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.

⁴¹“‘Every creature that moves along the ground is to be regarded as unclean; it is not to be eaten. ⁴²You are not to eat any creature that moves along the ground, whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is unclean. ⁴³Do not defile yourselves by any of these creatures. Do not make yourselves unclean by means of them or be made unclean by them. ⁴⁴I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground. ⁴⁵I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.

⁴⁶“‘These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves about in the water and every creature that moves along the ground. ⁴⁷You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.’”

Footnotes: The precise identification of some of the birds, insects and animals in this chapter is uncertain.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Do not eat roadkill! Thank you, God, for this clean eating habit!! A member of one of the churches Randy pastored notoriously stopped to pick up road kill, dress it out, and freeze it. He would “gift” us with his prizes occasionally. All I could think about was this passage of scripture which I longed to quote to him!

God wants His best for His people. God’s goal is to keep is people alive and well on their journey. Not all animals are to be eaten because there is something in them that could make His people ill. God knows His creation and knows created being contributes. As parents, our goal on any road trip with our kids is to get to our destination without anyone getting sick, right? So, we guard what they eat.

Consider this—God who created all has a purpose for all. If God’s people ate what was “unclean” as indicated by God; that unclean animal can no longer serve it’s purpose. For example: Bats eat mosquitoes. Snakes eat rats that carry germs. Camels are their mode of travel—don’t eat your luggage racks!

God knows what is best for us. We must deal with the unhealthy consequences when we do not obey His direction and guidance. That is not to say that illness will not come into our lives as our bodies do wear out eventually; but we do what we know to be right and good when we seek God’s will for our lives. Following God is more than what we eat, it’s who we follow each day.

Our response to God is to seek Him first concerning all of life because He gave us eternal life through the sacrifice of Jesus’ life.

Paul writes in Romans 12:1-2; “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

God seeks those who hearts are committed to Him. “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” This was written by Samuel to God’s leader who was foolishly going his own way with dire results for God’s people.

What we learn from Samuel is this: God wants to help us to be more like Him who created us “in His own image.” He will give us the strength we need along with the divine power of His Holy Spirit within us to obtain more healthy lives spiritually, mentally, emotionally, and physically! Bonus: God’s desire is that no one perish but have everlasting life—that’s why He sent a part of Himself, Jesus, to redeem us and set us free from the sins that bind us to the Enemy and keeps us from God’s best for us. God will give us His strength and power to overcome all obstacles in this life.

Summing it up—Whether a creature was “clean” or “unclean” had nothing to do with the quality of the beast; it all depended on what God said about the animal. When He gave these laws, no doubt the Lord had the health of His people in mind (Exodus 15:26; Deuteronomy 7:15), but the main purpose of the dietary code was to remind the Israelites that they belonged to God and were obligated to keep themselves separated from everything that would defile them. “You shall be holy; for I am holy.”

The spiritual principle of separation from defilement still applies to us today. The fact that we know God must make a difference in every aspect of our lives. “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body”, 1 Corinthians 6:20. “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” 1 Corinthians 10:31.

Lord,

I believe what you say. I know without a doubt that you want your best for us. Help us, by the guidance of your Holy Spirit, to discern what will glorify You in all we think, say, and do! Keep our hearts cleansed of all that does not belong. Renew our minds. Refresh and reset our souls. Restore the joy and peace of your work in us. To you be the glory!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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REBELLION AGAINST THE HOLY

Posted on January 5, 2025 by randscallawayffm

“Boys who play with fire wet their pants at night!” These were the surprising words that came from my Grandpa to my older male cousin who was caught messing around with the fire we had started in the burn barrel. The burn barrel was the way to rid the house of all the trash consumable by fire on Grandpa and Grandma’s farm. It was our “assignment” that morning to take the trash to the barrel and burn it. We gladly obeyed.

Fire is mesmerizing, especially to city kids who do not get to do this at home because trash is picked up by trucks! So, the temptation to see what fire can do is attractive to the curious. But fire is very dangerous when the “rules” are not adhered to and the fire leaves the barrel to consume what you did not intend…like grassland on the farm!

People who play with fire generally get burned, too.

I am reminded of this memory as I read how the sons of Aaron decided to “play with fire” that was designated to be Holy while going about their assigned work from Holy God. Their rebellion against the Holy did not go well for them. I can only imagine the shock and grief of Aaron and his family.

Leviticus 10

The Death of Nadab and Abihu

10 Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu took their censers, put fire in them and added incense; and they offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, contrary to his command. ²So fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. ³Moses then said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke of when he said:

“‘Among those who approach me
I will be proved holy;
in the sight of all the people
I will be honored.’”

Aaron remained silent.

⁴Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan, sons of Aaron’s uncle Uzziel, and said to them, “Come here; carry your cousins outside the camp, away from the front of the sanctuary.” ⁵So they came and carried them, still in their tunics, outside the camp, as Moses ordered.

⁶Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not let your hair become unkempt and do not tear your clothes, or you will die and the Lord will be angry with the whole community. But your relatives, all the Israelites, may mourn for those the Lord has destroyed by fire. ⁷Do not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting or you will die, because the Lord’s anointing oil is on you.” So they did as Moses said.

⁸Then the Lord said to Aaron, ⁹“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, ¹⁰so that you can distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, ¹¹and so you can teach the Israelites all the decrees the Lord has given them through Moses.”

¹²Moses said to Aaron and his remaining sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, “Take the grain offering left over from the food offerings prepared without yeast and presented to the Lord and eat it beside the altar, for it is most holy. ¹³Eat it in the sanctuary area, because it is your share and your sons’ share of the food offerings presented to the Lord; for so I have been commanded. ¹⁴But you and your sons and your daughters may eat the breast that was waved and the thigh that was presented. Eat them in a ceremonially clean place; they have been given to you and your children as your share of the Israelites’ fellowship offerings. ¹⁵The thigh that was presented and the breast that was waved must be brought with the fat portions of the food offerings, to be waved before the Lord as a wave offering. This will be the perpetual share for you and your children, as the Lord has commanded.”

¹⁶When Moses inquired about the goat of the sin offering and found that it had been burned up, he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s remaining sons, and asked, ¹⁷“Why didn’t you eat the sin offering in the sanctuary area? It is most holy; it was given to you to take away the guilt of the community by making atonement for them before the Lord. ¹⁸Since its blood was not taken into the Holy Place, you should have eaten the goat in the sanctuary area, as I commanded.”

¹⁹Aaron replied to Moses, “Today they sacrificed their sin offering and their burnt offering before the Lord, but such things as this have happened to me. Would the Lord have been pleased if I had eaten the sin offering today?” ²⁰When Moses heard this, he was satisfied.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

We learn that disobedience to God and dishonor of all that God has made Holy is a matter of life and death. Playing with fire, meant to be holy and blessed by God, is a dangerous, fool hardy life. Playing around the Enemy’s fire is extremely dangerous! We are so easily distracted and deceived by the Enemy who seeks to destroy us with his fire of rebellion against God. In fact, his entire goal is rebellion against Almighty, Holy God and death for us!

God’s Holy Fire is meant to purify us like gold. Fire polishes and removes impurities in silver until the reflection of the Silversmith is seen in His work of art. God’s fire within us gives us His power, igniting our hearts to burn with a desire love and serve Him while pleasing Him in all we think, say, and do! His fire removes all that is not God and sears into our being all that is God.

The Enemy’s fire is meant to destroy us forever. When we use the enemy’s fire to relate to people, relationships are seared and burned. When we use the enemies fire to guide our tongues, hot tempers flame up the coals of hate. Our problems escalate. Our lives are robbed of the peace of Christ and the joy our salvation turns to sadness until evil’s fire is extinguished and consumed by the fire of God once more.

Sometimes only the ashes of what once was remains. Not to worry! Our God is the God of miracles! God can bring dry bones alive and turn ashes of defeat into victory! His Son, Jesus, provided the Way! This is who God is and what He does! God was, is and is to come. His faithfulness lasts a lifetime, His compassions never fail, and His love never ends.

