Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, “Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is the basket that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity in all the land.”

Zechariah 5:5-11

Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, “Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is the basket that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity in all the land.” Zechariah 5:5-6

I continue my study of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book.  For today, my focus is an unassisted review of Zechariah 5:5-11, which the commentary outlines as the second of three divisions for the text 5:1-6:15 (5:1-4, 5-11, 6:1-15).  Building on yesterday's post which focused on how God reveals our sin to us, which of course is a good thing so that we can repent and have God forgive us and free us from the cycle of sin, guilt, shame, more sin, etc, in today's text Zechariah experiences a vision from God where God takes away the sin of His people (iniquity in all the land - v6). The text also references in the vision the land of Shinar (v11) as where this sin is taken.  This resource discuss how Shinar appears throughout scripture and how in Zechariah 5 specifically, Shinar represents "the suppression of wickedness and its banishment to Shinar/Babylon."  The suppression and banishment of sin is part of a broader gospel theme that brings hope to all of humanity that despite how everyone experiences a daily battle for our souls (over sin), believers who accept God's free gift of salvation can rest in the confidence knowing that the victory over sin and death is already won and we can draw from this confidence. 

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has already defeated sin and death and saved me - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of my salvation nor any of the blessings associated with this gift.  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 the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?”

 Zechariah 3:1-10

And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” Zechariah 3:2

I continue my study of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book.  For today, my focus is a commentary-assisted review of Zechariah 3:2, which the commentary outlines as the second of six divisions for the text 3:1-10 (3:1, 3:2, 3:3, 3:4-5, 3:6-7, 3:8-10).  The commentary aptly provides the theme for how it sees the text: God Wants Us to Feel Sorrowful When We Are Guilty.  First the commentary shares that "God’s sovereign ability to reprimand Satan in this manner is a reminder that the Lord and Satan are by no means equal forces in the universe. As powerful as Satan’s tactics against God and God’s people can be, he is no match for the Lord. Accordingly, when Yahweh rebukes Satan, the enemy becomes silent. The commentary then shares how the fire at the end of v2 describes the opposition, oppression, and exile/captivity of God's people.  At the same time, we are exhorted to see how such trials are designed to shape us into more of God's image: "God’s Word commands us, “Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline?” (see Hebrews 12:6-7). God wants His children to feel grief and sorrow over our sin because grief and sorrow over sin are the ways that God brings us back to Him" (see also 2 Corinthians 7:10).  Satan wants us to see the shame and guilt of our sin with no hope.  God, instead, provided His Son Jesus Christ as a way out to have forgiveness and victory over sin and death.  The commentary concludes with: "God loves believers so much that He won’t allow us to sin and feel good about it. However, unlike the way Satan attacks us with guilt, God’s kind of guilt will never lead us to hopelessness and despair. Instead, He will allow His people to experience godly sorrow over their sin so that they will return to Him. He’s always ready for us to return to Him so that we can be forgiven." Amen!

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who gives us hope - the victory over sin and death is already won.  Thank You Jesus!  You are an awesome God who loves us.  I am not deserving of such blessings.  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 to me today and every day.

Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD. Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers?

 Zechariah 1:1-6

Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD. Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? Zechariah 1:4-6a

I resume my study of the last four books of the OT (complete: Zephaniah, Haggai; to complete: Zechariah, Malachi) - using the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary volume for this book.  For this morning, my focus is a unassisted review of Zechariah 1:4-6a, which the commentary outlines as the second of three divisions for the text vv1-6 (1:1-3, 1:4-6a, 6b).  Here, the Lord seeks for us to remember - and in this case for negative reasons.  Don't do what God's people have repeatedly done.  Throughout redemptive history as portrayed in the Old Testament, God's people repeatedly turned away from God, sinned and were wicked in God's eyes.  God hates sin.  One of the many broad themes of the OT is the cycle of sin and God's wrath, and we see this very early on in Genesis 3 where among other means of punishment after the Fall, Adam and Eve are sent out from the garden of Eden.  Consistent with yesterday's message, God continues to emphasize here that He reigns, is all powerful and all knowing, hates sin, and seeks obedience.  He also loves His people and does not want to punish them but will if He needs to get our attention. Once again, fear should serve as a preservative to keep us close to God.

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, once again, I am reminded of Your amazing grace in that while I was still hostile and an enemy to You, You saved me - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving - not by a long shot.  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.   

Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.

Leviticus 10

Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Leviticus 10:1-2 

This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing with chapter ten - Our Response to God's Holiness - covering Leviticus 10:1-20, looking specifically at the theme - God's People Acknowledge God as Judge.  Here, the commentary focuses on God's judgement of sin - a topic not often discussed in church and certainly discussed less so in our larger culture here in the U.S. (or even tolerated). In v10:2 Nadab and Abihu were swiftly and harshly judged by God for their "unauthorized fire." We are urged to the the larger context in Leviticus 10 where it describes the Israelites' inaugural worship service - in the previous chapters God lays out the commandments for the sacrificial system and the role of the priests. As I posted Sunday, we are to approach God as Holy and set apart; hence we are to treat our time of worship with a level of seriousness and reverence - we should not be flippant about how we approach God.  On the same note, we must also look at sin as a serious matter; while sin is unavoidable as that is our nature and we cannot claim to be without sin (see 1 John 1:8), we must do what we can to avoid patterns of sin.  The commentary writes how "[s]in destroys.  It destroys not only the one who sins, but others.  Sin is not stagnant, so that we sin and that's the end of it.  When we sin, sin becomes easier the next time--easier for us, and easier for those who see us sin and get away with it.  Before long sin has proliferated and more and more people are being hurt by it."  The commentary pushes us to see how the Israelites were at a pivotal moment in their history - the inaugural corporate worship led by the priests God anointed.  We are to imagine how God's tolerance of Nadab and Abihu's sin could have led to even greater and greater sin - God had to deal with it severely lest it become a much bigger problem in Israel's development as God's people.  The commentary wraps by having us look at other scriptural examples where God dealt severely with sin.  One such example is from 2 Samuel 6:1-7 where a man named Uzzah was struck down for touching the ark - a Holy thing not be to be touched by anyone other than the priests, and only touched/used in the prescribed manner directed by God.  In this scriptural example, it should also be noted that the ark should never have been put on a cart as God had already prescribed that it was to be carried by the Levites on poles on their shoulders.   A second example comes from the New Testament, where in Acts 5:1-11, a husband and wife hold back financial offerings to the church and lie about it - and both are struck down.  RC Sproul, writing on DesiringGod.com, uses the same examples in this great post about God's Holiness and justice. The key takeaway from the commentary this morning is that we are avoid sin, confront it in our own lives so as to arrest it from growing into something more dangerous than it already is.

