Category: 1 Year Bible Reading Plan

As we move to the Book of Leviticus, we find a different kind of book from Genesis and Exodus. While Genesis and Exodus contained a great deal of narrative information, and focused on individual people and their contributions to the formation of the people of Israel, particularly from Abraham forward, the Book of Leviticus starts right in with commands about how to offer burnt sacrifices. The content of the book will seem strange to most of us, because we don’t come from a background where God is separating a people from the pagan nations around them. Every command, however strange it might seem to us, had as its intent moving the Israelites to glorify God and separate themselves from all other people as His people. God had promised Abraham He would build a nation from his descendants. God called that people to be distinct and separate and to belong to Him alone. The Book of Leviticus shows us many of the distinctives of being God’s people. While much of the book is directed to the priests who would oversee the worship of Israel, the priests were to pass the information on to the people so they could live in obedience to God.

One of the greatest problems with the “Levitical Code” as the laws and commands in Leviticus are called, as well as the Mosaic Law, which is the bigger body of rules found throughout Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy, is no one could fulfill them. These laws were given to form the people of Israel and to guide them, but as the Apostle Paul will remind us when we get to his letters in the New Testament, no one could fulfill them. That’s why Jesus came. He came to fulfill the Law, which none of us could do. He died on the cross of Calvary, because we should have! As we read through Leviticus, every time we read of a blood sacrifice, we can think forward to a time when the once-and-for-all blood sacrifice–Jesus was given for us.

Leviticus 1 tells us the type of animal sacrifices that were acceptable to God. We could sum it up in one word: perfect. God wanted male sheep or goats with no defects. The males were more valuable to the herd for breeding purposes, and the no defects, was because God wants His people’s best. While we don’t have to observe these rules, because of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf, we can learn from the instruction to always offer God the best we have. Leviticus 2 tells us the type of grain offerings that were acceptable to God. Again, it was to be “choice” flour, and the additional command was that none of it be offered with yeast. The key for God’s people was to bring God their first and best, which again reminds us of how important it is to give our first and best to Him!

Leviticus 3 and 4 talk about peace offerings and sin offerings. These were qualitatively different offerings. The peace offering was freely given to God, while the sin offering was given  to atone for sin “unintentionally” committed. The animal sacrifices and grain offerings of Leviticus 1 and 2, could have been either type of offering. Once again, the content of this book seems so different to us, because we don’t live in a time when such sacrifices are required. Let’s continue to remember God was establishing His people, as a “holy” people or a people set apart to Him and for His purposes. The carrying out of these sacrifices ensured the people put God first, and understood their commitment to living fully for Him.

As we return to Mark 11, we recall Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem once again. In a way, it’s fitting that we open the book of Leviticus today, because Leviticus showed the people of Israel how to atone for their sins, while Jesus is the ultimate atonement for our sins. If you aren’t familiar with the word “atonement,” it can literally be broken down into three parts: “at-one-ment.”  You and I are put at one or at peace with God through Jesus’ sacrifice. In Moses’ day, it was through the sacrifices we read about in Leviticus. For the Israelites the sacrifices repeated over and over again. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem at the start of what we call Holy Week, He was in the final week of His life. On Good Friday, He would become the once-and-for-all sacrifice for our sins. Palm Sunday, as we call the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem was the one moment when Jesus was recognized for who He was: the King of Kings, and the Son of David. As the week progressed, we see the tide turn as Jesus’ interactions with the religious leaders become more and more oppositional.

As Moses instructed the people to offer “perfect” sacrifices for their atonement, God offered the one, perfect lamb, His only Son, Jesus, for ours. May we take the time to recognize the ultimate cost Jesus paid to become our once-and-for-all sacrifice today and always.

In Exodus 37-38 we read of the construction of the inside content of the Tabernacle: The Ark of the Covenant, the Table, the Lampstand, the Incense Altar, the Altar of Burnt Offering, the Washbasin, and the Courtyard. In intricate detail we’re told of the size of each item and the materials with which it was made. Under Bezalel’s leadership, the craftsmen worked diligently. Reading through this text, we can’t help but be amazed by the attention to detail, and the massive undertaking it was. We’re offered an inventory of the materials, and just the precious metals included 2,193 pounds of gold, 7545 pounds of silver and 5,310 pounds of bronze. The silver was raised through a tax on each of the men of fighting age, which numbered 603,550 men! The rest was given through free-will offerings, which shows how fully the people were committed to the project.

