To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

 Proverbs 21:3

To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice. Proverbs 21:3

I pause my study of Numbers, to review Proverbs 21:3 - text discussed during my Friday morning men's Bible study.  Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: The most important commandment (per Matthew 22:37-40) is to love God.  However, many church going folk go through the motions with attendance at worship, etc. - at one point in this was me.  I was worshiping a God I did not earnestly know because I was not actively reading the Bible.  For sure there is more work for God to do in me, but I know there is fruit. The text today emphasizes how God wants all of our heart - in everything we do, do it all for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).  A key litmus test is that we find obedience to God is not burdensome (1 John 5:3) - ask yourself this: is obedience to God (think deeply on this and ask for tougher sins like envy, hate in heart, anger, lust in heart, etc.).  Ultimately, God wants all of our heart and life to reflect Him - if we renew our minds through spiritual formation (Bible reading, prayer, etc.), our thoughts and ways are more aligned with His and THEN our offering of our bodies as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1-2) is more acceptable and pleasing to God.  
• What do we learn from the text about people: We are all guilty of the sin of obedience out of obligation instead of as a natural response to how He loves us and we seek to please Him.  Turn to Him with all of your heart and not only will you find him but he will do a work in and through you to make you more like Him. 
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Avoid forced obedience to God. Claim the promise that if you seek Him with all of your heart, you will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13).  Follow the example of David who was a man after God's heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Seek and love Him with all of your heart.

Comment and discuss this post

 My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God that loved me while still hostile and an enemy to You.  You reached down into the pit pulled me out by Your hand and saved me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You love and save.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me turn from and overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You loved me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom, energy, and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

Numbers 4:16-20

The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites, but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden, but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.” Numbers 4:17-20

I continue my study of Numbers, and in the text today 4:16-20, where the Lord gives Moses and Aaron instructions for Eleazar to be in charge of the tabernacle and all that is in it, and guidance for treatment of the Kohathites in their role.  Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: Yes God is holy.  There should be no doubt about this.  The text today implies that there should be reverence for God - He is the Name Above Every Name and we should not take His name in vain (see also Exodus 20:7 from the 10 Commandments and this sermon) and we should certainly follow His instructions.  But once again, specifically and explicitly in the text today we are referring to ceremonial law and roles in this context.  The New Covenant based on Jesus' shed blood does away with the ceremonial law and while we should have reverent fear of God (see this post about fear as preservative), we should not fear approaching God is He is our personal Lord and Savior.  God loves us, wants to spend time with us, reveal Himself to us, etc.  He wants us to bring our cares and concerns to Him.  Hebrews 4:14-16 is key. 
• What do we learn from the text about people?: Each of us have a role to play in the mission He lays before us as individuals, the local church, and the global church.  Obedience to His mission is not burdensome as described in v19 - see also 1 John 5:3.
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Avoid carelessly approaching God or misusing His name.  Claim the promise that we can approach God in confidence.  Follow the example of Jesus who did not see obedience to the Father as burdensome.  Fear God (as a preservative) because He is holy.  

Comment and discuss this post

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome Holy God that is approachable and accessible - You save!  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You love and save.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

Numbers 4:1-15

And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry. Numbers 4:15

I continue my study of Numbers, and in the text today 4:1-15, where the Lord commands Moses and Aaron to take a census of the sons of Kohath (among the Levites), and He describes their duties with the tent of meeting.  Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: God seeks obedience - in detail.  In the Old Testament ceremonial law, these details matter but we know that as part of God's plan obedience to this level of detail is unsustainable so there is a need for regular atonement through animal sacrifice.  With the New Covenant based on Christ's shed blood, obedience to ceremonial law is fulfilled permanently, leaving obedience to the moral law intact.  Obedience in detail still matters because lack of attention to detail shows lack of care.  We should treasure God above all else and it should show in our obedience and service to Him.  Because He is SO good to us, in response we want to please, honor and glorify Him...so obedience is not burdensome (see also 1 John 5:3). 
• What do we learn from the text about people?: There are so many people behind the scenes in every day life that serve and obey God in detail.  Their hearts are right with God because they abide in Him and bear fruit (John 15:1-10).  They are not seeking their own glory but that of the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Avoid seeking God's favor through action and your own strength and power.  Claim the promise that obedience is not burdensome because we love Him SO much and we treasure and seek Him. Follow the example of Jesus who loved the Father SO much that He willingly suffered and died so that others could have life now to the full and for eternity.  Obey God in detail - do it all for the glory of God. 

Comment and discuss this post

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves and saves.  I am not deserving of how You love and save.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.  

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Matthew 9, Mark 2, and Luke 5

 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. John 10:10

I continue with my study of - Ten Men of the Bible: How God Used Imperfect People to Change the World - eBook by Max Lucado (for purchase). This morning, I continue with the story of "Matthew: Redefining God's Family*".

