Holiness: A Foreign Concept in Modern Times

Leviticus 10:1-7 and 2 Samuel 6:1-7

There are passages in the bible that tell us about some of the judgements of God on certain people. Some will read these passages and declare God to be unfair. But God was very clear about how things were to be done and laid out procedures for how His holy objects were to be handled (Numbers 4:1-49).

Only the sons of Kohath were to carry the ark, and under no circumstances were any of the holy objects to be touched. God was very clear that touching any of those items would result in death.

Again, God gave very specific instructions for the burning of incense and fire (Exodus 30:1-10).

So, when King David went to get the Ark of the Covenant and was transporting it home, an ox stumbled and the cart was jarred. Instinctively, Uzzah reached up to steady the ark. The moment he touched it, God struck him dead (2 Samuel 6:1-7). And when Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu offered unauthorized fire while performing their duties, God destroyed them as well (Leviticus 10:1-7). A lot of people think of these as harsh and unfair judgements. But God is a Holy God, the Most High God, and He is to be regarded as Holy. He means what He says. He is not the "The Big Guy", He is not "The Man Upstairs", and He is not your buddy. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the Alpha and the Omega. (Colossians 1:15-20)

In Luke 13:1-5, we see that a lot happens to us because of our sin.

But it is because of the free gift of grace in Christ Jesus that we are now free of condemnation (Romans 8:1-2) and it is only in Christ Jesus we find salvation (John 14:6). We are eternally secure in that salvation (Colossians 3:3). What more secure and safe place could there be than in Christ?

God is AWESOME!

No Spoiled Children

John 9:1-3

We are told to cast our cares on the Lord and to ask in faith for our needs and wants to be met (Mark 11:24). But the answer is not always yes.

All through the book of Job, God is proving a point. Job did not understand what was happening or why. But he trusted God and did not blame Him. And in 2nd Corinthians 12:7-9, even the great Apostle Paul asked for his "thorn in the flesh" to be taken away. The answer was no.

Our wise Father is a good Dad. He knows when to say yes and when to say no. He does not spoil His children. He knows what is best for us and what lessons we need to learn and when we need to be humbled. He has the big picture.

We experience things in life that we don't understand. Sometimes people make the unfortunate decision to blame God. They decide He can't be trusted. Some make the decision to draw closer to Him and trust Him no matter what (Job 13:15). I believe God's sovereignty is absolute. He is in very strict control of everything that happens. God has a plan and is not obligated to let me in on His reasons for things. I have decided to trust Him because of this belief. Because He is worthy of my complete trust.

Because God says no does not mean you are lacking in faith. It may mean He is up to something great that will bring you into a closer relationship and a deeper understanding of who He is. What a blessing in that. He may even be teaching someone else something.

God is AWESOME!

The Old School Mountain Top Experience

John 18:1-6

In Exodus 3:13-14, God told Moses to tell Pharaoh that I AM sent him. And on the top of Mount Sinai, when God was speaking to Moses, the people at the foot of the mountain thought it was thunder.

In the garden, when Judas and a detachment of Roman soldiers (anywhere from 300 to 600 soldiers) approached Jesus and His disciples, Jesus asked them who they were looking for.

They said they were looking for Jesus the Nazarene. The NASB bible says that Jesus replied "I am he." The original language does not have he there. He said I AM. When He said that, they all went back and fell to the ground.

I am thinking it was that same thunderous voice filled with unspeakable power that slammed 600 soldiers to the deck. I think for that moment, He wanted to remind Judas and the Romans exactly who it was they were dealing with.

I don't know how long it took them to regroup and shake it off. But after this event, Christ Jesus allowed them to continue what they had come to do, because it was His Father's perfect will. And our Savior obeyed and fulfilled His role as The Lamb of God for our sakes.

He didn't have to go through any of it. But to make us whole again and save His bride, He finished it. He was our Scapegoat (Leviticus 16:20-22).

God is indeed AWESOME!

Jeepers Creepers

Colossians 1:11-20

The church at Colosse, around the 1st or 2nd century, had some false teachers creeping in (not unlike churches in our modern world). They were teaching that Christ Jesus is not the way to slavation. Rather, knowledge of secret things, among other things was the way to redemtion. A teaching referred to as Gnosticism.

There was also the old classic legalism. That is disheartening to find in any church.