In Exodus 39 we read of the priests’ clothing being made. Once again, Bezalel headed up the project, and once again we find the process described in intricate detail. Just to describe the chest piece that went on the ephod, took fourteen verses. When everything was complete, Moses inspected the work. We read the list of the Tabernacle, its content, and the priests’ clothing all being brought before Moses. When he determined it was all completed just as God had instructed, Moses blessed the workers. Can you imagine how long that inspection took? It shows us how important it is to do God’s work faithfully, and that it’s worth the time to inspect our work, and celebrate work well done.

In Exodus 40 “Moses” sets up the Tabernacle. We’re told when everything had been set up “So at last Moses finished the work.” We often emphasize teamwork, and the importance of every person’s work to the task. That is true. Dozens, if not hundreds, of workers contributed to the construction of the Tabernacle, its contents, and the priests’ garments. Yet, we hear mainly of Bezalel and Oholiab doing the work, and in the end Moses alone is given the recognition for having finished the work. This is not to minimize the other workers’ work. Rather it underscores the responsibility God placed on Moses. At the end of the day, Moses was the one God held responsible for the construction of the Tabernacle. The reminds us how important it is to recognize the leadership roles of those who lead us, whether at work, school, home, or in the church. What amazes me about Moses is we’re told even though he held such great responsibility, and was given such great recognition, he was an extremely humble man. Humility is a great quality to have in a leader whom God uses to accomplish great things. It reminds the leader all he or she did was obey the instructions of God. Thus, God gets all the glory, even as the earthly credit goes to the leader.

When the work had all been completed, God’s glory entered the Tabernacle. What an incredible moment that must have been. We’re told from that point forward, when God’s glory lifted from the Tabernacle, the people would tear it down and follow the glory, which showed itself as a cloud. When the cloud stopped the people would stop and rebuild the Tabernacle. Then they would stay in that place until God “moved” again. How incredible it must have been to have such a visible reminder of God’s presence!

As we return again to Mark 10, we find this to be a chapter filled with important interactions between Jesus and the religious leaders of Israel, small children, a rich young man who sought eternal life, His disciples, and a blind man, named Bartimaeus. We already covered Mark 10 extensively on Day 10, so you can go back there and read through the post for that day. I do want to re-emphasize one point from Mark 10 here: Jesus took time to address many hard and unconventional topics. Just in Mark 10 He addressed marriage and divorce; the importance of children in a culture that didn’t see children as all that important; the vital distinction between being rich in Spirit and rich in material goods; the importance of following God’s purpose in our lives even, as in Jesus’ case, it means following it to our deaths, and the reality that faith can heal physical ailments including blindness. Jesus was not a “nice” man. He stirred up controversy, and created enemies as well as friends. We sometimes present Jesus as soft and loving. He was definitely loving, but not soft in the sense of weak. He never shied away from taking a hard stand when it was needed, but the hard stand was always to focus on the goodness of God, and to bring light where there was spiritual or physical darkness. We must remember this aspect of our faith, in a time when so many look at Christians either as haters, or as weak, or both. To follow Jesus, will always meaning loving others, and that love will sometimes be tough, and will go against the inclinations of our culture.

In Exodus 34, God tells Moses to make two new stone tablets to record the Law to replace the ones Moses broke. God appears to Moses and Moses worships Him. Moses tells God unless He goes with the Israelites not to have them go into the Promised Land. God promises to lead and gives many specific instructions about not intermingling with the people they meet there. If they do, the Israelites will turn away from God and follow the pagan gods served by the inhabitants. While this seems hard to believe, given all God has done for them, life experience tells us it’s easier to follow the crowd we can see, even when we know they are doing wrong, than to follow God, unless we make that commitment before engaging with others.  Moses was on the mountain for forty days with God and when he returned his face glowed from being in God’s presence. Imagine the impression that made on the people of Israel!  Yet the Apostle Paul tells us our “glow” from being in God’s presence ought to be even greater, because we are children of the new covenant. Paul wasn’t speaking of a literal glow, but of our positive impact on others as a result of experiencing Jesus’ salvation in our lives.