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are Holy and You desire for Your children to be Holy - You call us and You have chosen the elect to be Your ambassadors to spread Your Word.  I am beyond humbled that You would choose me and die for me. I am not deserving.  I am full of anger, harshness, and worry.  Please forgive me.  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 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.

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

Portions of Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Psalm 51:2

Day 60 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 directives from God through Moses (Moses' Laws) for health regulations, including skin disease, burns, mold, and bodily discharges.

Believers know that uncleanliness of course extends beyond external bodily conditions.  Due to our sin, we all have stains that many cannot see - yet God can.  This post from DesiringGod.com reminded me of this today.

Sin leaves us stained with the cycle of guilt and shame...and of course we are separated from God.  Yet Jesus came for us so that all of us (Jews and Gentiles alike) could be cleansed of our sin and reconciled to Him.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has cleansed me of my sin and I need this daily - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such cleansing and love.  I do sin daily, with harshness towards others, etc.   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.

The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Genesis 1-3

The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. v21-24

Having long desired to do so, I began a chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith).

Of note from my reading this morning - consequences of sin include:

• sin produces shame* - see Genesis 3:6-7 for Adam and Eve's shame of their nakedness.
• sin produces fear* - see Genesis 3:8-10 where Adam and Eve hide from God in fear of punishment.
• sin produces blame* - see Genesis 3:11-13 where Adam blames Eve and Eve blames the serpent.

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

None of these consequences are good for us and of course sin separates us from God.  But as believers we know that God sent His Son Jesus for us because He loves us and does not want us to be without Him.  We get a glimpse of God's abounding love and grace in Genesis 3:21 where He clothes Adam and Eve and while He does banish them from the Garden of Eden, He spares their lives.  God is good indeed.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are good indeed!  I know You are good and You have poured out blessings on me well beyond what I deserve.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such love and blessings.  I worry.  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.

For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.

Hebrews 8

For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. v12

Referencing Jeremiah 31:31-34, the author or Hebrews focuses on the "obsolete" and "outdated" nature of the First Covenant and how the New Covenant, based on Jesus' blood, is superior because it it is based on better promises (v6).  After the Israelites escaped Egypt, they suffered from a continuous

Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.

Psalm 73

Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. v27-28

God wants us to be in relationship with Him - and this means we must worship, be in prayer with Him, and serve Him - daily.  When we sin, we must confess our sins and repent. When we do so, we are reconciled back to God.  Otherwise, as Psalm 73 states, we remain far from God.  We do not want to remain far from God as once sin catches hold we risk being "dragged away" by our own evil desires.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. James 1:13-15

  
My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who loved me and died for me, knowing everything about my sin.  You always welcome me back with open arms when I confess and repent of my sin.  What a God of love and grace You are.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love.  I neglect my role as father too often.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  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.

But King David mourned many days for his son.

2 Samuel 13

But King David mourned many days for his son. v37

Building on yesterday's post regarding grace and the consequences of sin, we see how David continues to experience consequences from his sin.  Here we see Amnon rape his sister Tamar and then Absalom, his brother, take revenge on Amnon.  This is the cycle of sin.  Unfortunately, it appears that the sins of the father trickled down to the sons.

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. James 1:13-15

 

David's sons get caught up in the same impulsive behavior that drove David to seduce Bathsheba and this same impulse effects us all.

 

All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. Ephesians 2:2  

 

Of course God can break this cycle of sin, in our own lives and in the lives of our families.

We need to draw near to God, ask for His direction and seek transformation of our hearts and minds (Romans 12:2).

 

We don't see David's sons inquiring of the Lord like their father.

Lord Jesus please help me with my own sin so that I can be Jesus to my sons.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God, full of love, grace and wisdom.  You have protected me from great harm and been full of compassion when I have sinned.  Thank You for Your love.  I am not worth such love.  I worry..and I am harsh with my words and actions. 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 do. 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 for our sons.  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.

Then the land had peace forty years.

Judges 5

Then the land had peace forty years. v31

In the book of Judges, the Israelites do as we all do...we do "evil in the eyes of the Lord". Thankfully, God has raised up for us a Savior in Jesus Christ who nailed all of our sin to the cross so that we would not be caught in the cycle of sin and shame and sin.  

We must be humble and allow Jesus to work in and through our lives - to be transformed to be more like Jesus.  

As I posted yesterday, we may not like what God is doing in our lives but He is always present with us, by our side, working in and for us, refining and training us.

Lord Jesus, please take my life and make me more like You.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God and You are my God. I am Your child.  I desire to be more like You.  I want to please You and glorify You.  Thank You that You loved me enough to not only adopt me as Your child but that You would go to the cross for me.  Thank You Jesus! I am not worth such love.  Please forgive me for my harsh words and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind.  Help me love others as You do.  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.  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.