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28 Days 2020: Day 4

STEPS TO CONSECRATING YOURSELF BEFORE GOD

 
Read Joshua 6
 
Yesterday we took step one in consecrating ourselves before God by taking time to remember and rehearse God's grace in our lives.
Second, we need to remove our idols and distractions.  
 
As the people of Israel moved into the promised land, they found it full of other nations who worshipped other gods.  This is a helpful picture of the church’s position in the world today – surrounded by people who worship everything and everyone else other than the one true God.  And because our hearts are naturally bent away from devotion to God, we will drift naturally drift toward idolatry.  This is why Jesus commands us to “seek first” the Kingdom of God ahead of everything else, and why God warned His people to not adopt the gods of the peoples around them.  
 
To consecrate ourselves before God, we need to recognize where we have adopted the idols of our surrounding culture and remove them from our lives.  
 
Continue your consecration by writing down the distractions that keep you from loving God first and most in your life.
 
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28 Days 2020: Day 3

STEPS TO CONSECRATING YOURSELF BEFORE GOD

 
Read Joshua 3
 
After the Lord rescued the people of Israel from brutal slavery in Egypt and delivered them from the powerful hand of Pharaoh, He called them to consecrate their lives.  The consecration was not a prerequisite of Israel’s salvation, but a commanded response to God’s faithful love for His people.  The Lord commands the nation of Israel to “be My holy people” in Exodus 22:31, to set themselves apart for worship and devotion to God.  The command has not changed now that we are under the blood of Christ.  Our salvation is still a work of total grace, based on the perfect righteousness of Jesus and not our own.  At the same time, Jesus has commanded those who have been purchased by His grace to “obey all that He has commanded us” and to “be holy as His Father is holy.”  In other words, we are still directed to consecrate ourselves before the Lord, not as a means of earning His favor, but as the appropriate response to His favor.  
 
What does this process of consecration look like?
First, we need to remember God’s grace in our lives.  
 
One of the most common commands in the Bible is to “remember” all that God has done for us.  The festivals in the OT and the sacraments in the NT are means of remembering the gracious work of God on our behalf.  A drift in our commitment to holiness is usually connected to a lack of awe and wonder at all that God has done for us.  
 
Spend some time today thinking about and writing down the good gifts that God has given to you that you do not deserve.  
 
SHARE A COUPLE WITH US IN THE COMMENT SECTION.
 
 
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28 Days 2020: Day 2

  • Exodus 32:29 (NCV)  Then Moses said, “Today you have been (consecrated) given for service to the LORD. You were willing to kill your own sons and brothers, and God has blessed you for this.“
  • Leviticus 20:7-8 (CEV) 7  Dedicate (consecrate) yourselves to me and be holy because I am the LORD your God. 8  I have chosen you as my people, and I expect you to obey my laws.
  • Joshua 3:5 (NIV)  Joshua told the people, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you."
  • Joshua 7:13 (NIV)  "Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, 'Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it.
 

Consecrated to serve God 

At one time the job of the priest was set aside for a specific few, but with Jesus' life, death and resurrection He made us all priests.  We are now all set aside as priests to serve God, so as you read today's observation and understanding keep in mind that when they talk about priests it is referring to all who have been saved by Jesus.
 
  • Read Exodus 29
  • Exodus 30:30 (NIV) "Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them so they may serve me as priests.
 

The priest’s first obligation was to minister to the Lord and please Him. If they forgot their obligation to the Lord, they would soon begin to minimize their responsibilities to the people, and the nation would decay spiritually.

That God chose Aaron and his sons to minister in the priesthood was an act of sovereign grace, because they certainly didn't earn this position or deserve it. But, that God should save sinners like us, make us His children, and form us into a "holy priesthood" is also an act of His grace, and we should never lose the wonder of this spiritual privilege. "You did not choose Me, but I chose you" (John 15:16, nkjv).

God's people today must remember that our first obligation is to please the Lord and serve Him. If we do this, then He will work in us and through us to accomplish His work in this world. When Jesus restored Peter to discipleship, He didn't ask "Do you love the ministry?" or even "Do you love people?" His repeated question was, "Do you love Me?" (John 21:17) Just as a father's most important obligation is to love his children's mother, so the servant's most important obligation (and privilege) is to love the Lord. All ministry flows out of that relationship.

A part of pleasing the Lord was wearing the priestly garments. The high priest, the priests, and the Levites couldn't dress as they pleased when they ministered at the tabernacle; they had to wear the garments God designed for them. God provided these garments for at least three reasons:
(1) they gave the priests "dignity and honor" (Ex. 28:2, niv) and set them apart, just as a uniform identifies a soldier or a nurse;
(2) they revealed spiritual truths relating to their ministry and our ministry today; and
(3) if the priests didn't wear the special garments, they might die (vv. 35, 43).  Bible Exposition Commentary - Be Delivered (Exodus 25-20).
 
What do you think are our priestly garments that sets us apart and identifies us today as priests of God?  Share some of your thoughts with us in the comment section.
 
Here are a couple of ideas to get you going.
Ephesians 6:10-18
Romans 12:1-2
Phil 2:14-16
John 14:23-24
 
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