In Exodus 35-36 Moses warns the people to observe the Sabbath. Then he calls for gifts to be given to build the Tabernacle. The people gave so generously Moses had to tell them to stop! Once the materials were collected Bezalel and Oholiab headed up the construction project and the Tabernacle was built. It occurred to me that the people of Israel had the first “portable church.” The Tabernacle would be put up wherever God told the people to stop and then torn down and moved to the next place when they started to travel again. In our day, many churches–including New Life earlier in our life together–meet in temporary locations, which requires setting up and tearing down each time worship is held. While the idea of portable churches is a “modern” one, we see in Exodus that portable church is one of the oldest ideas in our faith history.

As we return to Mark 9, and read once again of the Transfiguration an amazing affirmation that Jesus is God, because Moses and Elijah appeared with Him, we’re reminded that these “mountain top experiences” (literal in this case), are often followed by challenges. When Jesus, Peter, James and John return to the valley, they find the remaining nine disciples trying without effect to cast a demon out of a boy.  Jesus gets frustrated, then heals the boy. Immediately afterward, Jesus tells the twelve once again He is going to be executed by the religious leaders and the Romans, but will rise from death. Instead of showing concern for Jesus, the disciples debate among themselves about who is the greatest. Jesus reminds the twelve that greatness in God’s Kingdom comes from serving the most. Even 2,000 years later we find this truth hard to accept. The world has always measured greatness by the number of people who serve us, not the number of people we serve. As Jesus’ followers, though, we find Him always turning the world’s views on their head. How many will you serve today? Where will you start?

Exodus 31-33 offers us a great deal of action, and much of it shows us the fickle nature of we human beings. God had already done such amazing miracles in Israel’s presence, but as we see, the people were quick to transfer their allegiance to other gods. First, in chapter 31 God appointed two men: Bezalel and Oholiab to oversee the construction of the Tabernacle. God gifted them spiritually and physically with the special skills they would need to oversee the project. We’re also told all the craftsmen of Israel were given special skill for completing the project. At the end of chapter 31, God presents additional instructions concerning the Sabbath. They are stringent to say the least. Anyone who was caught breaking the Sabbath was to be executed. Why such harsh punishment? Remember, God was establishing Israel as His holy people. One of the most common distractions from following God is putting our work before Him. The timing of the instruction is interesting: God has just instructed Moses to have the Tabernacle built, a project ordained by God, and then God gives additional instructions concerning the Sabbath. It’s possible God realized that even when we’re engaged in His work, we can transfer our allegiance from serving Him to serving the work. That’s a subtle distinction, but vital for us to remember.  We can never let the work of God become more important to us than the God for whom we work!

Exodus 32 offers us the clearest example of the fickleness of God’s people. Moses was gone for 40 days. That is an extended time for a leader to be gone, but Moses had left Aaron and Hur in charge, and the people knew Moses was on the mountain with God. They weren’t in a hurry to get anywhere. Yet, the people cried out to Aaron, because they didn’t think Moses was coming back. They wanted some “gods” to worship. Amazing, isn’t it? The one, true God had delivered them from slavery in Egypt. At that very moment, God was giving instructions for the people to Moses. Even so, the people had to have a god to worship. This is so instructive to us. We live in an era when many people deny the existence of God, but always remember: we were created by God to worship Him. If we don’t worship Him, we will worship something or someone. Atheists worship themselves, or science, or hedonism, or some form of order, even if its anarchy. The Israelites abandoned God, and Aaron went along with them, forming a golden calf to worship.

Moses shows us his leadership of the people, when God tells him to go down the mountain, because the people have rebelled. When God tells Moses He is going to destroy the Israelites and form a new people from Moses’ line, Moses intercedes for the people, and God relents.  After Moses enters the camp, and calls those faithful to God to stop the rebellion, the Levites side with Moses, and kill 3,000 Israelites. Once again, this might seem extreme to us, but the alternative would have been to let the people worship false gods. Finally, Moses intercedes again for God not to destroy the Israelites.

