If you don't
have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to
the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This
site allows you to select from several languages and several English
translations.
FEBRUARY 9
Exodus 29:1-30:10
There is a lot of detail today.
It is fascinating at times to listen to someone, who really has a feel for all
of this symbolism, describe what he thinks the symbols mean.
Generally speaking, as you read,
look for major impressions and then look for some details that stand out to
you.
What we are seeing is God
describing the ceremony for the consecration of the priests, in this case,
Aaron and his sons. Moses is still on the mountain. In order for them to
represent the people before God, they themselves needed to be cleansed and
prepared. There are aspects of this consecration that are looking ahead to
Jesus. We'll see more of that when we read the book of Hebrews. The Father's
preparation of the Son to be our Priest and Redeemer was more dramatic than
what we'll read here. One notable difference, where there are no lines of
correspondence between this ceremony and our Lord, is that He was sinless. No
sin offering was necessary for Him, nor did He need to make yearly sacrifices
of cleansing for Himself. He is the sinless priest who interceded for us and He
is the pure sacrifice who stood in our place.
Exodus 29
Vs. 1-9 First, Aaron and his
sons have to be washed and then dressed in their clothes. Notice that God
promises that as long as there is an Israel, Aaron and his descendants will be
the priests.
One thought here: How did the
Father prepare the Son to be our priest? Were there clothes? Was there a
ceremony? Think about the Christmas story and Hebrews 10:5.
Vs. 10-14 This is a sin offering
to cleanse Aaron and his sons. Notice where you burned the sin offering that
covered their sins. Read Hebrews 13:11-13. Pretty cool.
Vs. 15-18 This was a sacrifice
symbolizing total dedication. Just as the animal was totally offered on the
altar, Aaron and his sons were to be totally devoted to serving God. Look at
Romans 12:1. When it says the aroma was pleasing, it was because of the total
dedication of the worshiper. Later, when people with impure hearts give these
offerings to God, He will say they stink.
After our sin has been forgiven,
the next step is total devotion and offering to God.
Vs. 19-28 This third sacrifice
symbolized their readiness to join God in ministry. They were cleansed of sin
and fully devoted with all on the altar. Now their ears were dedicated to
hearing God. The actions of their hands were dedicated to obeying and working
for God, and the steps of their feet were dedicated to following God.
V. 21 Their nice new clothes were sprinkled in blood.
Hebrews 9:22 says, Indeed, under the law
almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood
there is no forgiveness of sins.
V. 24 The wave offering of the
meat and bread was symbolic of them receiving from the Lord and offering it
back. It was a fragrant aroma to God as they offered this back to God on the
altar.
Vs. 26-28 And they were fed and
blessed by God in their service with and for Him. This is actually a meal with
God. They are now partners with Him in ministry.
Vs. 29-30 The office and the
clothing would always belong to Aaron and his sons.
Vs. 31-34 This special meal of
ordination could only be prepared a certain way and it could only be eaten by
the priests that day. It could not be made into sandwiches the next day. It had
to be consumed by eating in celebration of their ordination that day or by fire
on the day after.
Vs. 35-37 This ceremony would
take a week for the atoning and consecration of both the priests and the altar.
Vs. 38-46 Now this would be the
primary responsibility of the service of the priest. They did a lot of stuff
during the special days, but this would be every day. This was their main and
most important ongoing service to the people. This sacrifice was each morning
and evening. It wasn't primarily for the covering of sins, but an offering of
thanks to God. The elements of this sacrifice were all the things God had given
them to sustain their lives: meat, flour, oil and wine.
V. 41 The acknowledgement of
thanks and dependence on God would be a pleasing aroma to Him.
V. 42 The result is that God
would meet with the priests and speak to them.
Vs. 43-46 And He would meet with
His people and dwell with them.
For us following our Lord in the
harvest, I think the preparation of the priests speaks to the heart of the
disciple. We are cleansed because of Jesus; we lay our lives on the altar in
full devotion and we are invited into ministry with God in the harvest. He
shares the blessing with us as we hear, obey and follow. And our joy is the joy
of our Savior, seeing people meet God, follow Him as disciples and dwell with Him
forever.
Exodus 30:1-10
It is interesting that the altar
of incense is first mentioned here. It was another of those responsibilities of
the priests that had to be done twice a day. The lampstand in the Holy Place
had to be supplied with oil morning and evening. But here we see this small
pillar standing in the middle of the veil that would someday be torn when Jesus
died. From this altar would be a continual column of incense rising up before
God, symbolizing the prayer of the people. This was the place where the
Christmas story really begins. The people are praying outside and Zechariah the
priest goes in to add incense to this altar in the evening. On the right side
of the altar he sees the angel Gabriel standing there saying to him, "Your
prayers have been heard before God."
God built amazing symbols into
the everyday life of the nation of Israel. These symbols would point to the
coming and ministry of Jesus. Yet for us too, they still have something to say
to us. As disciples in the harvest we are supposed to be constantly praying,
not just for ourselves, but for the progress of the kingdom as the gospel of
Christ reaches into the lives of the lost around us as we make disciples, who
make disciples.
So far, the Lord has given
Israel a prophet (Moses), a priest (Aaron & Sons), and symbols of perpetual
light (the Word), perpetual provision and care (the bread), perpetual
forgiveness (the daily sacrifices), and perpetual prayer (the incense). Then
add to this that all the men were to appear before the Lord three times a year,
personally bearing the testimony of redemption to their families, nation and
neighbors. If Israel had truly followed God in faith and gratefulness, they
would have been a blessed nation and a mighty witness for God. As disciples, this
is an incredible picture of our lives in Jesus in the harvest. Instead of the
temple and all the customs, we begin in the mornings (or whenever it works in
the day) with our Bibles, in prayer, in faith and gratefulness, ready to follow
Him into the harvest. We also have the church, a community of people to grow
and work with in the harvest.