There is no one like our God! Do what God says!

Lord,

We have learned a valuable lesson of who you are and how you work in our lives because of your deep love for us. Rebellion against all that is Holy is foolish. Help us today to live a higher standard of behaving that reflects your holiness. Not that we have attained perfection; we know we are perfectly forgiven. Only you can make us holy before you by your love, mercy, and grace. Thank you, Lord. I just wanted you to know I know what is required of me. Help me to be and then do all you created me to be and do for your glory.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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“ON THE EIGHTH DAY” THE REAL WORK BEGINS!

Posted on January 4, 2025 by randscallawayffm

Over twenty years ago, I was ordained by our denominational leaders as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Honestly, I wasn’t particularly seeking ordination but because I had fulfilled all the educational and spiritual requirements according to leaders, and was already doing what the Lord called me to for our churches, I accepted their invitation to be ordained at our local church. It was a busy time for me in national ministry but a day was set aside for the ceremony of ordination. Our two daughters had planned a reception afterward with the ladies of our local church where my husband was pastor. The date for this event landed on my birthday which added to this special memory. Yes, there was cake!

The service was particularly special because the college students I was mentoring for leadership at the time came to be a part of the service. My loving husband affirmed me in the service. A good friend in ministry, a nationally known speaker to youth and their leaders, came to give the sermon of challenge and encouragement for me and others in attendance.

When they laid their hands on me; I could feel the Presence of the Lord; His yoke bearing down on my shoulders as the sacred seriousness of my commitment to Him became known and celebrated that day. This was a holy moment that capped many other holy moments of coming to Jesus for the first time as a child, learning from my mentors what it means to follow Jesus, working as a Youth worker volunteer all my life, taking God’s ways into public classrooms, then answering God’s call to go, tell, and teach others the Good News of His redemption full time. The work God have given me to be and do was not to pastor a local church, although I certainly was a helpmate to my husband as pastor; but to help the congregations of local churches see their role in the Body of Christ, and with God’s guidance and help train them to be who God created them to be before doing anything. “Be the church” was the mantra of mentorship given to me.

But on the “eighth day” …the real work began. After a week of preparation for the event; we came together for Sunday afternoon’s ordination that publicly declared who I was in Christ. The next day, “the eighth day” so to speak, Monday morning after, I received a phone call from a pastor of a church in another state that would rock my world and challenge all I hold dear in Jesus.

I knew the church and the pastor vaguely. He presented a proposal to me that would take me from traveling often to churches and mission fields to settling down in one church to help them organize a strategy for real discipleship of the congregation from infant to senior adults. I was enticed with all that was presented; but said I must pray with my husband first. We did exactly that and sought the advice of our mentors. This move would mean reducing our income in half as Randy would leave his pastorate. I was promised the same salary as I had before, but like other “promises” that didn’t really happen. But God provided where He guides as always. We tapped in our teachers’ pensions to help us make it work. Our faith in God never wavered. But we had questions!

The move was challenging, the work expected of me was far beyond what any human could attain. The dysfunctional staff was challenging to work alongside. I learned quickly that “all was not as it seems” with evil lurking among leaders whose goal was to satisfy their pride while holding tightly to their power and position. This working situation was new to me. But God was with me and led me on through the high waters of turmoil. God stayed close to me through some great challenges and difficulties as we taught the “why” of ministry in our lessons, counseling and mentoring. Randy helped me as I had helped him in his pastorates. We made many friends who we still relate with today.

This is a part of my life story that I do not tell often but when this passage was read this morning, God brought to my mind the reason for being ceremoniously “ordained as set apart for ministry” in front of the congregation of His People. Being ordained means that God puts HIS HAND on us who said yes to Him in obedience because of our love for Him. We are consecrated by God to be His Hands and Feet as we extend holy hands on the shoulders of those in need of comfort, compassion, redemption, love, mercy, and grace as only God through Jesus can give. As shepherds, we are driven by The Shepherd who trained his followers to teach others what He had taught to them. As we join God in HIS WORK, we are commanded to teach His ways and demonstrate His love as we train others to do the same as Jesus taught His guys!

Moses is given specific, detailed instructions for the atonement of sins for all God’s People. Now, as God commanded, Moses’ trained brother, Aaron and his sons, will for the first time do exactly what God said through Moses. Observe how every detail was performed with diligence and holiness to God who is Holy.

Leviticus 9

The Priests Begin Their Ministry

On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel. ²He said to Aaron, “Take a bull calf for your sin offering and a ram for your burnt offering, both without defect, and present them before the Lord. ³Then say to the Israelites: ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, a calf and a lamb—both a year old and without defect—for a burnt offering, ⁴and an ox and a ram for a fellowship offering to sacrifice before the Lord, together with a grain offering mixed with olive oil. For today the Lord will appear to you.’”

⁵They took the things Moses commanded to the front of the tent of meeting, and the entire assembly came near and stood before the Lord. ⁶Then Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.”

⁷Moses said to Aaron, “Come to the altar and sacrifice your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and the people; sacrifice the offering that is for the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.”

⁸So Aaron came to the altar and slaughtered the calf as a sin offering for himself. ⁹His sons brought the blood to him, and he dipped his finger into the blood and put it on the horns of the altar; the rest of the blood he poured out at the base of the altar. ¹⁰On the altar he burned the fat, the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver from the sin offering, as the Lord commanded Moses; ¹¹the flesh and the hide he burned up outside the camp.

¹²Then he slaughtered the burnt offering. His sons handed him the blood, and he splashed it against the sides of the altar. ¹³They handed him the burnt offering piece by piece, including the head, and he burned them on the altar. ¹⁴He washed the internal organs and the legs and burned them on top of the burnt offering on the altar.

¹⁵Aaron then brought the offering that was for the people. He took the goat for the people’s sin offering and slaughtered it and offered it for a sin offering as he did with the first one.

¹⁶He brought the burnt offering and offered it in the prescribed way. ¹⁷He also brought the grain offering, took a handful of it and burned it on the altar in addition to the morning’s burnt offering.

¹⁸He slaughtered the ox and the ram as the fellowship offering for the people. His sons handed him the blood, and he splashed it against the sides of the altar. ¹⁹But the fat portions of the ox and the ram—the fat tail, the layer of fat, the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver— ²⁰these they laid on the breasts, and then Aaron burned the fat on the altar. ²¹Aaron waved the breasts and the right thigh before the Lord as a wave offering, as Moses commanded.

²²Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down.

²³Moses and Aaron then went into the tent of meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. ²⁴Fire 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 facedown.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO GOD?

On the eight day; after all the celebrations on Sunday, the real work of God in us begins. What God begins—He finishes! When Monday mornings dawn; be ready for God to take us with Him on life’s adventurous journey that will teach us and build our faith in Him far beyond what we ever dreamed or imagined!

God so loved His “created in His image people” through all generations. His chosen imperfect people will need a way to cover their sins and the sins of the ordained priests. So, God gave detailed, laborious instructions that must adhered to so that sins are atoned (or covered over). Moses is the Trainer of the priests who do exactly what God as commanded them to do. We applaud their efforts out in the wilderness desert as they journey with God!

Consider this: God’s ultimate plan of the sacrifice of His Son, sent to earth as a perfect human, born of a virgin, raised by a devote Jewish father who listened to God, was already in His mind; but it is not yet time. The prophets told of Jesus, the Messiah, the One who would save them, but God’s people will have to wait patiently for this event to come. But He did come—as promised!

Jesus came and moved into the neighborhood of humanity oppressed by the world and religion. Jesus demonstrated the love of God in every detail of His life. Jesus willingly and humbly laid down His life to take the place of the punishment our sin deserved. Jesus died to save us from our sins, removing our sins forever. Jesus is the One and Only way to God, our Father. By believing in God’s Son means believing that our repented sins are indeed forgiven forever. We must live as a humbly grateful, redeemed people!