As we move to Exodus 33, we are told of Moses’ practice of going to the tent of meeting, to talk with God. Each time Moses entered the tent, the people of Israel would stand outside of their tents in reverent attention. One of my favorite statements in the history of Israel comes in this chapter. We’re told God spoke “face-to-face” with Moses as a man speaks to a friend. Wow!  Imagine having regular face-to-face meetings with God! The chapter closes out with God showing Moses His glory, which is one more affirmation of the closeness of the relationship between God and Moses. Thank God, literally, thank God for Moses’ faithfulness, humility, and leadership over Israel. While Moses had his faults, a lack of loyalty to God and the people was not one of them.

As we return to Mark 8, let’s focus on the healing of the blind man in Bethsaida. (In our first reading of Mark, we focused on Peter’s confession of Jesus as the Messiah. Feel free to review Day 8’s post if you want to return to that reflection.) What has always stood out to me in this moment, is Jesus need to touch the blind man twice to heal the man completely. Ordinarily, it only took one touch or one word for Jesus’ healing power to be effective. Why two touches in this case? We can’t say for sure, but it seems likely to me, Jesus’ second touch was more for our benefit, than it was a lack of power on His part. Many times we pray for others, or for our own needs, and if the only examples we had from Jesus’ ministry were of immediately answered prayers, we might think our faith is too weak, or we’re being disobedient, or something else was hindering our prayer. A lack of faith and disobedience do hinder our prayers, but sometimes we need to pray through a situation twice, three times, or more. I have had prayers that took many years to answer, and some I’m still waiting for God to answer in the way I am praying He will.

As we pray, we know God is faithful and powerful. Therefore, we pray with confident, and if it takes a second “touch” or a third or more, we continue to pray, knowing God always has our best in mind, and He desires to give us what we ask as we keep Him first in our lives.

In Exodus 28-30 we read God’s extensive instructions to Moses regarding clothing for the priests, the dedication and ordination of priests, plans for the incense altar, and wash basin, and instructions for making the anointing oil and incense used by the priests. In addition, God instructs the people on the gifts to bring for the construction of the Tabernacle. If you are a “big picture” person, as I am, the minute details included in these chapters seem a bit excessive, and yet God’s instructions make it clear exactly what is expected in each of these areas. The point that struck home the most with me was the minute detail in the description of the priest’s ephod, and chest piece. Given the purpose of the chest piece, which was to hold the “Urim and  Thummim,”the instruments  used to receive God’s answers to specific questions, we can see why the minutely detailed instructions were necessary. It also struck me that no one was permitted to make anointing oil or incense with the same formula as that used by the priests. These two materials were to be used for God’s holy purposes only.

While we won’t get to the Apostle Peter’s letters for a long time based on our daily readings, I couldn’t help thinking of his words in 1 Peter 2: 9-10 as we read Exodus 28-30:   ⁹ But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. ¹⁰Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 1 Peter 2:9-10 (NIV) While only those descended from Levi could be priests in Moses’ time through the time of Jesus, because of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf, each of us is now a priest, and all of us together are “a royal priesthood.” We don’t wear the elaborate outfits the priests in Moses’ day wore, but we are certainly able to enter the presence of God, through Jesus’ work on our behalf.

As we read through Mark 7 once again, I’m reminded of how the Pharisees were caught up in the details of external tradition, while Jesus focused on the heart. When the Pharisees complained because the disciples ate with “unwashed hands,”  Jesus responded by quoting Isaiah: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” As Jesus continued to instruct us regarding the internal and the external, He made it clear it isn’t what goes into us that defiles, but what comes out.  With those statements He pronounced all foods clean. Let’s look for a moment at Mark 7:20-23 to see Jesus’ point about true cleanness and uncleanness.  ²⁰He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’²¹For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, ²²greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.  ²³All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.'” Mark 7:20-23 (NIV) As we go about our day, we do well to start by “cleaning” the inside of our lives through prayer, Bible reading and calling on God to fill us with the Holy Spirit to empower us for the day. After all, if the inside is clean, the rest will take care of itself.

     Mark 7 concludes with the faith of a Syrophonecian woman, which I commented on in Day 7’s reading, and the healing of man who was deaf and dumb. While the miracle is amazing, several years ago, I read a book titled The Heart Reader, which is based on that passage. It was written anonymously by a Christian author who would have been well-known, if he or she had chosen to tell us who he or she was. The purpose of the book was to remind us that Jesus has the power to “open” not only ears and mouths, but hearts to salvation in His name. I commend the book to you. It is a great devotional read, and helps to refocus us on the importance of sharing the good news of Jesus with others.

