KING OF KINGS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, ‘Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,’ be sure to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your own brothers. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not a brother Israelite. The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again.’ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.”

“When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.”

Deuteronomy 17:14-20

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we continue our study of Deuteronomy, we know that the Israelites are set to enter Canaan but aren’t under the rule of any king but this didn’t mean that they wouldn’t have one in the future. Of course, God knows holds the future in His hands and so He knew well in advance that His people would co-exist among other nations who were led by kings so it would only be a matter of time before they would want to follow suit. Given this, we see Him providing guidance on the matter well before it happened in our passage for today from chapter 17. Look again at those words here:

“When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, ‘Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,’ be sure to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your own brothers. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not a brother Israelite. The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again.’ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.”

“When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and not consider himself better than his brothers and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.” Vv. 14-20

Here, we see the Lord placing certain requirements on the future kings of Israel:

First, the king was to be an Israelite. No foreigner was to rule Israel.

“He must be from among your own brothers. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not a brother Israelite.”

Secondly, the king was also supposed to remain modest in the things he possessed. He was to “not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them”. They were to “not take many wives” which would lead to the king’s “heart (being) led astray”. He also wasn’t supposed to “accumulate large amounts of silver and gold”.

Why?

Because the Lord said so, that’s why. Any king needed to know that although they were in a position of authority in Israel, they always answered to a higher power.

This truth leads into the third and final requirement for we read that the king was commanded to “write for himself on a scroll a copy of (the) law, taken from that of the priests, who are Levites”. The kings were to do this when they took the throne of the kingdom and were to keep the scroll with them, reading it “all the days of his life so that” they would “learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and…decrees”. This would result in the king not considering “himself better than his brothers” and keep him from turning “from the law to the right or to the left”.

There was no question that the king would hold the highest position of power over the people of Israel however, the human king’s power paled in comparison to his master, the Lord God Almighty, the King of Kings. It was He and He alone who set the standards by which all other kings would rule by and did it because He expected them to rule as He wanted them to rule, with justice and fairness with humility.

My friends, what an awesome assurance this offers us today as we find ourselves under human, worldly rule. For despite who is elected, believers know and understand who is truly in charge, the infinitely omnipotent Creator God, the One that Paul says is the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live” (1 Corinthians 8:6). Despite what happens in government, we can always find comfort in knowing the One who holds the government on His shoulders (Isaiah 9: 6) and is ultimately in control, no matter who the world puts in charge.

In closing, my prayer is that we all can testify the following as Timothy did about God:

“…the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To Him be honor and might forever.” 1 Timothy 6:15

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

GOD'S FINAL VERDICT

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge - whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults - take them to the place the Lord your God will choose. Go to the priests, who are Levites, and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict. You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they direct you to do. Act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left. The man who shows contempt for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering there to the Lord your God must be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel. All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again.”

Deuteronomy 17:8-13

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In Chapter 16, we saw guidance provided for those who would be judges over Israel once they enter Canaan. You’ll recall that they were expected to “judge the people fairly…not pervert justice or show partiality…(and) not accept a bribe”. They were to “follow justice and justice alone” in all they would do.

But what would happen if they had a case where they just didn’t know how to rule on it? For they were under clear direction from the Lord to follow justice and failing to do so would bring God’s judgment upon them.

Well, as we see in today’s scripture passage, the Lord provides guidance for those instances when the appointed judges would get stuck when trying to render a decision. Look again at those words here:

“If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge - whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults - take them to the place the Lord your God will choose. Go to the priests, who are Levites, and to the judge who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict. You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they direct you to do. Act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left. The man who shows contempt for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering there to the Lord your God must be put to death. You must purge the evil from Israel. All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again.” Deuteronomy 17:8-13

Note here that in instances where they had a case too difficult to judge, they were to take the case “to the place the Lord” would choose. Once there, they were to “go to the priests”, the Levites, and “to the judge who is in office at that time” where they would “inquire of them” and get a verdict.

We need to stay centered on them going to the place that the Lord chose for this was akin to being the place where He would abide and preside over the legal proceedings. Given this, we know that the Spirit of the Lord was advising the officiating judge and the priests which made the decision they made His, their verdict, His verdict.

