February 18th One Year Bible Readings

Leviticus 6:1-7:27 ~ Mark 3:7-30 ~ Psalm 37:1-11 ~ Proverbs 10:3-4
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Old Testament - Today in Leviticus we read about further instructions for offerings.  Chapter 6 verse 13 I found interesting: "Remember, the fire must be kept burning on the altar at all times. It must never go out."  Commentaries state that the fire was never to go out because the fire was started by God.   Humans were not to bring man-made fire to the altar, or they would die, as we will see Leviticus chapter 10 when we read about Nadab and Abihu.  The only real "eternal flame" that I can think of in today, that was started by God, is the Holy Spirit.  And this eternal flame of the Holy Spirit is made available to you and I through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.  Here's an image of the burnt offering altar from the time of Leviticus:

And - here's an image to make you think about the fire of the Holy Spirit available to you and I today through Jesus:

Can you relate to this image above?  Can you imagine what this man in this image above is experiencing?  Have you experienced this?

Leviticus chapter 7 verse 27 stands out: "Anyone who eats blood must be cut off from the community."  This was commanded for 3 reasons - 1.  to separate the Israelites from the pagans who drank blood - the pagans drank blood in the hopes of gaining the attributes of the animals from the blood they drank (speed, strength, etc.).  2.  the sin of the people was symbolically transferred to the animal before the offering, and the blood represents the life of that animal.  3.  for sanitary reasons - blood can carry some nasty diseases.

New Testament - In Mark chapter 3 verses 7 & 8 show how Jesus' ministry was quickly being noticed from all over Israel: "Jesus and his disciples went out to the lake, followed by a huge crowd from all over Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, from east of the Jordan River, and even from as far away as Tyre and Sidon. The news about his miracles had spread far and wide, and vast numbers of people came to see him for themselves."   And now today think about how far and wide Jesus' ministry has gone.  Worldwide.   Why do you suppose Jesus' ministry gained such notice during his lifetime?  Why do you suppose that Jesus' ministry continues to gain such notice today?  Could it be that there is true power in Jesus' ministry?  Could it be that Jesus changes lives?  Heals people - teaches people - loves people - forgives people....  Could it be that Jesus is the Savior of the World?

Commentary from bible.org on Mark chapter 3 is at this link and at this link. In Mark 3:28-29 we read about the unpardonable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. A great website link with tons of great info about the context of these verses and what it means to us today is at this link:
http://www.christiananswers.net/q-eden/unpardonablesin.html.

Psalms - Today we read Psalm 37, which is most definitely a Wisdom Psalm! It's like we are reading Proverbs! I love verse 5: "Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you." Do you commit everything you do to God? EVERYTHING? Your waking life? Your sleeping life? Your job? Your relationships? Your family? Your finances? Your time? If so, do you trust that God will help you in everything you do in your life? Do you believe what verse 4 teaches? "Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart's desires." I love that thought - take delight in God. Do you take delight in God each and every day? Do you believe that he will give you your heart’s desires?  And for Psalm 37 verse 6 we have this lovely image below to meditate upon:

Proverbs - Proverbs chapter 10 verse 4 teaches us: "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth." This is certainly a good reminder to work hard!

Worship God: Okay, I realize I'm on a Third Day kick here this week, with three TD videos in a row, but I couldn't help sharing this video with you today. All of our readings and reflections about the Holy Spirit today reminded me of the Third Day song "Consuming Fire." Here's a great live version of this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxpZV8P4LC0

Do you know our Consuming Fire? Click here for Fire from heaven!

Please join us in memorizing and meditating on a verse of Scripture today: "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth." Proverbs 10:4 NIV

Prayer Point: Pray that you will always have diligent hands. Pray that your hands are always working for the Lord. Pray for wealth in the Lord.

Comments from you & Question of the Day - Speaking of the Holy Spirit above in my OT reflections, a great overview of the Holy Spirit is at bible.org at this link.  A good overview of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament is at this link.  And a great overview of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament is at this link.   I don't know if you've ever done much study on the Holy Spirit?  If not, please do spend a good chunk of time at these 3 links above.  Also, I mentioned this earlier this week - Francis Chan's book "Forgotten God" is a great book about the Holy Spirit. Do you have any other Holy Spirit books or other resources recommendations?  If so, can you post up in the Comments section below?  Thanks.  What does your relationship with the Holy Spirit look like these days?  Also, what verses or insights stand out to you in today's readings?  Please post up by clicking on the "Comments" link below!