No more animal sacrifices or rituals of religion are required or necessary to be redeemed from the bondage and guilt of sin because of Jesus! God’s bonus is a new life given to live that is forever!

Repenting of our sins to Jesus is mandatory for salvation; giving our lives to Him daily is the beginning of eternal life lived on God’s terms to build our faith. Jesus gave His life so we could have Life forever. And that’s not all! God not only provided the Way back to Him through Jesus, His Son but gave us the Gift of His Holy Spirit to live within us to guide us to Truth daily!

“All have sinned”, says Paul, the Apostle and mentor to young leaders. But all who repent to Jesus of our sins become an immediate member of His royal priesthood who are commanded by God, with the authority and power Jesus had, to tell others of the Way to God! We no longer must be related to the priestly line of Aaron to join God in His work of saving the world! All who believe and follow Jesus in truth are “set apart” from the world to go into the world to show Jesus’s love and tell the Way to His saving grace.

Listen to God. You’ve been on His mind since the beginning—Let that sink in…

Lord,

I offer my life to you again this morning as an offering—all of it, flaws, and all. Use my life so others may see Your glory at work and come to you to be saved. Only you, dear Lord, can reconcile us to God, the Father. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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APPOINTED, ANOINTED, CONSECRATED, AND ORDAINED

Posted on January 3, 2025 by randscallawayffm

These words have sacred meaning for the people whom God has called, to be set apart, made holy by God, for service to His People. God wanted His People to know, without doubt, whom He had chosen to be His mediators who will deal with their sins, including the sins of the mediators!

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” –Paul, Romans 3:23

We wonder how much trouble could God’s People get into on their journey through the wilderness to the land God has promised them; but as we read further, trouble and temptation follows all people all the days of our lives. The Enemy of God is constantly trying to undo all that God has created to be perfectly holy and perfectly pleasing—God’s glorious standard for living in God’s Presence. Sin must be dealt with and God has chosen Aaron and his sons and the succeeding generation of sons to be the priests who will be the mediators for the atonement for sin—until Jesus, our High Priest forever, comes to rid people of all sin once and for all.

Leviticus 8

The Ordination of Aaron and His Sons

The Lord said to Moses, ²“Bring Aaron and his sons, their garments, the anointing oil, the bull for the sin offering, the two rams and the basket containing bread made without yeast, ³and gather the entire assembly at the entrance to the tent of meeting.” ⁴Moses did as the Lord commanded him, and the assembly gathered at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

⁵Moses said to the assembly, “This is what the Lord has commanded to be done.” ⁶Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons forward and washed them with water. ⁷He put the tunic on Aaron, tied the sash around him, clothed him with the robe and put the ephod on him. He also fastened the ephod with a decorative waistband, which he tied around him. ⁸He placed the breastpiece on him and put the Urim and Thummim in the breastpiece. ⁹Then he placed the turban on Aaron’s head and set the gold plate, the sacred emblem, on the front of it, as the Lord commanded Moses.

¹⁰Then Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle and everything in it, and so consecrated them. ¹¹He sprinkled some of the oil on the altar seven times, anointing the altar and all its utensils and the basin with its stand, to consecrate them. ¹²He poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him to consecrate him. ¹³Then he brought Aaron’s sons forward, put tunics on them, tied sashes around them and fastened caps on them, as the Lord commanded Moses.

¹⁴He then presented the bull for the sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head. ¹⁵Moses slaughtered the bull and took some of the blood, and with his finger he put it on all the horns of the altar to purify the altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. So he consecrated it to make atonement for it. ¹⁶Moses also took all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, and both kidneys and their fat, and burned it on the altar. ¹⁷But the bull with its hide and its flesh and its intestines he burned up outside the camp, as the Lord commanded Moses.

¹⁸He then presented the ram for the burnt offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head. ¹⁹Then Moses slaughtered the ram and splashed the blood against the sides of the altar. ²⁰He cut the ram into pieces and burned the head, the pieces and the fat. ²¹He washed the internal organs and the legs with water and burned the whole ram on the altar. It was a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses.

²²He then presented the other ram, the ram for the ordination, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head. ²³Moses slaughtered the ram and took some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot. ²⁴Moses also brought Aaron’s sons forward and put some of the blood on the lobes of their right ears, on the thumbs of their right hands and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he splashed blood against the sides of the altar. ²⁵After that, he took the fat, the fat tail, all the fat around the internal organs, the long lobe of the liver, both kidneys and their fat and the right thigh. ²⁶And from the basket of bread made without yeast, which was before the Lord, he took one thick loaf, one thick loaf with olive oil mixed in, and one thin loaf, and he put these on the fat portions and on the right thigh. ²⁷He put all these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, and they waved them before the Lord as a wave offering. ²⁸Then Moses took them from their hands and burned them on the altar on top of the burnt offering as an ordination offering, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord. ²⁹Moses also took the breast, which was his share of the ordination ram, and waved it before the Lord as a wave offering, as the Lord commanded Moses.

³⁰Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from the altar and sprinkled them on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. So he consecrated Aaron and his garments and his sons and their garments.

³¹Moses then said to Aaron and his sons, “Cook the meat at the entrance to the tent of meeting and eat it there with the bread from the basket of ordination offerings, as I was commanded: ‘Aaron and his sons are to eat it.’ ³²Then burn up the rest of the meat and the bread. ³³Do not leave the entrance to the tent of meeting for seven days, until the days of your ordination are completed, for your ordination will last seven days. ³⁴What has been done today was commanded by the Lord to make atonement for you. ³⁵You must stay at the entrance to the tent of meeting day and night for seven days and do what the Lord requires, so you will not die; for that is what I have been commanded.”

³⁶So Aaron and his sons did everything the Lord commanded through Moses.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

God is firm and commanding to his appointed, anointed, consecrated, and ordained priests when He tells them through Moses exactly what is required of them. God also tells them what they do is a matter of life or death!

When we respond to God by believing in faith, repenting of sins in Jesus Name, and then choose to follow Jesus, His Son; God gives us entrance into God’s royal priesthood as the redeemed people of God. God has appointed, anointed, consecrated, and ordained us as the redeemed with this requirement; a commandment given to all who believe and follow our High Priest, Jesus:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”—Jesus, Matthew 28:19-20

We no longer go through human priests for atonement. Our faith in Jesus who was the ultimate sacrifice for all our sins removes all sins. Jesus was, is and always will be the only Way to God. Jesus is the One and Only High Priest who is our Advocate and is also a part of God. God, the Father, Jesus, His Son, and Holy Spirit—with us always!

Trained by Jesus, Peter, “the rock upon who Jesus built his church” of believers, writes;

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9-10

Our Assignment as Proclaimers—

Paul, who was saved by grace, turning from cruel persecutors of believers to a radical believer in Jesus was appointed, anointed, consecrated, and ordained to also go and tell, teaching, making disciples in people groups called church, with the encouragement and wisdom of God in him to help the churches established in Jesus Name.

Paul explains our new work as the royal priesthood of God;

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

We are committed to share the message of reconciliation between God and mankind! We speak for Jesus, in His Name, “as though God” were speaking through us of all Jesus did to make the Way clear to Him by removing the sins that block us from God. Wow!

Paul, by the power and words of God’s Holy Spirit reminds us that ALL have sinned. We are not perfect; only perfectly forgiven. No one is “good.” Only God is good—Jesus words. So, Paul explains further how we must think with what we must do to be more like Jesus with grateful hearts for what Jesus has done for us;

^“But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law.