Epaphras went to Rome and met with the Apostle Paul. He let Paul know his concerns about what was happening in Colosse, and asked for some advise on how to approach a solution to the false teachings.

Paul wrote a letter to the church at Colosse in response to the concerns of Epaphras.

It's the section on the preeminence of Christ that I would like to focus on here.

The bible is filled with warnings about false teachings. 1 John 4:1, 2 Peter 2:1, Matthew 7:15, just to name a few. In his letter to Timothy, Paul goes as far as to say they are doctrines of demons(1 Timothy 4:1).

In our current "woke" culture, there are blasphemous teachings creeping into some of the more liberal congregations. The bible warns against that too (Isaiah 5:20 and Romans 1:25).

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul reminds them who, exactly, the head of the church is (Colossians 1:15-18). There are two little words in verse 16 that we can't miss. Colossians 1:16 - For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him.

It's not about us. It is all about Christ Jesus. This is all His. Everything known and unknown in our universe is His. Created by Him and for Him. And it all holds together in Him. That's why when He died on the cross, creation began to unravel (Matthew 27:41-52).

There is no salvation with Jesus plus fill in the blank. There is salvation only in Christ alone. He alone qualifies us to be able to stand before our God with no fault in us, clean and free of the stain of our sins. (Colossians 1:11-22 and Jude 24).

God is AWSOME!

One Man's Trash...

Hebrews 9:1-4

Most people have at least one particular item that is special to them. Something that anyone else would see as junk, but for you, it has real meaning.

I know I have a few of those things. Things that nobody would assign any real value to, but for me are priceless treasures.

A lot of things found in antiquity are like that. Things that are of any interest only to scholars of history or archeology. One such thing would be the Ark of the Covenant. It has been the subject of superstions and fantasy for many thousands of years. It's contents are some old tablets, an old stick and some old bread.

For those of us who believe, these items have profound significance. They point directly to our Messiah

The The Ark itself was for the Spirit of God to dwell, and according to Hebrews chapter 9, it was to house the tablets of the covenant (or law), Aaron's rod that budded and the manna from Heaven. Our Savior is all of these things. He is the fulfillment of the whole law. He is our High Priest, haveing sacrificed Himself for our sins. He is the Bread of Life. And it is only in Him that we find hope.

God is AWESOME!

The Hope We Have

There are so many situations that, for those experiencing them, seem absolutely hopeless.

But for those of us who believe, there is hope. No matter how bad it gets, our hope is in Christ Jesus. We can say, as Job said, "I know my Redeemer lives." (Job 19:25-27)

One of the many encounters the bible tells us about is found in the book of The Gospel According to Mark. Mark (Mark 5:1-20) tells us about an unusual exchange between Jesus and a demon possessed man. They had just crossed a lake, and when they came ashore, the demon possessed man, who had been quite a problem for the people who lived there, came running up and fell at the feet of Jesus.

In my mind's eye, I imagine how this happened. The man, moving among the tombs, terrorizing anyone who happened by, was suddenly gripped in fear. A panic rose in the evil that inhabitted the poor man. A fear for their very existence. They sensed an unspeakable power approaching. The same power that brought an entire universe into being simply by willing it, the same power that overwhelmed them and hurled them to Earth so long ago. The One whose Name sent shivers of terror through all of their kind. All they could think to do was to fall down at His feet and beg Him for mercy.

Jesus ordered them out, and they had no choice but to obey. This is the very same Jesus in Whom we hope.

No matter how bad it gets, no matter what is happening to us or our loved ones, though it may be hard to see from the midst of it, Jesus holds out hope. He will NEVER leave us or forsake us. Let not your heart be troubled. Our Redeemer lives!

God is AWESOME!

Thanksgiving

As the American holiday of Thanksgiving approaches, I have been thinking of all the things I'm thankful for. There are all the usual things...family, friends, life and health. But what I have been mainly thinking is that I'm very thankful for the ability to reason. For imagination and intelect.

God gave us our minds for a reason. The main one, I think, is so that we can grow to understand Him better. To learn about who He is and what He has done.

Science and faith are not mutually exclusive. One compliments the other. Because of science, we are beginning to understand the vastness of space and how orderly the universe actually is.

God has made His existence obvious through His creation, if we just take the time to look and pay attention. When you really look, you can only come to the conclusion that there is a design.(Romans 1:18-20)

Just a quick thank you to our wise Father who created everything in Christ Jesus. In Him and for Him.