Love, Trust, and Obey Jesus,
Mike

p.s. Download our monthly Small Group study notes for our One Year Bible readings at this link.

p.p.s. Download a schedule of our One Year Bible readings for the year in PDF format at this link.

p.p.p.s. I would greatly appreciate it if you would pray for this One Year Bible Blog ministry today. Thanks!

Comments

[Ramona]

Leviticus 6-7:27

O.K. something must have been lost in the translation. How does one do the following unintentionally:

If anyone sins and commits a trespass against the Lord and deals falsely with his neighbor in a matter of deposit given him to keep, or of bargain or pledge, or of robbery, or has oppressed his neighbor, Or has found what was lost and lied about it, or swears falsely, in any of all the things which men do and sin in so doing, Then if he has sinned and is guilty, he shall restore what he took by robbery, or what he secured by oppression or extortion, or what was delivered him to keep in trust, or the lost thing which he found,
(Leviticus 6:2-4 AMP)

If a guilt offering is offered for “unintentional” sin, how can what is being described in this above passage be considered unintentional? Something MUST have been lost/missed in translating the Hebrew to English. How can one be devious and not know that what you are doing is wrong? The mere fact that people cover up their deeds with lies and “smoke” and “mirrors” gives witness to the fact that they knew that what they did was wrong. Maybe the “unintentional” refers to unintentional until I am “busted” or caught by someone else or my conscience.

In reading several translations of Leviticus 5:14-19, which is right above the King James Translation makes a little more sense; however, the passage states that this “guilt” or trespass offering is for those who have “ignorance of the holy things.”

And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying, If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering: (Leviticus 5:14-15 KJV)

Yet, after hearing the Law, how can one plead ignorance? Beware OYB journeymen and women the more you read, the more you are held accountable for and the less you can claim “ignorance.”

While I chew on the above, I am pleasantly surprised to have confirmed for me that sin and trespass are not one and the same, a trespass is a sin but all sin is not a trespass. According to my friend, Mr/Dr. Strong the Hebrew word translated into our English is:

4604
מעל
ma‛al
mah'-al
From H4608; treachery, that is, sin: - falsehood, grievously, sore, transgression, trespass, X very.

Grace and peace,
Ramona

[Jeff]

Related to today's reading, I found this commentary interesting:
Question:
Why did God tell the Israelites that they could only sacrifice bread that had been made without yeast at the altar of the temple?
Answer:
There are at least two reasons why God made the stipulation that bread intended for sacrifice at the altar had to be without yeast (or "unleavened"). We see one of the reasons in the depiction of the first Passover in Exodus 12:8: "That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast." You may recall that this final meal for the Israelites in Egypt was a meal made speedily, specifically because the Israelites were to leave Egypt immediately once the Pharaoh relinquished his hold on them. Roasting the meat was an efficient way to deal with the fat, the bitter herbs were symbolic of the bitterness of their captivity, and the unleavened bread symbolized the haste in which the flight from Egypt was to take place (in that there was to be no time taken to allow the bread to rise).

A few verses farther on (Exod. 12:15) we see another significant aspect of the symbolism of yeast as it relates to your question. As part of the observance of Passover, purification of the household was symbolized by the removal of all leaven from the house. (In fact, this is still observed in Jewish Passover observances today, often the duty of the children.) Leaven, thus, is frequently understood in Scripture to be symbolic of evil. Christ clearly alludes to this symbolism in Matthew 16:6 ("the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees"). The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 5:6 extends and further illustrates the symbolism in saying, "Don't you know that a little leaven works through the whole batch of dough?" in his instructions to expel from the Corinthian congregation a man who had a sexual relationship with his stepmother. The message is clear: Continued contact of this person with the congregation would spread the influence of evil throughout the church. See also the Q&A Yeast for further information.

As a side note, the Hebrew and Greek in these passages refer to "leaven" rather than to "yeast" (see the last paragraph of Do the Elements of Communion Matter? for the distinction between "leaven" and "yeast").

[Jeff]

I was unclear on Jesus' meaning in Mark 3:29 when He says: "anyone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. It is an eternal sin." I found this article very helpful for understanding:
https://www.gotquestions.org/blasphemy-Holy-Spirit.html