After all, is God the God of the Jews only? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Of course he is. There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. ³¹Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.” Romans 3:21-31, NLT

Bottomline: All have sinned. Jesus took our punishment for sin. It is still a matter of life or death.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Lord,

I choose life! I am committed to continue to point the Way to Truth who gives Life! I’m yours, Lord. And I’m listening.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bible, Exodus, God, Jesus, Sacrifice | Leave a comment

HEART, MIND, BODY, AND SOUL

Posted on January 2, 2025 by randscallawayffm

God provides and cares for us in so many thoughtful, detailed ways that sometimes we miss it. If we don’t look for God at work; we are blind to his miracles provided each day we live on this earth! God is always at work on our behalf with a power that brought Jesus, His Son back to life after being slain by the Enemy.

God knows what we need when we need it before we know! So many times I look back on what just happened and realize I was protected from harm from what could have been disastrous. Our family would be provided with a bonus that would be needed to cover an expense that we didn’t know was coming. God guided us by the power of His Holy Spirit in us to discern impending trouble if we followed a certain route. God provided rest when we needed it most, sometimes forcing the rest!

God led us with wisdom, when we asked for it, to avoid the temptations the Enemy uses to distract and deceive us with attempts to destroy our relationship with God. When something doesn’t seem right to pursue, seek God’s will for clarification and God will always provide! But even with all these experiences, we humans will still miss God at work in the details. God is in all the details! Pause to give Him praise even now!

God created all so He knows how His creation works. God created leaves with veins to carry life from root to stem. God created all plant life with the ability to give life to us! God created animals, fish in the seas and birds of the air to eat; providing protein for our bodies if prepared properly. Some animals were created simply for our enjoyment. God created strong trees to give us shade as well as to be used to build shelters for our protection. God created the ground we walk on with a rock solid foundation. God created oceans that renew themselves. God also created rivers, streams and natural lakes to provide water for our thirst. God created our bodies meticulously detailed, in such beautifully intricate ways that those in the medical field are still trying to learn when one part of our body fails us.

So, why share these thoughts as we work our way through God’s regulations in Leviticus to His People? Look at all the details! Could God’s regulations for handling raw meat be not only a way to ceremoniously rid the people of their guilt of sin but to also be protected from eating meat not prepared properly? There are no ways to store meat as they journey through the wilderness.

And God took care of His servants! God’s appointed and anointed priests who keep the fires going, grill the sacrificed meat and burn the fat as God commanded have no time for anything else! So, God provided a share for them to eat and feed their famliy from all the offerings.

Where God guides. God provides. Always. God is always available to teach us what is good for us and what is not. God knows how His Creation works best.

Leviticus 7

The Guilt Offering

“‘These are the regulations for the guilt offering, which is most holy: ²The guilt offering is to be slaughtered in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered, and its blood is to be splashed against the sides of the altar. ³All its fat shall be offered: the fat tail and the fat that covers the internal organs, ⁴both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which is to be removed with the kidneys. ⁵The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering presented to the Lord. It is a guilt offering. ⁶Any male in a priest’s family may eat it, but it must be eaten in the sanctuary area; it is most holy.

⁷“‘The same law applies to both the sin offering and the guilt offering: They belong to the priest who makes atonement with them. ⁸The priest who offers a burnt offering for anyone may keep its hide for himself. ⁹Every grain offering baked in an oven or cooked in a pan or on a griddle belongs to the priest who offers it, ¹⁰and every grain offering, whether mixed with olive oil or dry, belongs equally to all the sons of Aaron.

The Fellowship Offering

¹¹“‘These are the regulations for the fellowship offering anyone may present to the Lord:

¹²“‘If they offer it as an expression of thankfulness, then along with this thank offering they are to offer thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with oil, and thick loaves of the finest flour well-kneaded and with oil mixed in. ¹³Along with their fellowship offering of thanksgiving they are to present an offering with thick loaves of bread made with yeast. ¹⁴They are to bring one of each kind as an offering, a contribution to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the fellowship offering against the altar. ¹⁵The meat of their fellowship offering of thanksgiving must be eaten on the day it is offered; they must leave none of it till morning.

¹⁶“‘If, however, their offering is the result of a vow or is a freewill offering, the sacrifice shall be eaten on the day they offer it, but anything left over may be eaten on the next day. ¹⁷Any meat of the sacrifice left over till the third day must be burned up. ¹⁸If any meat of the fellowship offering is eaten on the third day, the one who offered it will not be accepted. It will not be reckoned to their credit, for it has become impure; the person who eats any of it will be held responsible.

¹⁹“‘Meat that touches anything ceremonially unclean must not be eaten; it must be burned up. As for other meat, anyone ceremonially clean may eat it. ²⁰But if anyone who is unclean eats any meat of the fellowship offering belonging to the Lord, they must be cut off from their people. ²¹Anyone who touches something unclean—whether human uncleanness or an unclean animal or any unclean creature that moves along the ground—and then eats any of the meat of the fellowship offering belonging to the Lord must be cut off from their people.’”

Eating Fat and Blood Forbidden

²²The Lord said to Moses, ²³“Say to the Israelites: ‘Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats. ²⁴The fat of an animal found dead or torn by wild animals may be used for any other purpose, but you must not eat it. ²⁵Anyone who eats the fat of an animal from which a food offering may be presented to the Lord must be cut off from their people. ²⁶And wherever you live, you must not eat the blood of any bird or animal. ²⁷Anyone who eats blood must be cut off from their people.’”

The Priests’ Share

²⁸The Lord said to Moses, ²⁹“Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who brings a fellowship offering to the Lord is to bring part of it as their sacrifice to the Lord. ³⁰With their own hands they are to present the food offering to the Lord; they are to bring the fat, together with the breast, and wave the breast before the Lord as a wave offering. ³¹The priest shall burn the fat on the altar, but the breast belongs to Aaron and his sons. ³²You are to give the right thigh of your fellowship offerings to the priest as a contribution. ³³The son of Aaron who offers the blood and the fat of the fellowship offering shall have the right thigh as his share. ³⁴From the fellowship offerings of the Israelites, I have taken the breast that is waved and the thigh that is presented and have given them to Aaron the priest and his sons as their perpetual share from the Israelites.’”

³⁵This is the portion of the food offerings presented to the Lord that were allotted to Aaron and his sons on the day they were presented to serve the Lord as priests. ³⁶On the day they were anointed, the Lord commanded that the Israelites give this to them as their perpetual share for the generations to come.

³⁷These, then, are the regulations for the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the guilt offering, the ordination offering and the fellowship offering, ³⁸which the Lord gave Moses at Mount Sinai in the Desert of Sinai on the day he commanded the Israelites to bring their offerings to the Lord.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Jesus was the sacrifice, once and for all, for the sins of the world. We no longer must bring animals to a priest to atone for our sins. Jesus provides all we need. He is our burnt offering, and we must yield ourselves wholly to Him. He is our grain offering, the seed crushed and put through the fire, that we might have the bread of life, and we must feed upon Him. He is our drink offering who poured Himself out in sacrifice and service, and we must pour ourselves out for Him and for others. He is our peace offering, making life a joyful feast instead of a painful famine. He is our sin offering and our trespass offering, for He bore our sins on His body (1 Peter 2:24) and paid the full price for our sins (1 Peter 1:18, 19). The nation of Israel had to offer six different sacrifices to have a right relationship with God, but Jesus Christ “offered one sacrifice for sins forever” (Hebrews 10:12) and took care of our sin problem completely.

God teaches healthy hygiene for good reasons! God clearly lays down the conditions for the feast following the peace offering, what the people ate, what the priests ate, and what must be done with the leftovers. The blood and the fat were given to God and were never to be used as common food which is why all it was to be burned in the fire and the ashes removed to a place designate outside the camp. This seems reasonable and common to us today as the healthiest way of making sure no uncooked meat or fat was left on the grill to spoil. This would bring disease into the camp! God provides good hygienic reasons for His regulations! Anybody who was ceremonially unclean was forbidden to come to the feast and was “cut off” from his people until they decided to obey God’s directions.

God provided for His People and for His priests who carried out God’s regulations for the good of the people and for the glory of God. That’s how God works on our behalf—our good and His glory!