Matthew 26:14-46
Vs. 14-29 What is interesting is
that Matthew/Mark/Luke record the actual giving of the Lord’s Supper memorial.
John gives the most comprehensive view, but doesn’t give the exact words. The
chronological events are as follows from Luke 22 and John 13: The supper and the
partial institution of the Lord’s Supper came first. Jesus had the disciples
divide His cup among themselves to be drunk later, and then He broke the bread
signifying His body. He mentioned that His betrayer was at the table and next
came the fight over who would be first. Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, mentioned
to John the identity of the betrayer, gave the morsel to Judas, Satan entered
Judas and he left. With that final morsel the supper was over and Judas was
gone. Then Jesus promised a blessing on those who had continued with Him and He
drank the cup with them that had already been poured out, that signified the
blood of the new covenant. Then came the upper room discourse (Jn. 14-17), most
of which was given as they walked toward the Mount of Olives. Finally Jesus
entered the garden of Gethsemane with His disciples.
This means that Judas was at the
initial part of the Lord’s Supper and then had his feet washed. Jesus showed
him love and gave him opportunity to change his mind, right up to the end. What
blows me away is that Jesus’ behavior toward Judas never changed, so that the
disciples had no clue it was him.
V. 18 Jerusalem was flooded with
people during the Passover. It is a miracle that they found this room. It is
thought that this was also the room they were in after the resurrection and on
the day of Pentecost. The theory is that it belonged to the family of John
Mark, the writer of the next Gospel.
V. 26 It is interesting that we
are reading of God making the Old Covenant with Israel, as we are reading here
of Jesus making the New Covenant with His blood.
Vs. 30-35 This is an important
event, especially for Peter. Jesus was telling them what would happen. They
would leave Him, but it was already predicted. This wasn't as much a warning as
an encouragement to them not to feel too defeated when they did this. Rather,
Jesus focused them forward. In v. 32 He mentions that when He is risen, He’ll
meet them in Galilee. The weight of Jesus' words is on them meeting Him in Galilee. He passes
over the “risen” part and emphasizes the meeting in Galilee. I wonder why. What
was so important? We'll see.
Vs. 36-46 This is Jesus'
understanding and dealing with what He would have to endure on the cross.
V. 38 That distinctly human part
of us, the soul, was reacting to the thought of death. Jesus was fully man in
body and soul and fully God in spirit, fully joined and fully one. He was the
God man.
Jesus' submission to the Father
is a model to every disciple.
V. 41 This temptation probably
had to do with the fear and flight that would dominate all of the disciples in
a short time.
Psalm 31:19-24
What an amazing lesson of praise
from David. To be able to sing this kind of praise and have this kind of
testimony, you have to face all the negative, the threats and the anxiety,
crying out to God.
Vs. 19-20 Laura pointed out to
me this morning the words of Exodus 29:46, And they shall know that I am
the Lord their God, who brought them out of the
land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord
their God. God
has always meant to dwell with us. It makes sense that His goodness is stored
up for those who fear Him and take their refuge in Him.
Vs. 21-22 David could only learn
v. 21 by living through v. 22, hoping in God and crying out to Him. God has no
other way to teach us so that the lesson is written on our hearts.
Vs. 23-24 It is worth waiting on
the Lord to have this burned across your heart and become your testimony to
others. Wait on the Lord.
Proverbs 8:14-26
It seems to me that God is
saying we should really, really be seeking wisdom. What parent or spouse
couldn’t use more wisdom? James says that if anyone lacks wisdom they should
ask God. Paul says we are to know what the will of the Lord is, like we should
really be able to understand. I guess it’s all in the Word. All we need to add
is time and desire to read what He says and do it.
The words here also suggest why
we don't seek wisdom. We don't value it more than we value other stuff. I think
I'm finally beginning to get this message.
Finally, notice that the wisdom
of God is seen in creation. Intelligent design is not only something God
expects us to notice, but His wisdom in creation is meant to make our hearts secure
and trustful. God's wisdom in creation is a major factor in the book of Job and
in His rebuke of Job. It is as if God is saying, "You don't understand
what has happened or why, but you see My power and wisdom in creation, so trust
Me."
Please Read
the Following Disclaimer
I'm writing the Reading Notes to and
for those who are following a One Year Bible and are interested in growing
deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth
of a discipleship culture in the church, that is, groups of 3-4 disciples,
meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out
and make disciples, who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal
and important discipleship manual we have and it is the key to our growth and
service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here, or what we
are to be doing, or whom we are to be following. My comments are only meant to
provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of
redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us,
as disciples, focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that
the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to
find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, making
disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a more descriptive
commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC).
I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite
often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only
note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these
and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge
Commentary would be a good idea.
I am not endorsing any particular
One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die
Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the
ESV Bible.
Anyone reading along with us is
welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own
observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition
or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any
point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as
I understand it. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both
historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background,
theological training and my personal study.
I'm
doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that
will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are
reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a supplement,
a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we will keep
following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who
make disciples. Being in the Word every
day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the essential
essence of being and making disciples.
May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the
harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan
If you would like documents
containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
If you would like a full
presentation of discipleship read Simply
Disciples*Making Disciples.
Or if you are struggling with
insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these
can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.
Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis
2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
The One Year Bible © by
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189
The Holy Bible, English
Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of
Good News Publishers.
All charts/graphics/outlines
from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C.
Cook.
© 1983, 2001 John F Walvoord and Roy B Zuck.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary is published by David C Cook.
All rights reserved. Publisher permission
required to reproduce.
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