This is why there was so much emphasis placed on how the verdict was to be received by the accused. They were to “act according to the decisions” made “at the place the Lord” chose and “be careful to do everything they direct you to do”. They were to “act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you” and “not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left”. In other words, nothing but full obedience and compliance with the verdict was acceptable for we know well from the scriptures that God doesn’t tolerate disobedience.

So what would happen if the accused rebelled against the verdict?

Nothing good, that’s for sure.

For we read that if any man showed “contempt for the judge or for the priest who (stood) ministering….to the Lord your God”, they were to be “put to death”. This is how much God despised disobedience, viewing it as a disrespectful evil, an evil that He tasked the Israelites with purging. In the end translation, the Lord continued to drive His people toward obedience and reverence for Him. He wanted them to “hear and be afraid…and…not be contemptuous again”.

Now, can you imagine if we were executed by this standard for every time we received righteous judgment for our actions today? Would any of us escape the death penalty?

The answer is a definite “no” and God knew this so He did something about it to save us from perishing. He sent His one and only Son Jesus to purchase our pardon from our transgressions. Nailed to Calvary’s cross, He bore our sins and took the suffering that was rightfully ours.

Indeed, God allowed Jesus to be executed instead of mankind who chose to defy and sinfully break His commands and expectations, over and over and over again. As the old hymn proclaims, “Jesus paid it all” and took the our punishment for disobedience, and God hoped that this unjust sacrifice of His perfect, blameless Son would lead His people to live righteous and holy lives as a sign of gratitude, appreciation, and respect for His gift of grace and mercy. Additionally, Jesus’ subsequent resurrection three days after His crucifixion would open the gates of Heaven for anyone who would place their belief in Him and become a co-heir of the Kingdom as well as a legitimate child of the God Most High.

Going back to the legal theme of this scripture passage, the case against mankind was sin and the proper, just penalty was death. But God rendered a different decision, a decision that essentially said:

“No man who believes in My Son will die because my Son died in their place.”

It was God’s final verdict on the matter of who will reach Heaven or Hell and as believers today, we need to be hyper-sensitive to  any sin opportunity that presents itself to us in this worldly life. For we can never afford to send a message to God that He allowed His Son Jesus to be sacrificed in vain and so anytime we feel the urge to think, say, or do something dishonorable to our God, let us turn our eyes to the cross and then do as our Savior would do, fully allow the will of the Father to be our own. It’s the only way that we can ensure that we’ll always be living in a way that is pleasing in His sight.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole beside the altar you build to the Lord your God, and do not erect a sacred stone, for these the Lord your God hates.”

"Do not sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that has any defect or flaw in it, for that would be detestable to Him.”

“If a man or woman living among you in one of the towns the Lord gives you is found doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God in violation of His covenant, and contrary to my command has worshiped other gods, bowing down to them or to the sun or the moon or the stars of the sky, and this has been brought to your attention, then you must investigate it thoroughly. If it is true and it has been proved that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, take the man or woman who has done this evil deed to your city gate and stone that person to death. On the testimony of two or three witnesses a man shall be put to death, but no one shall be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. The hands of the witnesses must be the first in putting him to death, and then the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from among you.”

Deuteronomy 16:21, 17:1-7

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

In the final of Deuteronomy, chapter 16, into the first seven verses of chapter 17, we see God’s Word once again addressing the matter of proper worship. You’ll remember that the Israelites are on the verge of crossing the Jordan River to take over the land God had promised them. Within Canaan, God fully knew about the pagan, polytheistic practices of its inhabitants which included the erection of Asherah poles and sacred stones to worship their gods.

This was obviously completely counter to what God commanded His people to do because He had made it clear that He was the only true God and there would be no rooms for any other gods worshiped ahead of Him. This included the forming of any idols.

So with Israel entering a land where the people showed reverence toward many different gods, the Lord had a genuine concern that His people might be influenced adversely to adopt the worship standards of the idol worshippers, lifting up “other gods, bowing down to them or to the sun or the moon or the stars of the sky”. In doing so, they would be doing “evil in the eyes of the Lord…in violation of His covenant and contrary to (His) command.”