*Title of lesson seven from the Max Lucado study.

The commentary* of day one starts with Max Lucado describing tax collectors during Jesus' day: "guys [who] ranked barely above plankton on the food chain...shunned". We've all felt shunned or insignificant in our lives at one point or another.  Lucado points to Luke 5:29-30 to show how the Jewish leaders felt about tax collectors.  He wants us to understand that it is our heart condition God is concerned about - He sees us as something the world does not.  See also how God saw David He says: 

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

We are to be encouraged that no matter what the world sees in us, God sees us as His creation and for believers as a new creation with God working in and through us, so we are not to measure ourselves against any yardsticks the world defines.

Lucado then turns to how Matthew must have felt leaving his old way of life behind, including his old friends.  We are warned in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18 not to be yoked to unbelievers, but that does not mean we cannot still spend time with unbelievers, of course with the hope that we can be a light to them and give them cause to see (and hear) in you something that brings them to Jesus.  Jesus even participates in a celebration at Matthew's house with other tax collectors and sinners!

Finally, Lucado wants us to see how God offers "life to the full" and that we should not see following and being obedient to Jesus as a burden.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who provides life to the full...and so much more, including salvation - the greatest gift of all time.  I am not deserving of such a gift.  I worry and I have other sins.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa from cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.

Matthew 16-18, Mark 8-9, Luke 9,17

For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. Matthew 16:25, Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24

Day 305 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues as I move further into the New Testament - this morning focusing on how Jesus prepares ..."his chosen disciples for his death and to strengthen their ministry in carrying on his work. At this point in Jesus’ ministry the apostles are truly convinced that Jesus is the Messiah, but apparently they too have notions of a political Messiah. Realizing that their understanding of his messiah-ship is still very limited, and that their somewhat simplistic faith will be tested, Jesus begins to tell the apostles about his death, as well as the burdens which they themselves will face. Talk of their Leader’s imminent death must surely confuse these men, who have hopes of playing key roles in a wholly different kind of kingdom."*

*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

The reading this morning includes the Transfiguration (Matthew 17), as well as teachings on humility. 

Just as Jesus prepares the twelve for their mission, we too must understand the burdens and cost of following Jesus.  Yet John reminds us that obedience to God is not burdensome.

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. 1 John 5:1-4 

Paul provides similar words - comparing his comfort and power from his position as a Jewish leader to now following Jesus:

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:7-11 

It helps for us to focus on how we are not citizens of this world but instead citizens of Heaven and investing eternally.

My Prayer: Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who gave me faith.  You also helped me grow in my humility (more work here...) and see how following You is not burdensome.  Thank You Jesus - for these blessings and so much more.  I am grateful.  I am also not deserving.  I worry, and I have other sin...please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

“Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Psalm 42, 53, 58, 81, and 101

“Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth.” Psalm 58:11

Day 125 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) continues my focus on 112 of David's psalms which my study has not already covered or will not cover through other daily devotions as part of a broader study within their historical context. This study of these 112 psalms groups the psalms into five major topical areas, and today I start a new grouping "Psalms Expressing a Variety of Sentiments".

Today's psalms focus on the importance of hoping in God when one is depressed, the universality of sin and its consequences, outrage against leaders who promote injustice, the continual stubbornness of Israel, and an expression of commitment to righteous living. Obedience to God and the promise of blessings for obedience run through several of the psalms this morning:

The righteous will be glad when they are avenged, when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked. Then people will say, “Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth.” Psalm 58:10-11

But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.” Psalm 81:16

Many, including believers, view obedience to Jesus as a burden.  Yet true believers experience the freedom in Christ that David alludes to when he says the "righteous are rewarded".  There are also rewards in Heaven as God is saving a place for us.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. John 14:3

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who blesses me abundantly in this life and I know for eternity in Heaven - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such blessings.  My sin continues - I am easily distracted by the matters of this world.  Thank You Jesus for Your grace and compassion over my sin but I need Your forgiveness daily...please forgive me for my sin and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

...as the LORD commanded him.

Exodus 39:2-40

 ...as the LORD commanded him. Exodus 39:2-40

Day 32 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) focuses on the completion and blessing of the tabernacle and God's glory fills the tabernacle.

Moses and the Israelites did just "as the LORD commanded [them]" using these exact words in scripture sixteen (16) times in these two chapters.  Clearly God wants us to pay attention how obedient Moses and the Israelites were.

Obedience to God of course is critical - and this calls into focus God's commands and then of course our ability to do God's commands.  When we have repeated commands - we know they are important.  God also tells us He has the most important commandments (1st, 2nd) and how all other commandments hang on these two (see Matthew 22:34-40).

See also these posts from John Piper regarding how God makes obedience possible and how obedience is not burdensome.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who makes all things possible - including obedience to Your commands.  I know You love me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such love.  I sin daily...including grumbling and complaining.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.