Lord,

Thank you for all you have done over the years of my life and in the life of my family that I could see. Thank you for all the times I needed rescue, even when I didn’t realize it! Thank you for all you are doing now as you lead and guide us in a new season of life on earth. Thank you for what you will do. But most of all, thank you for saving my soul and making me whole. Thank you for opening my eyes to see you at work more clearly and more often. Thank you for providing opportunities to tell others of your salvation work within us. Thank you for loving and caring for us in ways that always amaze us! And when we don’t feel worth all Your care and attention; you remind us that we are Yours. This truth settles my soul with your peace. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

In Jesus Name, Amen

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bible, God, Holiness, Jesus, leviticus | Leave a comment

ATONEMENT AND RESTITUTION

Posted on January 1, 2025 by randscallawayffm

As a parent and public-school teacher of first grade; I formed a habit of explaining in simple, detailed terms the wrongful behaviors with the consequences of my young children at home as well as my first graders at school. Some of my peers told me I took too much time explaining. My response was; “But, how will they learn?”

We are prone to be bogged down by the repetitive, laborious, detailed instructions outlined in Leviticus from God to Moses to Aaron and the priests. But remember, God has lessons to teach His newly rescued people who lived in Egypt and were forced to live the culture of their captors.

God must teach His People who formally believed in many gods, to now believe in One God, the One who saved them and miraculously brought them out of Egypt in power and might. God’s Chosen People are now living in the wilderness, away from Egypt’s enslavement and culture. “You are My People and I am Your God.” God is teaching them what sin is with how sin must be dealt with so that sin can be avoided in the future.

Leviticus 6

The Lord said to Moses: ²“If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord by deceiving a neighbor about something entrusted to them or left in their care or about something stolen, or if they cheat their neighbor, ³or if they find lost property and lie about it, or if they swear falsely about any such sin that people may commit— ⁴when they sin in any of these ways and realize their guilt, they must return what they have stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to them, or the lost property they found, ⁵or whatever it was they swore falsely about. They must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day they present their guilt offering. ⁶And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the Lord, their guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. ⁷In this way the priest will make atonement for them before the Lord, and they will be forgiven for any of the things they did that made them guilty.”

The Burnt Offering

⁸The Lord said to Moses: ⁹“Give Aaron and his sons this command: ‘These are the regulations for the burnt offering: The burnt offering is to remain on the altar hearth throughout the night, till morning, and the fire must be kept burning on the altar. ¹⁰The priest shall then put on his linen clothes, with linen undergarments next to his body, and shall remove the ashes of the burnt offering that the fire has consumed on the altar and place them beside the altar. ¹¹Then he is to take off these clothes and put on others, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a place that is ceremonially clean. ¹²The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it. ¹³The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out.

The Grain Offering

¹⁴“‘These are the regulations for the grain offering: Aaron’s sons are to bring it before the Lord, in front of the altar. ¹⁵The priest is to take a handful of the finest flour and some olive oil, together with all the incense on the grain offering, and burn the memorial portion on the altar as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁶Aaron and his sons shall eat the rest of it, but it is to be eaten without yeast in the sanctuary area; they are to eat it in the courtyard of the tent of meeting. ¹⁷It must not be baked with yeast; I have given it as their share of the food offerings presented to me. Like the sin offering and the guilt offering, it is most holy. ¹⁸Any male descendant of Aaron may eat it. For all generations to come it is his perpetual share of the food offerings presented to the Lord. Whatever touches them will become holy.’”

¹⁹The Lord also said to Moses, ²⁰“This is the offering Aaron and his sons are to bring to the Lord on the day he is anointed: a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour as a regular grain offering, half of it in the morning and half in the evening. ²¹It must be prepared with oil on a griddle; bring it well-mixed and present the grain offering broken in pieces as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ²²The son who is to succeed him as anointed priest shall prepare it. It is the Lord’s perpetual share and is to be burned completely. ²³Every grain offering of a priest shall be burned completely; it must not be eaten.”

The Sin Offering

²⁴The Lord said to Moses, ²⁵“Say to Aaron and his sons: ‘These are the regulations for the sin offering: The sin offering is to be slaughtered before the Lord in the place the burnt offering is slaughtered; it is most holy. ²⁶The priest who offers it shall eat it; it is to be eaten in the sanctuary area, in the courtyard of the tent of meeting. ²⁷Whatever touches any of the flesh will become holy, and if any of the blood is spattered on a garment, you must wash it in the sanctuary area. ²⁸The clay pot the meat is cooked in must be broken; but if it is cooked in a bronze pot, the pot is to be scoured and rinsed with water. ²⁹Any male in a priest’s family may eat it; it is most holy. ³⁰But any sin offering whose blood is brought into the tent of meeting to make atonement in the Holy Place must not be eaten; it must be burned up.

WHAT WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO GOD?

The priests were the official communicators between God and man. God ordained priests as full-time spiritual leaders. When God calls and ordains spiritual leaders, they have a special responsibility to live obediently as they walk close to him. These detailed instructions are given not only for health reasons (“keep the fire burning, put the ashes outside the camp”) but specifically for spiritual reasons. God wants a relationship with His People that is pure and holy.

The designated priests must obey every detail for their good, the good of the people and for God’s glory. God will have it no other way. When we come into His Presence, we must yield to Him, seeking to become holy as He is holy. God, who sees our hearts, is the One and Only who makes us holy. We cannot do that for ourselves.

Only God makes all things holy. We can never overemphasize the holiness of the God we serve. God provided His best to make us holy. It was for holiness’ sake that Jesus lovingly laid down His life so that we could approach freely a God who cannot co-exist with sin. Sin must be dealt with by God’s Plan.

To be holy means to be set apart and to be perfect in every way free from blemish, spot or wrinkle in every sense. Truth be told, no one has and will ever achieve this holiness except Jesus Christ Himself. But the good news is that Jesus, God’s Son, exchanged our filthiness for His righteousness as He took the punishment for our sin as the ultimate once and for all sacrifice!

Throughout God’s Word, we learn how God makes us holy. Being made holy by God begins with a repentant, humbled, contrite heart. These are the traits God looks for in seekers of His holiness.

2 Chronicles 7:14. “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Psalm 51:10. “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”
Jeremiah 31:34. “And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord, ‘ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Malachi 3:3. “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the Lord.”
Romans 5:1. “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 15:15-16. “But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23. “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Hebrews 13:12. “So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.”

God’s work of holiness begins with our response of humbled repentance.

“Come and see what the Lord has done, the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:8-10

Lord,

Make me holy. Create in me a clean heart by removing all that does not belong. Renew my mind in ways that transform by behaviors. Refresh my soul by the filling of your Holy Spirit. Restore the joy of your salvation within me. May your peace rule my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

In Jesus Name, Amen

By Your spirit I will rise
From the ashes of defeat
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me
In Your name I come alive
To declare Your victory
The resurrected King, is resurrecting me…

(Resurrecting by Elevation Worship)

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bible, Exodus, Faith, God, Jesus | Leave a comment

GUILT RESOLUTION

Posted on December 31, 2024 by randscallawayffm

One of our pre-adult children was moping around the house one day. When asked what was wrong, she announced, “Now, I feel guilty for not feeling guilty!” Wait, what now?

She had gone through a difficult situation at work. Being young, on her first after school job; she blamed herself for the difficulty at work others were experiencing although there was nothing she did that caused the situation. It just happened. Her guilt was prompted by her compassion in watching others be guilty and held responsible for their actions. We needed to pause and talk about the situation.

She was only guilty of overthinking the circumstance, (which we all do at times), she decided that she was now guilty of not feeling guilty. Yes, this discussion took more time in conversation so she could understand what real guilt is, how it manifests itself within, explaining the difference in empathy and guilt, along with how to rid herself of guilt when warranted by forgiving herself like God forgives her—completely!