We should note that this evil wouldn’t go unpunished for we read where God imposed the death penalty on offenders as long as there was solid evidence against them. The God of Israel (who is our same God today) cared deeply about justice and so before a person would be put to death, there had to be two or three witnesses to testify about the sin committed. A single accuser wouldn’t cut it, largely to prevent someone from getting killed as a result of one person who might have a grudge against that person, making a false accusation.

Through these verses, we see where God expects us to stay true to His Word and way, no matter where we are or who we are around. You see, Satan too often surrounds us with the things of the world, sinful things that run counter to what God desires, things that try to entice and draw us in. Too often, we give into these temptations, or in other words, we turn from good toward evil, mostly because we place our wants ahead of the Lord’s.

If sex is our desire, then we will pursue and find it, regardless of what God has said. And Satan is ready to tempt us and lead us astray (Romans 1:24-25).

If alcohol, drugs, or any other substance is our desire, then Satan will make the way for us to access them, regardless of what God has said (Ephesians 5:18).

If money and wealth are our desire, then Satan will work hard to get us obsessed with materialism, regardless of the dangers that God has warned about (1 Timothy 6:10).

I could go on and on but you get the point. There are many things in life that we seek to tempt us but when it comes to surrendering to those temptations, it’s all on us. There’s no question that we have a choice.

But…there’s also no question that we serve a God who is ready to grant all the power we need to fight off the temptations of the devil, granting us strength to stay rooted in good.

Let’s all give thanks to God for this truth, keeping in mind these words found in the prayer that Jesus taught us:

Thanks be to God for His strength and guidance. Let us ever continue to recite these words from our savior Jesus:

“…lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.“ Matthew 6:9-13

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

TWO STEPS TO JUST LIVING

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Appoint judges and officials for each of your tribes in every town the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly. Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.”

Deuteronomy 16:18-20

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

From the time I began attending school as a first-grader, I can remember beginning each day by standing and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. The words that echoed off my classroom walls back in the mid-60’s still resonate in many school classrooms today:

I pledge allegiance to the flag

Of the United States of America

And to the republic for which it stands

One nation, under God, indivisible

With liberty and justice for all

In the United States, we are, for the most part, a people concerned about justice and fair treatment for all. I would like to think that this is because we proclaim ourselves as being “one nation under God” (because it’s the truth) and we are concerned about justice because He was and is. In fact, we place a premium on fairness, not because we have developed such a moral construct but because He has instilled it within us. As with all things, He is the source and therefore the One worthy of the honor and glory.

As we turn to today’s passage and our continuing study of Deuteronomy, chapter 16, we see our Lord speaking on this matter, reading where the people of Israel were expected to “appoint judges and officials for each of (their) tribes in every town the Lord your God (was) giving (them)”. These appointed judges were expected to “judge the people fairly”, not “pervert justice or show partiality” or “accept a bribe” which would serve to “blind the eyes of the wise and twist the words of the righteous.” The reward for fulfilling these expectations would be that Israel would be able to “live and possess the land the Lord…(was) giving (them)”.

The point is this.

God expects justice to be done by all. Period. And this means that everyone is to do the right and righteous thing at all times to include acting justly. The prophet Micah gave us some tips to ensure we meet this requirement. Let’s call them two steps to just living. He said:

“…what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8

It’s within this single verse that we find the following two steps we need to take:

First, we need to walk humbly with God.

What does it mean to be humble?

In a nutshell, we’re to be compliant and obedient, meek, respectful, polite, deferential, courteous, and well-mannered. We aren’t to carry ourselves around as rude or arrogant or better than others. Rather, we’re to treat everyone with kindness and equality, ever displaying the grace that we receive from our Lord.

Indeed, we need to embody all these things but we won’t ever reach the goal of humility if we don’t first walk with God for He, and only He, will keep us grounded and away from falling into sinful pride.

It’s Him, and only Him, who can and will teach us to do step number 2: Love mercy.

For once we’re walking in humility by first walking with our God, we will come to love mercy.

Why?

Because we’re connected to the God who loves mercy. He embodies it to perfection.