In Exodus 24-27, we read of God reaffirming His covenant with Moses, and also of Moses receiving the description of how the Tabernacle would be constructed. God started out by telling Moses people were to give free will offerings to provide funds for the Tabernacle. I find that refreshing. God’s people were offered the opportunity to give or not to the construction of the Temple. We will read later the people gave so much Moses had to tell them to stop! That has always amazed me. The people of New Life, where I serve as lead pastor are generous people, as generous as any group of Jesus’ followers I have known. Yet, we have never had to tell folks to stop giving, yet. That will be an incredible day.

God gives Moses specific details about each aspect of the Tabernacle and it’s content as we read through most of the remember of Exodus, we will find these details are the main focus. Planning is an important component of every project we undertake as Jesus followers. If God needed to do that with Moses, we can be sure our efforts in His name need to include planning as well. While we always want to be led by the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit is a  Spirit of order, unity, and peace. Those realities require planning and prayer to live out in our lives.

As we return to Mark 6, we see again how the people of Jesus’ hometown didn’t receive Him. He pointed out a  prophet is without honor among his own people. How true that is. When we have grown up in a particular place, and the people know us well, they know the negative details of our lives. That makes it harder for them to find our transformation in the Lord, and our call from Him credible. That wasn’t the case with Jesus. He started out perfect. He didn’t need to be transformed. Even so, the people didn’t receive Him for who He was, so they missed out on experiencing His amazing power.

As the chapter continues, Jesus sends the twelve out on their first “mission trip.” Note Jesus tells them not to worry about provision, because God will provide for them. This wasn’t always Jesus’ instruction, but in this case, He wanted the twelve to rely totally on God to provide what they needs. Mark includes the account of how John the Baptist died in this chapter, and then moves on to tell us about Jesus feeding the 5,000 (which was more likely the feeding of the 20,000, because the 5,000 only included the men) with extremely limited resources. This is the only miracle of Jesus included in all four gospels. Finally, Mark offers us another “nature” miracle as Jesus walks on water. I have always thought it would have been incredible to be one of Jesus’ disciples. They experienced so many amazing miracles while Jesus was with them. It’s easy to think they ought to have “gotten it,” sooner. But it’s also easy to forget the twelve expected Jesus to be a conquering hero, instead of a suffering servant. More about that as we continue through the year. We live on the resurrection side of Easter, so let’s live into the Holy Spirit’s power as we experience Jesus life in our lives today!

In Exodus 21-23, we find many examples of casuistic or “case law.” Rather than go in depth on the dozens and dozens of individual laws written there, let’s look at a couple of specific categories.  First, we find Exodus 21 addresses the fair treatment of slaves. What? As 21st century Americans the idea of “fair treatment of slaves” sounds like an oxymoron. How can a slave be treated fairly? That’s a great question. The truth is slavery is not an acceptable practice. It was practiced in Israelite society, and American slave owners used passages such as Exodus 21 to justify their ownership of slaves. We could wish if they were going to carry out the onerous practice, they would at least have followed the commands found in Exodus, because the Israelites were expected to treat the slaves fairly, and to give them specific rights.  Some say the Bible is not a culturally-conditioned book, but Exodus 21 shows us it is. By the time of the New Testament, slaves were still used, but the Apostle Paul mandated slave owners treat their slaves fairly, and at least in one case as a “brother.” He pointed out that gaining one’s freedom was a good goal.

As Jesus’ followers, we need to admit the Bible’s positions on slavery, and then affirm the need to eliminate the practice. The truth is human trafficking, which is a modern form of slavery, is rampant in the world. Our first goal is always to share the gospel, and to offer people the opportunity to be freed from sin and death through Jesus’ salvation. A second goal must accompany that first goal, and it is to free people from all forms of slavery however they are lived out practically. Literal slavery whether for sexual purposes, or labor purposes, or any other purpose is sinful. As Jesus’ followers we are called to work to eliminate it. We must also work to free people from slavery to addictions of all types.

