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Ezekiel_45

 

Scripture

Ezekiel 45:21

“‘In the first month on the fourteenth day you are to observe the Passover, a festival lasting seven days, during which you shall eat bread made without yeast.

 

Observation - What does it say?

This new temple after the Israelites are brought back from exile is described with many changes. But one of the things that remains the same is the command of God to observe the Passover. The Passover festival had a very specific purpose of remembering and celebrating the miraculous way God delivered his people from Egypt.

 

Understanding - What does it mean?

It's interesting to me that remembrance and celebration of what God has done is a command.

Those people I’ve met who are the most passionate about loving God and loving others seem to all have something in common: They haven’t lost sight of what God has done for them. Their conversion experience hasn’t become old news. There results of continual remembrance are huge!

 

Psalm 22:27

All the ends of the earth shall remember

    and turn to the Lord,

and all the families of the nations

    shall worship before you.

 

That verse shows us that when we remember, the result is turning toward the Lord and worship springing up from our hearts. If we find the joy of our salvation fading and feel a bit stale or complacent, it would do us well to set aside some time to remember and celebrate. Relive in your memory where you were when God found you and the transformation He has brought to your life through Jesus Christ.

 

As we remember and celebrate, we’ll find our hearts echoing heroes of the faith in scripture:

 

Psalm 37:25 I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.

Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Psalm 22:22 I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:

 

Life Application

Set aside some time today to remember and worship.

God, forgive us for losing sight of all you’ve blessed us with. I know that the enemy would love for us to believe that our life is nothing more than our present struggles. But you have been faithful! You’ve never failed us. Never. Help us to be more intentional about remembering your wonders and declaring your praises. Amen.

 

- Levi Thompson

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Psalm 125

Scripture  Psalm 125:1-2   
Those who trust in the Lord Are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever.  As the mountains surround Jerusalem, So the Lord surrounds His people From this time forth and forever. Observation-What does it say?  Psalm 120-134 are a series of songs known as the Songs of Ascents.  These songs may have been sung as people were climbing the stairs to the temple.  Some scholars believe they were written in a Post Exilic time period, the period after Israel’s exile to Babylon.  Other Post Exilic writings include the five books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.  During this time, under the rule of Cyrus king of Persia, Israel was allowed to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple.   Even though Israel has returned from Babylon, it is not the complete end of their exile.  One of the major themes in the Post Exilic writings, the continued trust in the Lord.  These prophets warned against Israel's doubt in God.  The Songs of Ascents may have been used as a way to remind those entering the temple to put their trust in God, who protects those who serve him.   Exile, one of the major themes of the Bible, is a way to represent our position to God.  We are in constant exile, sojourners in this life, waiting to enter our heavenly home.  Those who have put their trust in God, and accepted the free gift of forgiveness through Jesus’ death on the cross, are constantly making their way towards that home.  Our future is secure in Jesus, even though we are in a world that seems insecure.  In John 17:14-16, Jesus prays for us, who are not of this world, but in it for the good of others, that they may come to find the way home through us. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSua9_WhQFE Understanding-What does it mean?  I remember having days as a kid where school seemed like the most exhausting thing in life.  I was forced to be in an environment where I didn’t feel at home.  The kids around me were mean, they made fun of me for being skinny and having big teeth.  I was overwhelmed with the instruction from the teacher and felt as though I would never be smart enough to make it.  There were days that it was all I could do to hold back the emotion of wanting to go home.  But, that moment would always come, when I would open the door and find my mom waiting there, and I would finally feel as though everything in the world was right again.  As I got older, as with all kids, I had a better perspective that the school day was only temporary and the emotion I felt was also fleeting.  Through the scriptures, like the Songs of Ascents, God helps us find that perspective.  When we sing, the Lord surrounds His people From this time forth and forever, it is a way of finding the perspective of God’s everlasting joy and fulfillment in our lives.   Life Application  Jesus, you have promised to make my burden light when I come to you (Matthew 11:28-30).  In you I live and move and breath (Acts 17:28).  Help me to always find this perspective when I feel lost and overwhelmed in this world that is not my home.  For you are the mountains around me, my stronghold, the place where I find rest.
-Tyler Galloway
 
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Ezekiel_43

Scripture - What stood out?EZEKIEL 43
25 “For seven days you are to provide a male goat daily for a sin offering; you are also to provide a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without defect. 26 For seven days they are to make atonement for the altar and cleanse it; thus they will dedicate it. 27 At the end of these days, from the eighth day on, the priests are to present your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar. Then I will accept you, declares the Sovereign Lord.”Observation - What does it say?Ezekiel 43 is about God’s home in Israel, His temple. The second half of this chapter pertains to the restoration of God’s altar, where priests would perform sacrifices on behalf of God’s people and themselves. Verses 25 to 27 are the finishing instruction for the dedication of the altar of God.Understanding - What does it mean?First of all, thank you Jesus for so many things, but I am glad we no longer have to trade blood for our sins. The ultimate trade by Jesus was made close to 2000 years ago. Reading about the dedication of this altar where atonement was made...really made me think about how much went into the dedication and purification of it. The altar itself was atoned for and cleansed...so that the priests could properly perform the necessary sacrifices on behalf of the people and God.So when we repent today in a post-Jesus world what is that altar? If Jesus is the once and for all high-priest that intercedes for us, his blood covers all forms of atonement, what is the modern day parallel to that altar? Does it exist? And if so shouldn’t we atone and purify it for 7 days at least? These are the thoughts running through my head.Is it possible that this altar is the - altar of our heart? If so, I would like to dedicate at least 7 days to atone for and purify it.Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today?I do believe that Jesus died for all of our sins once and for all. But I consistently ask God to forgive me for our sins. I have committed myself to Christ as my Lord and Savior. I have been baptized. Why does my soul feel like it is crying out to do something that was done years ago in a pre-Jesus time period. This doesn’t feel like tension between something old and new, but instead a synergy of what once was and of what is.Lord teach me how I would properly cleanse and purify the altar of my heart, if such a thing even exists. In the name of Jesus do I pray. Amen.-ken
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