And so by humbling ourselves, allowing the Lord’s desires to be our own, there is no doubt that we will find ourselves showing compassion, forgiveness, kindness, empathy, and understanding to others. We will have sincere concern and consideration for people, able to sympathize with those who are going through difficulties.

In other words, we will live lives that exude mercy and do so because we are committed to a God who loves it.

Our Lord expects us to walk humbly with Him and love mercy…and when we do both to the measure that He commands, then we will live justly as He expects.

My prayer is that we all learn and embrace these two steps to just living, putting them into practice in our lives.  

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

DON'T COME EMPTY HANDED

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. Then celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. And rejoice before the Lord your God at the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name - you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, the Levites in your towns, and the aliens, the fatherless, and the widows living among you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and follow carefully these decrees.”

“Celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. Be joyful at your Feast - you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites, the aliens, the fatherless, and the widows who live in your towns. For seven days celebrate the Feast to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.”

“Three times a year, all your men must appear before the Lord your God at the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. No man should appear before the Lord empty-handed: Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.”

Deuteronomy 16:9-17

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Earlier in this sixteenth chapter of Deuteronomy, we saw Moses reminding the Israelites of their responsibility to celebrate the Passover. As we continue today, we see him providing further guidance in regard to three festivals prescribed by God: the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Look again at these verses now:

“Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. Then celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. And rejoice before the Lord your God at the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name - you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, the Levites in your towns, and the aliens, the fatherless, and the widows living among you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and follow carefully these decrees.”

“Celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. Be joyful at your Feast - you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites, the aliens, the fatherless, and the widows who live in your towns. For seven days celebrate the Feast to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.”

“Three times a year, all your men must appear before the Lord your God at the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. No man should appear before the Lord empty-handed: Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.” Deuteronomy 16:9-17

Like the previous mentioning of the Passover observance, these three feasts were mentioned to a prior generation of Israelites. For when we go back to the Book of Exodus, chapter 23, we see where the directions mimic what’s found in our passage above. There were the same three designated festivals and “all the men (were) to appear before the Sovereign Lord” at the time and place designated by God. These celebrations are also mentioned in the Book of Leviticus.

The Feast of the Unleavened Bread was to begin the day after the Passover and Israel was required to “eat bread made without yeast” for seven days (Leviticus 23:6).

The Feast of the Harvest was also called the Feast of Weeks and of interest, would later be called Pentecost (meaning fifty) in the New Testament. Here’s what the Lord said regarding the observance in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus:

“From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord. Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings - an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering. The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest. On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.”

“When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the Lord your God." Vv. 15-22 

Putting things together, this is the way the festivals were to proceed:

Passover (the first feast) was followed the next day by the first of the seven days allotted for the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It’s typically believed that Jesus shared His final Passover with His disciples on Thursday evening before being arrested in Gethsemane’s garden that evening. His trial before the Sanhedrin, time with the Roman leaders Pontius Pilate and Herod Antipas, brutal beating and scourging, and eventual crucifixion all occurred on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread which was followed by the Sabbath observance (the second day of the Feast). The Sabbath was then followed by the Feast of the Firstfruits, celebrating the first fruits of the harvest. This was the day when Jesus was resurrected in power from the tomb, God bringing the opportunity for eternal life through His first fruit offering, His one and only Son.

After this, the people of Israel were to start counting fifty days “up to the day after the seventh Sabbath” (Leviticus 23:16). These fifty days (or seven weeks plus one) covered the time when the grain, barley, and wheat harvests would be accomplished, thus the alternate celebration title, “Feast of the Harvest”.  

The final of the feasts mentioned in this passage was the Feast of the Tabernacles, also known as the Feast of the Ingathering or Feast of Booths. Whereas Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of the Firstfruits were held in the first month of the Jewish calendar (Abib/Nisan in early spring), the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths) was to be held on the fifteenth day of the seventh month (Tishrei in early autumn) and last for one week. During this time of sacrifices and celebration, the Israelite people were to live in booths for the week because this is what their descendants had done after departing their captivity in Egypt and journeying to Canaan, the land God had promised them. Of interest, this feast was also known as the Feast of the Ingathering because the Lord required the people to “ingather” the labor of the field (Exodus 23:16), “ingather” the threshing floor and winepress (Deuteronomy 16:13), and “ingather” the fruit of the earth (Leviticus 23:39).