God is now teaching the Israelites how to deal with guilt that manifests itself within a person who does not realize why guilt seeps into their being. Unaware sins of not getting involved when someone needs help or wrongly accused, causes guilt and must be dealt with in God’s view. His people will learn that they will be held responsible for not speaking up.

Leviticus 5

“‘If anyone sins because they do not speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have seen or learned about, they will be held responsible.

²“‘If anyone becomes aware that they are guilty—if they unwittingly touch anything ceremonially unclean (whether the carcass of an unclean animal, wild or domestic, or of any unclean creature that moves along the ground) and they are unaware that they have become unclean, but then they come to realize their guilt; ³or if they touch human uncleanness (anything that would make them unclean) even though they are unaware of it, but then they learn of it and realize their guilt; ⁴or if anyone thoughtlessly takes an oath to do anything, whether good or evil (in any matter one might carelessly swear about) even though they are unaware of it, but then they learn of it and realize their guilt— ⁵when anyone becomes aware that they are guilty in any of these matters, they must confess in what way they have sinned. ⁶As a penalty for the sin they have committed, they must bring to the Lord a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for them for their sin.

⁷“‘Anyone who cannot afford a lamb is to bring two doves or two young pigeons to the Lord as a penalty for their sin—one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. ⁸They are to bring them to the priest, who shall first offer the one for the sin offering. He is to wring its head from its neck, not dividing it completely, ⁹and is to splash some of the blood of the sin offering against the side of the altar; the rest of the blood must be drained out at the base of the altar. It is a sin offering. ¹⁰The priest shall then offer the other as a burnt offering in the prescribed way and make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will be forgiven.

¹¹“‘If, however, they cannot afford two doves or two young pigeons, they are to bring as an offering for their sin a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour for a sin offering. They must not put olive oil or incense on it, because it is a sin offering. ¹²They are to bring it to the priest, who shall take a handful of it as a memorial portion and burn it on the altar on top of the food offerings presented to the Lord. It is a sin offering. ¹³In this way the priest will make atonement for them for any of these sins they have committed, and they will be forgiven. The rest of the offering will belong to the priest, as in the case of the grain offering.’”

The Guilt Offering

¹⁴The Lord said to Moses: ¹⁵“When anyone is unfaithful to the Lord by sinning unintentionally in regard to any of the Lord’s holy things, they are to bring to the Lord as a penalty a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value in silver, according to the sanctuary shekel. It is a guilt offering. ¹⁶They must make restitution for what they have failed to do in regard to the holy things, pay an additional penalty of a fifth of its value and give it all to the priest. The priest will make atonement for them with the ram as a guilt offering, and they will be forgiven.

¹⁷“If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though they do not know it, they are guilty and will be held responsible. ¹⁸They are to bring to the priest as a guilt offering a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the wrong they have committed unintentionally, and they will be forgiven. ¹⁹It is a guilt offering; they have been guilty of wrongdoing against the Lord.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

“The trespass (or guilt) offering illustrates the solemn fact that it is a very costly thing for people to commit sin and for God to cleanse sin. Our sins hurt God and hurt others. True repentance will always bring with it a desire for restitution. We will want to make things right with God and with those we’ve sinned against. Forgiveness comes only because of the death of an innocent substitute. The passage in Isaiah 53:10 states clearly that when Jesus died on the cross, God made His Son an offering for sin. The penalty we should have paid, He paid for us!” –Warren Wiersbe, Wiersbe Study Bible

Jesus taught to pray, “Forgive us our sins (trespasses) as we forgive those who sin (trespass) against us. To trespass as we know it today is to go where we do not belong and do what we should not do that makes life difficult for others. To trespass on someone’s property with intent to do harm can cause the death of the trespasser in some states!

So, there is no mistake in judgement of our own guilt; God, as promised by Jesus, sent us a Counselor to help us after Jesus ascended back to Heaven. God sent a part of Himself to live within us—His Holy Spirit—as soon as we say yes to Jesus’ forgiveness of our repented sins. God knew we would need help as we transform by His help from old habits of sin to new habits of living in God’s ways for our good and His glory. As always, God provides all we need—we just need to listen to Him!

God’s Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin, corrects us with God’s Word, comforts us when we need it, and then compels us to do what God’s says. Guilt is resolved through repenting our sins to Jesus, who died in our place of punishment for them. Our offering is willingly, graciously, and gratefully placing our lives in His hands, giving His Holy Spirit full reign of our hearts, minds, and souls. THIS is what God requires of us—US!

Micah, the prophet, relayed God’s desire for us with these simple words; “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 We learn we are responsible for our behaviors. We are commanded to tell and live the Truth. We must stand in the gap for the innocent who are wrongly accused and show mercy to those who need it as this is walking humbly with God…putting the interests of others ahead of our own; if we desire to be like Jesus. (Philippians 2)

How must we respond? Pause to pray and ask God for wisdom as each life is specifically purposed for our good and His glory!

Jesus preached many messages of love while demonstrating God’s love to the world. We really have no excuse for not knowing how to live in His ways. As in this passage of Leviticus; God makes it known that how we treat each other is the same and is felt by our God!

Jesus reiterated this Truth when He walked the earth doing what God told him to do;

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:35-40

Jesus also told of the consequences of ignoring people in need of love, mercy, and grace; ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Friends, what Jesus says is a matter of life or death. What we do in Jesus Name for His glory matters. God never changes. Life will always matter. How we will respond?

Lord,

We begin a new calendar year tonight with wanting to please you in all we think, say, and do. Help us to be more like you in every way. Being with cleansing our hearts, renewing our minds, transforming our behaviors, refreshing our souls with your new tender mercies each day, while restoring the joy of your salvation at work within us. We cannot do it without you. Come, Holy Spirit. Convict us with correction from your Word. Comfort us with your wisdom, strength, and power. Then compel us to go and tell, be helpers to others, while being a witness of Truth, to a dying world without you.

In Jesus Name, Amen—Yes!

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SINS CONFESSED; SINS FORGIVEN

Posted on December 30, 2024 by randscallawayffm

God was very specific to His People who were rescued from Egypt to live a new life following in His ways, leaving behind their former life of slavery. God was detailed with how to deal with sin in the camp, both realized and unintentionally committed. God is teaching His people often with how to honor and love Him along with how to love each other because this new life with God has not been fully internalized. God is the Master Teacher who speaks through His representative, Moses. God appointed and anointed Moses’ brother Aaron and his sons to be the priests to carry out all the details according to God’s instructions to deal with all sin.

To us who believe in Jesus, believe that He was the One and Only sacrifice for our sins, read with wonder, maybe even with a bit of distain, because of the slaughter of animals from their herds, the burnt offerings of these animals, with the sprinkling of the blood from them. But look closely at the repetitiveness for what is repeated often in God’s Word is what God wants us to know and realize for our relationship with Him.

We learn we must deal with all our sins. Since Adam and Eve sinned against God, all the generations succeeding have sinned. Paul reminds us, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” ALL of us. All sin must be dealt with before God. Don’t let the process here distract us from the ultimate plan of God to redeem us.

Leviticus 4

The Sin Offering

The Lord said to Moses, ²“Say to the Israelites: ‘When anyone sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands—

³“‘If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the Lord a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed. ⁴He is to present the bull at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord. He is to lay his hand on its head and slaughter it there before the Lord. ⁵Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull’s blood and carry it into the tent of meeting. ⁶He is to dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times before the Lord, in front of the curtain of the sanctuary. ⁷The priest shall then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord in the tent of meeting. The rest of the bull’s blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ⁸He shall remove all the fat from the bull of the sin offering—all the fat that is connected to the internal organs, ⁹both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which he will remove with the kidneys— ¹⁰just as the fat is removed from the ox sacrificed as a fellowship offering. Then the priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering. ¹¹But the hide of the bull and all its flesh, as well as the head and legs, the internal organs and the intestines— ¹²that is, all the rest of the bull—he must take outside the camp to a place ceremonially clean, where the ashes are thrown, and burn it there in a wood fire on the ash heap.

