Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

Hebrews 9

Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 9:22

I continue my study of Hebrews, assisted by the commentary Christ Centered Exposition: Exalting Jesus in Hebrews. My focus this morning is Hebrews 9:11-22, specifically looking at the fourth division covering 9:16-22, which the commentary entitles "The Better Blood of the New Covenant." Here, the commentary seeks for believers to recognize the importance of not just what Christ did through His death on the cross but also how He did it.  The commentary first describes how the author of Hebrews uses the analogy of a last will and testament and how it only takes effect upon someone's death.  It then moves to how in both the Old and New Testaments, the shedding of blood inaugurates the old and new covenants.  We are referred to Leviticus 17:11, where blood is described as key to life.  Shed blood, then, is essential as a sacrifice to atone for sin - God's wrath must be satisfied.  With Christ's blood, we have the new covenant and a direct path to God for not just forgiveness of sin, but also eternal life - praise Jesus!

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who shed His blood for me - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such grace and gift - the greatest gift of all time.  Yet 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 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.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Leviticus 12

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:15-16

This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing chapter twelve - God Rules from Our Birth - covering Leviticus 12:1-8, looking specifically at the first theme - God Requires Separation from Unbelievers.  Here, the commentary focuses on how at this point in the Old Testament, the Israelites were preparing to enter Canaan, the land God promised to Abraham (Genesis 12:7), and the land God led the Israelites to out of the wilderness after leaving Egypt. The commentary explores the pagan worship of the cultures in Canaan and its neighbor Moab - the pagan worship of both of these lands included use of human blood and/or human pain/sacrifice.  God of courses detests false gods and worship of these false gods, and the commentary states that childbirth as depicted in Leviticus 12 involves both human pain and blood; so by implication, childbirth, although not sinful, is loosely linked with the pagan worship of Canaan and Moab. Hence, God calls for the mothers to be purified as a prerequisite of the worship experience.  As a key takeaway for today and the theme for today - God Requires Separation from Unbelievers - the commentary urges us to see how our worship separates us from unbelievers.  The commentary also offers two additional takeaways - how believers separate ourselves from unbelievers:

• truth separates us: since (and because of) the Fall, childbirth was painful and often dangerous, sometimes leading to death; death was associated with sin (since the Fall); the concept of original sin and how the wages of sin are death (Romans 6:23) is unique to Christianity as is the role Jesus plays in redemption, forgiveness of sin, justification, sanctification, glorification, and eternal life.
  
• obedience separates us: Leviticus is just one book of the Bible but what we see just in this one book is how God governs every aspect of our lives - including all the details; God does bring about obedience as the fruit of our faith and believers obedience is designed to allow us to not only be separate, but different in the sense that unbelievers see and experience something that draws them to Him.
  

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who created me and those around me and I am grateful for the life You gave me and for those in my community - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You bless me.  I worry.  Please forgive me 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.