Okay, so this is a good overview of the prescribed feasts that all men were required to attend but before I finish, there’s one last important item in our passage that we need to cover. For the scriptures tell us this in regard to the men attending these festivals:

“No man should appear before the Lord empty-handed: Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.”

In other words, God had given His people an abundance of blessings. He had provided them all they could hope for in the way of providence and provision, and He expected that they would give back to Him in return as an expression of their gratitude.

We should know that the same applies to us today but how well do we really respond to the goodness of our Lord? Do we give to Him in return to show we’re thankful? Or do we choose to come to Him empty-handed?

And just to be clear here. This is more than about money or other material offerings. We don’t get a “get out of obligation” card because we might struggle with finances in some way. For God has blessed us with other things that we can give back to Him, things like our time and our talents. He has given each of us gifts that a price value can’t be applied to, gifts that He expects us to use in serving others and bringing Him honor and glory.

The bottom line here is that everything that we have, just as it was with ancient Israel,  comes from God who then expects all of us to be good stewards of what He has provided. He can assess us by the way we live the life He has granted, watching to see if we give Him a viable return from what He had invested in us.

God has given us more than we could ever hope for and more than we could ever need. Further, all this is far more than we deserve. All He wants us to do is give back to Him in return.

As you come into this day and the ones to follow, what offering from your life will you bring to the Lord?

My recommendation is to give something and never come to Him empty-handed.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

DO YOU REMEMBER?

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

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** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the Lord your God, because in the month of Abib, He brought you out of Egypt by night. Sacrifice as the Passover to the Lord your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the Lord will choose as a dwelling for His Name. Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste - so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt. Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening of the first day remain until morning.”

“You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you except in the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of your departure from Egypt. Roast it and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. For six days, eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day, hold an assembly to the Lord your God and do no work.”

Deuteronomy 16:1-8

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Chapter 16 of the Book of Deuteronomy opens with words on the Passover and as we have seen elsewhere in this book so far, Moses is simply taking God’s earlier instructions and reminding Israel of them as they are about to enter the Promised Land.

Now, you might wonder why Moses had to go to such lengths in resurrecting commands from the Lord and bringing them back to the forefront for God’s people. The reasoning is clear when we keep in mind that this group of Israelites was a completely new generation, one that wasn’t in Egypt when the Lord’s deliverance from enslavement happened or on the forty day exodus to Canaan that followed. They weren’t at Mount Sinai when the Ten Commandments and others important directives were issued by God nor were they in the company of those who blew the first chance to enter the Promised Land, those who died off in the desert wilderness after God sent them back into it for forty years as punishment for their disobedience. Now, this newly minted cohort of Israelites was ready to succeed where their ancestors had failed, ready to now cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land the Lord had promised Abraham approximately 470 years before.  

And so this was why it was of such great importance for Moses to invest so much time reminding this generation of Israelites of what God expected from them.

When we look at the prescribed observance of Passover, we see where it was a matter of remembrance, remembrance of the oppression and affliction that Israel had suffered at the hands of Pharaoh and Egypt, and how God had delivered them from that suffering, rescuing them because He valued them as His chosen people while fulfilling the covenant He had made with Abraham (Genesis 17:1-8).

Going back to our scripture passage for today, we see where Israel was to “observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the Lord…because in the month of Abib He (God) brought (them) out of Egypt by night”. They weren’t to “sacrifice the Passover in (just) any town the Lord your God (gave them) except in the place He (chose) as a dwelling for His Name”. And once there, the Israelites were “sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of (their) departure from Egypt.”

After this point, the Passover tradition continued, albeit sporadically through the Old Testament before reaching a pinnacle in the New Testament with Jesus, the One who was the final Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7), the Lamb of God who came and took away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

The day before His crucifixion, Jesus would share His final Passover meal on earth and of interest, the disciples came to their Master and asked where they should make preparations.

On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do You want us to make preparations for You to eat the Passover?”