¹³“‘If the whole Israelite community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though the community is unaware of the matter, when they realize their guilt ¹⁴and the sin they committed becomes known, the assembly must bring a young bull as a sin offering and present it before the tent of meeting. ¹⁵The elders of the community are to lay their hands on the bull’s head before the Lord, and the bull shall be slaughtered before the Lord. ¹⁶Then the anointed priest is to take some of the bull’s blood into the tent of meeting. ¹⁷He shall dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle it before the Lord seven times in front of the curtain. ¹⁸He is to put some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is before the Lord in the tent of meeting. The rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ¹⁹He shall remove all the fat from it and burn it on the altar, ²⁰and do with this bull just as he did with the bull for the sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the community, and they will be forgiven. ²¹Then he shall take the bull outside the camp and burn it as he burned the first bull. This is the sin offering for the community.

²²“‘When a leader sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the commands of the Lord his God, when he realizes his guilt ²³and the sin he has committed becomes known, he must bring as his offering a male goat without defect. ²⁴He is to lay his hand on the goat’s head and slaughter it at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the Lord. It is a sin offering. ²⁵Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. ²⁶He shall burn all the fat on the altar as he burned the fat of the fellowship offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the leader’s sin, and he will be forgiven.

²⁷“‘If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, when they realize their guilt ²⁸and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect. ²⁹They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering. ³⁰Then the priest is to take some of the blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. ³¹They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them, and they will be forgiven.

³²“‘If someone brings a lamb as their sin offering, they are to bring a female without defect. ³³They are to lay their hand on its head and slaughter it for a sin offering at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. ³⁴Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. ³⁵They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the lamb of the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar on top of the food offerings presented to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will be forgiven.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO GOD?

It is interesting, but not surprising, that God knew that His People, who He called out and rescued from living in the Egyptian culture were so jaded by their past, so conformed to past habits of worshiping many gods with survivalist lifestyle; that many of their sins become labeled as “unintentional” or not yet known to them as sin. Generations were birthed into the Egyptian culture. God heard their cries for help and brought them out. Now God is teaching them His ways while providing for them daily.

God sees and knows the hearts of all mankind. God loves His created. God wants His best for them. So, God convicts and corrects His people of all sin, known and unintentional, that holds them back, hindering their connected relationship to God with ways to cover their sins through sacrifice of unblemished animals from their herds given to them as a blessing from God. Did it occur to them that God gave them the sacrifice for their sins?

Does it occur to us that God gave us His Son Jesus, as the sacrifice for our sins? We provide nothing but humble confession and remorseful repentance. God provides all the rest! Jesus was given, unblemished by sin, to be the sacrifice for our sin. Jesus, willingly laid down His life, taking all the sins of the world upon His shoulders, as The Way to rid us of our sins, cleansing our hearts completely. Our sins repented in Jesus Name are gone, removed “as far as the east is from the west”, forgiven forever, “to be remembered no more”! Jesus rescued us and brought us out of our own culture and past sin to give us new life with Him! Hallelujah!

The bottom line is this: God requires His people to deal with their sins against Him and against each other. God still requires this of us today. God made a Way for us to come to Him, repent of our sins and be forgiven. Jesus was, is and always will be the One and Only Way. God gave us His One and Only Son as the once and for all sacrifice, for all the sins of the world—yours and mine. God provided the Lamb to be slain for our sins.

Pause and let all this sink into our hearts. May Truth be internalized within our being.

Lord,

Cleanse my heart of all sin that needs to be removed. Convict me of unintentional sins that I am ignoring. Forgive me. Correct me. May Your Holy Spirit continue to renew my mind, that leads to the transformation of my behaviors because I want to be more like you and less like the unbelieving world around me. Comfort me. Refresh my soul with your new tender mercies for today. Restore continually the ever-flowing, everlasting joy of you in me and me in you; as your salvation work molds and shapes me into who you created me to be. Compel me to love like you love me so others will know you, too.

In Jesus Name, for our good, and Your Glory, Amen! Yes!

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SPECIFIC DIRECTIONS FOR A CHOSEN PEOPLE

Posted on December 28, 2024 by randscallawayffm

Blood sacrifices had great significance. Blood was offered as an atonement for sin, but its incompleteness required the perfect sacrifice, Jesus Christ. The sacrifices in these chapters of Leviticus taught the Israelites how to worship God through personal commitment. God’s people must revere him, commit themselves to his laws, and show sincere dedication to him.

But sometimes I wonder if God is teaching the Israelites even more than the offering itself? So, I looked it up. I poured over a few study commentaries by reputable people and here is what I learned;

There are several distinctive features about the peace (or fellowship) offering that should be noted. For one thing, the offeror could bring a female animal, something not permitted for the other animal sacrifices. If the offering was not in fulfillment of a vow, the sacrifice could have some defects and still be accepted (See Leviticus 22:23). After all, it was basically going to be used as food for the priests and the offeror’s family, and those defects wouldn’t matter.
The peace offering is the only offering that was shared with the worshipers. After the priest had completed the sacrifice, a large portion of the meat went to him; the rest went to the offeror, who could then enjoy a feast with his family and friends.

Where God guides His People; He always provides. Consider the work of Aaron and his sons as priests. God guided Moses to appoint Aaron and his sons to give all their time serving as priests. Their priestly work seemed to be 24/7 as they kept the lights on, so to speak, but making sure there was enough oil in the lamps to keep burning day and night in the tent of meeting as directed by God which indicated the Presence of God.

They also had specific, detailed instructions of the care of all things used for burnt offerings unto the Lord. That meant cleaning the grill after all the burnt offerings were cooked over the designated grates made especially for this purpose. The priest took their work seriously and did their best to please God. They were appointed and anointed to do this specific work. There is no time for priests to grow a garden or shepherd a flock of animals so God provided “leftovers” from the offerings to feed their families.

God thinks of all the details—we can always count on God in all the details of our lives, too!

Leviticus 3

The Fellowship Offering

“‘If your offering is a fellowship offering, and you offer an animal from the herd, whether male or female, you are to present before the Lord an animal without defect. ²You are to lay your hand on the head of your offering and slaughter it at the entrance to the tent of meeting. Then Aaron’s sons the priests shall splash the blood against the sides of the altar. ³From the fellowship offering you are to bring a food offering to the Lord: the internal organs and all the fat that is connected to them, ⁴both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which you will remove with the kidneys. ⁵Then Aaron’s sons are to burn it on the altar on top of the burnt offering that is lying on the burning wood; it is a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

⁶“‘If you offer an animal from the flock as a fellowship offering to the Lord, you are to offer a male or female without defect. ⁷If you offer a lamb, you are to present it before the Lord, ⁸lay your hand on its head and slaughter it in front of the tent of meeting. Then Aaron’s sons shall splash its blood against the sides of the altar. ⁹From the fellowship offering you are to bring a food offering to the Lord: its fat, the entire fat tail cut off close to the backbone, the internal organs and all the fat that is connected to them, ¹⁰both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which you will remove with the kidneys. ¹¹The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering presented to the Lord.

¹²“‘If your offering is a goat, you are to present it before the Lord, ¹³lay your hand on its head and slaughter it in front of the tent of meeting. Then Aaron’s sons shall splash its blood against the sides of the altar. ¹⁴From what you offer you are to present this food offering to the Lord: the internal organs and all the fat that is connected to them, ¹⁵both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which you will remove with the kidneys. ¹⁶The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering, a pleasing aroma. All the fat is the Lord’s.

¹⁷“‘This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live: You must not eat any fat or any blood.’”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

In the East, to eat with people is to make them your friends and allies. It means the end of hostilities, as with Jacob and his father-in-law Laban (Genesis 31:54), or the sealing of friendship, as with Israel and Jethro and his people (Exodus 18:12). In the church today, the Lord’s Supper, or Eucharist, is a simple meal that shows the unity of God’s family (1 Corinthians 10:16–18; 11:18–34). That’s why it’s called “Communion.”