Some say Christians ought to avoid “social justice” issues. James, the brother of Jesus, told us if we see people who are hungry or without clothes, but offer them only a “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” but don’t do anything to help, that is wrong. As we read Exodus 21, we need to read it in light of all of the Bible’s teaching, as well as the history of Christian experience to our day. Sometimes we won’t be able to come to easy answers for what to do, but in every case we must seek Jesus’ will and then carry it out in the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

It’s interesting that throughout Exodus 21-23, we find God’s concern for fairness, justice, and living in appropriate relationships with one another. Some of the recommendations seem extreme to us, and they are by today’s standards. We must remember God was establishing a people who would be set apart from the pagan nations surrounding them. The laws He offered did that. He promised to bless and protect the Israelites, and that blessing was contingent on their obedience to Him. We will find throughout the Bible, God’s people have not been able to live up to the standards of the Law, which is why Jesus had to come. He fulfilled what we could not by living in perfection, thus making it possible for us to be in relationship with God and each other as God always intended. God’s action in Jesus was extreme. As we read the laws in Exodus we will do well to remember God’s ways for His people at any moment often will be counter or against the culture. When we see that, let’s ask, “Why is God doing that, or establishing this law at this moment?” That question helps us go through the hard task of discerning God’s purpose rather than dismissing it, because it doesn’t fit our culture’s biases.

As I wrote when we considered Mark 5 on day five, this is one my favorite chapters in the Bible. I wrote extensively about it then. If you want to review my comments, go back to the Day 5 reading!

Even though we list the reading from the Old Testament first each day, let’s turn first to Mark 4. This is our second time through Mark, and I want to point out something about the format of Mark and chapter 4 in specific . When we went through Mark the first time, I didn’t point out Mark’s gospel is more action-oriented, and focuses more on Jesus’ healing, exorcisms and other miracles than on His teaching. But in Mark 4 nearly the whole chapter is devoted to Jesus’ teaching.  That’s why I want to focus on it today.

First, we read the Parable of the Sower and Jesus’ explanation of it. This parable helps us understand each of us responds to Jesus’ message of salvation differently, and some never respond.  Even those who respond to the message and grow, don’t all produce the same amount of fruit. If you think that isn’t fair, you’re right. God loves each of us, but He gives us differing amounts of talent and ability. He is God, so He gets to do that. By human standards of fairness and equality, God’s ways don’t always make sense.  We need to get over that if we are going to let God rule in our lives, and become everything He created us to be. Comparison always leads to either pride or depression among us, so let’s be grateful for who God created us to be, and live our lives to His glory.

Jesus comments next about putting a lamp on a stand. The obvious point is we aren’t to hide who we are in Him, but to let others know, so they can know Him, too. Jesus tells us the measure we use in life is the measure we receive. That’s so vital. I always say we can’t control everything in life, but we can always control our allegiance, our attitude, and our effort. If we align ourselves with Jesus, live with the attitude that we “get to” follow Him, rather than “have to” follow Him, and give 100%, our lives will be blessed even in the hardest times. I don’t mean we’ll always get what we want, but we will always know God’s favor and presence, even when we don’t feel them.

Next Jesus tells the Parables of the Growing Seed and the Mustard Seed. Many of Jesus’ parables focus on the agrarian culture in which He lived. While we can still understand them, they must have made an even greater impact when virtually everyone who heard them was a farmer of some. Both of these parables remind us God’s work is beyond our understanding. We don’t know how a seed grows, but God does and He provides the growth. Even a tiny seed, such as a mustard seed, can produce results far beyond our expectations. That’s the Kingdom of God, and we get to experience it hear and now, because of Jesus’ presence through the Holy Spirit, and one day, we’ll experience it fully.

Mark closes out chapter 4 with an amazing sign Jesus performed: the calming of a storm.  I’ve always loved this account, because it reminds me the events in my life that seem catastrophic, that seem like they will drown me, are nothing more than opportunities for a nap for Jesus! I might think I need to shake Him awake, but as always He has it, whatever it might be. I still find myself stressed out far more often than necessary, but the one who calmed the storm, can certainly handle our stressors.

In Exodus 18-20, we find two significant events: 1) Jethro’s visit; and 2) God’s visit! Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law visited Moses and during the visit helped Moses see he needed to set up a system of judges to mediate disputes among the Israelites. Jethro rightly saw Moses would wear out both himself and the Israelites, if he tried to decide every dispute. Jethro’s model didn’t help only the Israelites. It’s a helpful model for any group with more the twenty people to understand the importance of sharing leadership.