He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with My disciples at your house.’”

So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. Matthew 26:17-19

This modeled the following from our verses for today in Deuteronomy:

“You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you except in the place He will choose as a dwelling for His Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of your departure from Egypt.”

After the disciples had made Passover preparations as Jesus asked, we find Him sharing the meal with His disciples, an event known today as the Last Supper or Lord’s Supper. Thankfully, the scriptures capture what happened there:

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And He said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."

After taking the cup, He gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

In the same way, after the supper He took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.” Luke 22:14-20

Going back to the looming Israelite release from Egyptian captivity, it was the blood of the slain, unblemished lamb that had been brushed on the doorframes of Israel at Passover which led to Israel being spared from the death penalty that fell on Egypt’s first born. Then later, it was the blood of God’s first born Son, Jesus, that would spare all mankind from the death penalty of sin and offer the opportunity of deliverance into eternal life for all who would simply believe in Jesus as their Savior.

In other words, the blood of Jesus washes away the sin of His disciples who that they experience the miraculous experience of death passing over them as they are ushered into a new, eternal life with the God and Christ, the Ones who made it all possible.

Today, we find Christian churches being obedient to the Lord’s call to remember Him by partaking of the bread and cup whether they refer to the sacrament as the Lord’s Supper, Holy Communion, or the Eucharist. And as the bread is consumed and the wine or juice drank, Christian believers are reminded of Jesus and the willing, selfless sacrifice He experienced in order to save them. Indeed, through this observance, believers are able to remain rooted in their Savior and remember the suffering and sacrifice He went through, the great price that was paid for their pardon and redemption.

But we need to ask ourselves, “Should the formal rite of this special meal prescribed by Jesus be the only time we should remember all He has done to bring us the sure hope of salvation?

I think we would agree that the answer is certainly not, and yet the affairs of life can serve to distract and draw our attention away from the cross. To prevent that from happening, here are some things that all Christians should institute into their daily spiritual routines:

First, they need to read from the gospels daily and it doesn’t matter which of the four. We just need to make sure we are reading about the life and ministry of Jesus without ceasing. After all, as Christians we are to be Christ-like and we’ll never know how to live as Jesus did if we don’t know how that looks.

In the gospels, we see Jesus deal with nearly every situation or circumstance we will go through in life and through Him, we learn how to best deal with those situations and circumstances when they occur.

Further, the more we know about Him and the more we get to know of Him, then the more we will be in relationship with Him because Jesus isn’t dead by any means. We serve a living Savior who longs to have a personal relationship with us.

And this leads me to the second way we can remember Jesus daily…through prayer.

When we read the Gospels, we quickly see that prayer was central to Jesus and His life. Yes, He invested a lot of time in service to His people but He also took time out to personally communicate with His Father, the Father who is ours as well, the Father who us in Heaven as we say at the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer which is the prayer Jesus taught us to pray (Matthew 6:9-13).

Today, God and His Son Jesus who sits at His right hand still awaits our prayers today, yearning for a personal relationship with each and every person they worked to save. It’s through this prayer and conversation that we have the blessed opportunity to thank them for all they have done, the least we can do given the great depth of suffering and loss that came with bringing us salvation. Our daily conversations with our Lord serves to show our deep, heartfelt gratitude for Him while letting Him know that we will always remember and appreciate all He has done, all He is doing, and all He is yet to do.

Friends, let’s not let a day go by where we fail to thank our God and Jesus for loving us enough that they were willing to do whatever it took to save us from the penalty of Hell while blessing us with the gift of Heaven.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com 

THE BLESSED FIRSTBORN

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Set apart for the Lord your God every firstborn male of your herds and flocks. Do not put the firstborn of your oxen to work, and do not shear the firstborn of your sheep. Each year you and your family are to eat them in the presence of the Lord your God at the place He will choose. If an animal has a defect, is lame or blind, or has any serious flaw, you must not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. You are to eat it in your own towns. Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it, as if it were gazelle or deer. But you must not eat the blood; pour it out on the ground like water.”

Deuteronomy 15:19-23

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we see in today’s scripture passage, Moses is continuing to provide guidance to the Israelites right before they get set to enter the Promised Land, not under his leadership but rather Joshua’s.