The peace/fellowship offering meal, however, meant more than the enjoyment of good food and fellowship with loved ones. It was also an expression of joyful thanksgiving of worshipers at peace with God and in communion with God. The peace/fellowship offering emphasized the fact that the forgiveness of sins resulted in communion with God and with God’s people.

JESUS IN LEVITICUS…THE ULTIMATE, ONCE AND FOR ALL SACRIFICE FOR US!

On the cross Jesus Christ purchased reconciliation with God (2 Corinthians 5:16–21) and peace with God (Colossians 1:20) for all who will believe Him and follow Him with trusting obedience.

We enjoy fellowship with God and other believers, because of His shed blood (1 John 1:5—2:2). Christ did for us what we could not do for ourselves—remove our sins. We who believe hunger for truth and discover Christ is the truth we seek. We “feast” on Jesus Christ as the Bread of Life and the Living Water when we feed on His Word and accept all that He is to us with all that He has done for us.

Today, instead of bringing animals, we offer God “the sacrifice of thanksgiving” (Psalm 116:17) and the “sacrifice of praise” (Hebrews 13:15), from pure hearts that are grateful for His mercies. We give ourselves, our very lives to God, as an offering. (Romans 12:1-2)

We who believe and receive salvation are now His priests who tell others of His forgiveness and love! Peter, disciple of Jesus, proclaims to all who believe:

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9-10

Paul clearly explains our work as priests chosen by God to freely give what He has freely given us—the way to be reconciled to God in communion with God by the blood shed by Jesus Christ, His son!

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Our work as Christ’s ambassadors (representing Christ) as priests are like Aaron and his sons’ work in this—

Our work as “holy priests” with the ministry of reconciliation is also 24/7! We live expectantly and grateful with His power working in us; reflecting the Light of Christ, keeping the light of His presence burning in our hearts, minds, and souls with the precious “oil” of His Word and the guidance of His Holy Spirit, while pointing the Way to be reconciled to God through Jesus to others who do not yet know Him! It’s not about us but all about Jesus!

Lord,

Help us to fulfill your commandment to us to go and make disciples, teaching them all that you are teaching us. May your Light and your glory be seen in us. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

In Jesus Name, Amen

He said: ‘Freely, freely, you have received,
Freely, freely give;
Go in My name, and because you believe
Others will know that I live.’

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AN AROMA PLEASING TO GOD

Posted on December 27, 2024 by randscallawayffm

Who doesn’t like the smell of homemade bread baking? I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t; do you? As an adult, I love making bread. Making it and giving it away reminds me of Grandma Lacquement. I spent a lot of time on Grandpa and Grandma’s farm as they cared for me while my parents worked. I watched as my grandma made bread as their way of life. Bread on the farm was rarely “store-bought.” Even the butter for the bread was made using her old mixer to whip the cream taken off the top of the milk produced by their cows. It was my job to watch the cream turn to butter because the mixer could jump off the counter in the process!

Grandpa raised beef, chicken, and pork for the purpose of butchering in the fall to fill their freezer—and ours! Sometimes, goat milk and meat was also part of the farm’s menu. Grandma and Grandpa were mostly self-sufficient as they also had a garden of fresh vegetables and fruit.

What I observed most about them was how humbly grateful they were for the privilege to have the farm where they would work hard to produce these products as a way of life, along with his carpentry work for others. They always gave glory to God for His provisions daily. They gave from their provisions to others in need who would come down their lane seeking help. Thank you for allowing me to indulge in my memories of these precious people who reflected the goodness of God and taught me how to give away a portion of what God has so graciously given to me.

Speaking of God, apparently, HE loves the smell of bread cooking, too! Read on…

Leviticus 2

The Grain Offering

“‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it ²and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ³The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

⁴“‘If you bring a grain offering baked in an oven, it is to consist of the finest flour: either thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in or thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with olive oil. ⁵If your grain offering is prepared on a griddle, it is to be made of the finest flour mixed with oil, and without yeast. ⁶Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. ⁷If your grain offering is cooked in a pan, it is to be made of the finest flour and some olive oil. ⁸Bring the grain offering made of these things to the Lord; present it to the priest, who shall take it to the altar. ⁹He shall take out the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁰The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

¹¹“‘Every grain offering you bring to the Lord must be made without yeast, for you are not to burn any yeast or honey in a food offering presented to the Lord. ¹²You may bring them to the Lord as an offering of the firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. ¹³Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.

¹⁴“‘If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the Lord, offer crushed heads of new grain roasted in the fire. ¹⁵Put oil and incense on it; it is a grain offering. ¹⁶The priest shall burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all the incense, as a food offering presented to the Lord.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO GOD?

We must give back a portion of all that God has given to us to steward for our good and His glory. Giving back to God displays our thanksgiving for all He has provided. Giving the best and the first of our labors shows our gratitude for all He has created for us to enjoy.

From Genesis to Revelation—we see Jesus in all of Scripture. Jesus was at the beginning of Creation. Jesus is “God with us” now as the One who willingly sacrificed His life for our sins’ punishment which removed all the sins of the world. When we repent of our sins to Jesus—all our sins are removed from our being—to be remembered no more!

Jesus is and always will be King of kings, and Lord of lords, as designated by God. God, the Father plan was for His Son to be our one and only high priest who by the sacrifice of His life once and for all, reconciled us back to God. Jesus was the ultimate “grain offering” when he sacrificed Himself for us. Jesus is our Savior and Lord now and forever. Only through Jesus can we obtain Life eternal—God’s Plan. And Jesus, the alpha and omega, beginning and end of this age, is coming back!

So, we will see Jesus throughout Leviticus as “offerings” are set in motion as pleasing aromas to God. We are reminded today of the words of Jesus while He walked the earth: “I AM the Bread of Life.”

God knows. God knows what His People need to understand about Him. God provides. God still does that for us through His Word—ALL of it.

A portion of an old hymn plays in my mind; written in 1902 by Howard Grose, to teach us how to give our best back to God;

Give of your best to the Master;
Give of the strength of your youth;
Clad in salvation’s full armor,
Join in the battle for truth.

Give of your best to the Master;
Give Him first place in your heart;
Give Him first place in your service;
Consecrate every part.
Give, and to you will be given;
God His beloved Son gave;
Gratefully seeking to serve Him,
Give Him the best that you have.

God is first. Seek God first. Listen to God first before doing anything. Jesus taught us that! Moses relayed God’s command to put God first and worship only God as the number one commandment. We now learn thought-out Scripture that God gives. We must learn to give like God by giving back the first fruits of His provision to us! It is not so God “has enough” but to remind us that God is always enough for us.

Jesus explains God’s giving gene that is embedded in all believers in this way;

“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”–Jesus, Matthew 6:30-34, MSG

“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33, NIV Jesus demonstrated seeking God first often as He would get away by Himself to seek God’s will before doing anything of significance in His ministry on earth. Jesus was our perfect example of seeking God first then doing what God says. Who are we not to seek God first if Jesus, Son of God, did?

Jesus, Bread of Life. Jesus, the sacrificial offering to God, removed our sins from us set us free to enjoy a sweet relationship with God, our Father, an aroma pleasing to God!

Lord, God of all and in all,

Your resurrection power has resurrected me indeed. Thank you for teaching us how to love, give, and live a life worthy of who you created us to be.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

“CLEAN EATING”

REBELLION AGAINST THE HOLY

“ON THE EIGHTH DAY” THE REAL WORK BEGINS!

APPOINTED, ANOINTED, CONSECRATED, AND ORDAINED

HEART, MIND, BODY, AND SOUL

ATONEMENT AND RESTITUTION

GUILT RESOLUTION

SINS CONFESSED; SINS FORGIVEN

SPECIFIC DIRECTIONS FOR A CHOSEN PEOPLE

AN AROMA PLEASING TO GOD

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