February 11, 2009

Leviticus 6:14-8:21

In ch. 8, Aaron and his brothers are ordained as priests. The Urim and Thummim were some kind of oracle – possibly stones that were cast on the ground like dice – to help make difficult decisions with God’s guidance.

One of the good things about reading the whole Bible is that you find out how different our context is from some people in Bible times. Sometimes, people will quote a verse or two out of context to prove their point, but that is not taking the Bible seriously on its own terms. Looking back on Leviticus 3:16, I remember a humorous basis for a weight loss program: “All fat is the Lord’s.” That’s a tongue-in-cheek motivation for getting in shape, but of course the verse is not talking about weight loss at all.

Matthew 26:26-46

It’s amazing. Again, the New Testament passage helps illuminate the Old Testament passage (or they illuminate one another). Here, we see the beginning of Jesus’ self sacrifice “for many for the forgiveness of sins.” In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prays, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.” He doesn’t want to go there, but is willing to obey God’s will. This does not mean that God ‘wanted’ Jesus to die, as if God were an evil parent. It means that the cross is what God – through Jesus – had to endure for us and our salvation.

February 10, 2009

Leviticus 4:1-6:13

We continue here with offerings for purification and reparation to God for sin and uncleanness. Again, though we do not follow these rules about burnt offerings, the need for forgiveness and reconciliation with God remains a universal need. The last verse, 6:13, may be the basis for our practice of having a ‘perpetual candle’ lit in our sanctuary.

Matthew 26:1-25

The plot against Jesus thickens, and the disciple Judas accepts 30 pieces of silver to betray Jesus. An unnamed woman of Bethany anoints Jesus’ head with costly ointment. Jesus recognizes that she was (probably unknowingly) preparing him for burial. Jesus’ saying, “you always have the poor with you,” is not a justification to not help the poor, but a recognition that sometimes honoring Jesus or God with our resources is exactly what we are called to do.

Feb. 9

Exodus 40; Leviticus 1-3

I am now back from our Lakes Area Confirmation Retreat. I feel like I can finally take a breather and get caught up. Here are links to my last two sermons, including the one I wrote both for the confirmation retreat and for Mindy to preach at our church. For some reason, I told a lot of jokes in these sermons (perhaps I’ve preached a lot of serious sermons lately):

2009-2-1 Casting Spirits

2009-2-8 Servant King

I am finally getting caught up on the readings. Exodus 32 has the story of the golden calf. What struck me in the story is a) it doesn’t take the people long to clamor for an idol to worship (doesn’t that sound familiar in America!), and b) Moses’ entreaties to God change God’s mind about wiping out the people. In Ex. 34, Moses fasts in the Lord’s presence on Mount Sinai for forty days and nights. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Remember Jesus’ wilderness temptation? At the end of the 40 days, Moses’ face shined with God’s reflected glory. It reminds me of the t-shirt saying: Be the moon; reflect the Son.

Long ago, Leviticus was called the Priest’s Manual, and that is what it is. While the book of Exodus tells of the construction of the tabernacle, Leviticus details what went on in that tabernacle. There is a strong emphasis in Leviticus on holiness – being holy, set apart, pure, before God. While we do not follow every verse in Leviticus, about how precisely one is to be holy before God, that does not mean that we abandon the concern for holiness. It’s just that the content of what makes one holy is different for followers of Christ than it was for ancient Israel. More on that as we go along.

Matthew 25:14-46

Two wonderful and terrifying parables from Matthew 25. The first tells of the importance of using the ‘talents’ God gives us, rather than burying them in the ground. The second lifts up God’s passion for the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger (think of God’s concern for resident aliens in one’s nation), the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned. When we meet them, we meet Jesus. Whatever we do for them we do for Jesus. If you want to know what the content of holiness is in the New Testament (as well as in much of the Old Testament prophets), here it is in a nutshell.

February 2 Bible Blog

Exodus 26:26-28:43

Hey folks, I am sorry for the lack of regular Bible Blogs. What I realize I need to do is set a regular time to read and blog about the Bible. Otherwise, with all the other things to do each day, it gets pushed off until later, and then never happens – often I read, but then don’t get around to writing. The good news is that, just this little extra encouragement is keeping me reading through the Bible this year. If you have any questions about what you are reading, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Reading on in Exodus, isn’t it amazing how the Egyptians call the Israelite slaves “lazy,” when they have trouble making their quota of bricks when they have to both gather the straw and make the bricks? Ch. 5. God cares about God’s people Israel, and sends Moses and Aaron to free them.

In chapter 12, we read about the first Passover. There is so much here that will come up again in the Bible. Remember, Jesus’ Last Supper was a Passover meal. Jesus will be called the Lamb of God. It was a terrifying day for the Egyptians, but a day of liberation for the slaves.

Now begins the Israelites’ long sojourn in the desert of Sinai. God guides them and provides for them. Exodus 18 is a wonderful chapter on sharing leadership. Moses was trying to do it all himself, and it was too much for him. His father-in-law Jethro counsels Moses to recruit others to help him govern.

In chapter 19, the people arrive at Mount Sinai, a holy mountain in the wilderness, where God appears to Moses and gives him the law. In 20, God speaks the 10 commandments, starting with: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.” The basis of the 10 Commandments is God’s act to free the slaves; it is God’s choice to be their God, and call the Israelites God’s people. Then, Exodus goes into the details of God’s law for Israel. As Christians, we do not follow every detail of the Old Testament law (some of it was not meant for us or our times), but we certainly strive to obey God’s law – especially the 10 Commandments. Then, we begin to read the plan for the Tabernacle, the tent sanctuary that the people built as a mobile ‘dwelling’ for God. God was camping with God’s people, and needed a tent too!

Matthew 21:33-22:14

These are two parables that Jesus told during Jesus’ time in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The first one helps explain what was going to happen to him soon: the religious/economic/political leaders of Jerusalem were going to have him arrested and executed, because they could not accept the message from God that he proclaimed. In the second parable, the man without a wedding garment had refused the hospitality of the king, and wore his own robe, instead of accepting the wedding garment that the king provided for everyone.