As we look at our text, we see the main focus is on God’s expectations for proper treatment and sacrificing of the first born as well as how the Israelites were to deal with animals with defects. We should note here the importance of keeping the firstborn set apart and dedicated to God, for they had been distinguished by Him as His special property that would only be sacrificed and eaten as He dictated, in His presence at the place where He would designate.

This isn’t the first place we have seen God mention the unique nature of the firstborn. The earliest this happens is in the Book of Genesis, chapter 4, during the account of Cain and Abel:

“In the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor.” Genesis 4:3-5

In this passage, Bible readers are immediately shown that the Lord expects to receive nothing short of their best. Cain brought some of his fruits but not his firstfruits and in return, he didn’t gain God’s favor. Conversely, Abel brought fat from his flock’s firstborn and this was pleasing to the Lord.

Moving onto the Book of Exodus, we find the Lord instituting the Passover and placing even stronger significance on the firstborn. You’ll recall that He had sent a series of curses on the nation of Egypt, trying to convince its leader, Pharaoh, to release the Israelites from their captivity. The tenth and last of those curses was the worst, as “every firstborn - both men and animals” were killed as God brought “judgment on all the gods of Egypt” (Exodus 12:12). The only ones spared in Egypt were God’s chosen ones, the Israelites, who had spread the blood of a sacrificed perfect lamb on the sides and tops of their homes’ door frames. As a result, these homes were passed over by God and the Jewish firstborn were spared. Soon thereafter, Pharaoh, having lost his own firstborn son, finally did as Moses had demanded earlier when he passed on God’s command, “Let my people go” (Exodus 10:3).

From that time forward, the day of Passover would become a benchmark for future matters of the firstborn. For in the thirteenth chapter of Exodus, we find this from the Lord:

The Lord said to Moses, “Consecrate to Me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to Me, whether human or animal.”

“After the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites and gives it to you, as He promised on oath to you and your ancestors, you are to give over to the Lord the first offspring of every womb. All the firstborn males of your livestock belong to the Lord.”

Exodus 13:1-2, 11-12

Again, we see God making it clear that He wanted Israel’s best and the Passover was the appointed day to remind them of this. Their firstborn, the firstfruits from the womb, were to be set apart for Him and His sparing of Israel’s firstborn was the first display of His grace and redemption in Egypt, preceding Israel’s release and subsequence deliverance from the hands of Pharaoh.

After this, firstborn sons would gain special privilege in Israelite culture. They would be the ones entitled to a special share in the family inheritance and assume family leadership responsibilities after their father’s death. It was a blessing that belonged to them by their birthright.

The scriptures clearly show us that God established the firstborn as being of absolute importance to Him. Just as He always gave His people the best, He expected the same from them in return. In regard to the former, we need only look to the cross of Calvary to see how far God was willing to go to help His beloved ones for it was there that He willingly and willfully gave up His own firstborn Son, Jesus, so anyone who believed in Him wouldn’t perish but gain eternal life (John 3:16).

Indeed, God surrendered His one and only Son - the perfect, precious, unblemished Lamb of God - and allowed Him to be sacrificed in our place so we could have the opportunity to be saved from our sins, washed clean by His shed blood. In support of this, look at this passage from Paul’s epistle to the Hebrews:

“…without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He entered Heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did He enter Heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people…“ (Hebrews 9:22-28)

The Bible’s message is clear.

Jesus, God’s firstborn Son, was the final sacrifice needed for mankind. Through Him, the sins of anyone who believed in Him, those who then became the children of God, were taken away. This released them from the bondage of their transgressions, liberating them just as Israel had been set free from Egypt’s Pharaoh.

Further, through God’s redemption and grace found in Jesus, every saved sinner has earned the right to have a part in a special inheritance, co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17) who have gained the blessed assurance of eternal life where they were abide with God the Father and Jesus, His Son, forever.  

In the end translation, Christ’s resurrection paved the way for the rest of us to follow after we travel our respective journeys in life where we seek to walk in His divine footsteps, the One who is the Way and the Truth and the Life and the only One who can bring anyone to God (John 14:6).

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.