CONSECRATION

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 8

Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion on the right-hand side).

The High Priest washes his hands at the Brazen Laver. Behind him stands the replica of the Brazen Altar. During the Summers of 1997 and 2012 thousands visited the Crossroads Centre in Burlington, Ontario, to tour the replica of the Tabernacle which was created by Teen Missions International of Florida.

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where my son, David Reynold, took the photo. click HERE.

Key Verse: Leviticus 8:5

And Moses said to the congregation, “This is what the Lord commanded to be done.”

The first seven chapters of Leviticus speak of the sacrifices. Chapter eight introduces the priesthood. As sinners we need a sacrifice. As believers we need a priest. We have both in Jesus Christ. He offered Himself as the final Sacrifice on the Cross, then He entered the heavenly sanctuary as our Priest. The ear, the thumb, and the big toe represented hearing the Word of God, doing the will of God, and going where God commands. Notice that Moses did not say, “This is expedient, agreeable, suitable or traditionally proper.” He did not lead by consensus. Seven times in this chapter the word “commanded” is used. In tomorrow’s reading, we’ll learn the results of obedience. Here’s a sneak peek…”The glory of the Lord shall appear to you” (Lev. 9:6).

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, grant me the grace of strict adherence to Your Word. I find the symbols of Your Priesthood in the Old Testament and the fulfillment of those symbols in Your life and teachings, as described in the Gospels. Thank You that You established “Truth” in these ways. Finally, You confirmed the truth in practice, evident in the lives of believers in the Acts of the Apostles and in the detailed writings of those Apostles. Please sanctify anew my hearing, my doing, and my going. I pray in Jesus’ Name. Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

While still a teenager, I heard the Rector of a local Anglican (Episcopalion) Church say that it is absolutely essential to “Read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the Word of God.” Some statements, such as this one, have been indelibly engraved on my mind. I’ve just read again Jeremiah 31:31-34 and Hebrews 8:7-13. You may want to click on those references and read them with me. I understand that God has put His laws in my mind and has written them on my heart. I make myself available to Him to do this every morning. What an amazing privilege to say, “I know Him,” and to be certain that He is merciful to my unrighteousness. My “sins and lawless deeds” He remembers no more!

Yours for putting equal portions of our minds and our hearts into a more thorough understanding of God’s Word,

David

OFFERINGS

Today’s Reading: Leviticus 7

Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion on the right-hand side).

To celebrate 50 years of God’s faithfulness, Crossroads brought the life-sized Teen Missions replica of the Tabernacle of Moses and set it up in the back parking lot for the summer of 2012. In the foreground is our version of “Tent of Meeting,” where the message of the reality behind the symbolism of the Tabernacle was explained to visitors.

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where Reynold took the photo, click HERE.

Key Verse: Leviticus 7:12

If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer, with the sacrifice of thanksgiving, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers anointed with oil, or cakes of blended flour mixed with oil.

The sacrificial system was complex. It taught about the holiness of God, the sinfulness of the human family, and the need for sacrificial death in order to reconcile the perfect holiness of God and His forgiveness of sin. The system also made provision for joyful worship such as this thanksgiving offering and feast. Each offering had to include oil, the symbol of the Spirit of God. Let us welcome the Holy Spirit to our celebrations.

Last week we read Luke 24. We considered the reasons why thousands of Jerusalem’s Jews, including many Priests, believed in Jesus’ resurrection (click here to review that day’s blog). Recently I came across an amazing fact according to official Jewish records from that time. The sacrifices for Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, were not accepted by God from A.D. 30 until the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in A.D. 70. Check it out here. Jesus’ death and resurrection would have been at Passover A.D. 30, as He was born in 4 B.C, according to the best calculations.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Holy Spirit, please fill me for this new day so that I may bring with joy my offerings of thanksgiving. May I have the grace to celebrate well. In Jesus’ Name I pray. Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

Recently around 6 a.m., I noticed that the sky was twinkling brightly with many stars. As our “day star” (the sun) rose in the east, the stars were less and less visible to my eyes. I decided to read 2 Peter. There I found in 1:19 these words, “We have the prophetic Word made more sure, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the Day Star [original King James Version] rises in your hearts.” I began to sing a song: “Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.” The Lord Jesus, our Day Star, shines so brightly that all the lesser lights become invisible. They are still there, but we see Jesus only. To complete my thanksgiving offering, I went into Google and found Michael W. Smith worshipping Jesus with this song (click here to view). Join Michael and me in singing this powerful chorus.

Yours for celebrating our Lord and Saviour,

David