In chapters 19-20, God has Moses get the people ready for His visit to them, which took place on the top of Mt. Sinai. When Moses and God met on the mountain, God gave Moses what we call the Ten Commandments. These were the primary laws for the Israelites, although God would give them more than 600 more. The Ten Commandments are called “apodictic” law, which is a fancy way of saying they are absolutely true in every case. Such laws start with “You shall…” or “You shall not…” The first four commandments deal with our relationship with God, while the final six deal with our interactions with each other. We would expect apodictic laws relating to God, but it is important to remember God told us how we are always to act, and never to act toward each other as well. We will see through the remainder of Exodus and then in Leviticus and Deuteronomy as well, God adds many casuistic or “case” laws. They are commonly described as “if…then…” laws. As in, “If a man does ‘x’, then the punishment is ‘y.'” Some of the casuistic laws applied in the wilderness environment and in the establishment of the nation of Israel. Some of the laws were specifically reinterpreted by Jesus, and we’ll address that from time-to-time as we see it.

Some have asked me, “Do the Ten Commandments still apply, because we are under grace, not under law?” The short answer to the question is: Jesus said they apply and made them even more stringent, so they do apply. Honoring God, our parents, and not killing are always mandated in our lives. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for all our sins, so the eternal penalty of them is gone, but we live with the consequences of breaking these commands, because they break our relationship with God and others at least on a temporary basis, and often they hold legal consequences as well. While we are under grace, not under law, the Apostle Paul reminded us in Galatians 5 we ought never use our freedom as an opportunity for our sinful natures.

In Exodus 15-17 we read of the Israelites first experiences on the freedom side of the Red Sea. The first act of the Israelites as free people was to offer a song of deliverance to God. They remembered what God had done for them. This was a high point for the Israelites. When God delivers us, blesses us, provides for us, the appropriate response is praise.

Unfortunately, the people of Israel didn’t get it right for long. Soon after their praise service in the wilderness, they came across a pool of water that was bitter. They complained.  God made the water safe to drink.  Next the Israelites complained they didn’t have meat to eat. God provided quail and manna. When the water ran low the Israelites complained again. God provided water.  Are you sensing a pattern.? The Israelites had seen the amazing power of God through all the plagues in Egypt, through the parting of the Red Sea, and now as He provided time after time for each of their needs. Yet, every time they face a problem, they complained. What can we learn from this?   Don’t complain.  Easier to say than to do, isn’t it? God promises when we put Him first, He will provide for our needs. The Israelites in the wilderness are an incredible example of the truth of that. Let’s not learn from pattern of complaining at every turn, but from their praising God when He provided!

In Exodus 17 God showed the Israelites and us an important lesson as the Israelites fought the Amalekites. The lesson doesn’t come directly from the battlefield, but from Moses, who watched the battle from a vantage point above the conflict. When Moses held up his staff the Israelites prevailed, but when Moses grew tired and lowered the staff, the Amalekites did. Finally, Aaron and Hur stood beside Moses and held up his arms so the staff was always raised. The Israelites prevailed!  What’s the point? At least two come quickly to mind: 1) Intercession is vital; and 2) We all need help. Moses’ intercession for the Israelite soldiers had as much impact as those who were  in the middle of the conflict. We need to remember the spiritual component of every conflict in our lives. We can’t see it, but there is always a spiritual battle going on around us, and our intercessory prayers are vital to victory.  Aaron and Hur ultimately became as important to the victory as Moses. He couldn’t bear the staff alone. Many times we want to be “Lone Rangers,” but even the Lone Ranger had Tonto!

As we reread Mark 3 we are reminded of Jesus’ interaction with the religious leaders on a Sabbath, which as usual was negative. The religious leaders were more concerned about observing their traditions, than with a man being healed.  As we remember this moment, it’s vital for us to remember never to let our traditions or pre-conceived ideas get in the way of letting Jesus work in our lives.  Massive crowds continue to follow Jesus as His teaching, preaching, healing and delivering ministry continues to impact the region of norther Israel.  In the midst of all the activity Jesus takes time out to select the twelve disciples. Mark tells us Jesus called them first that they might “be with” Jesus. Interesting, isn’t it? Jesus needed to train the twelve to take over when He left, but the first thing they needed to do was simply be with Jesus, to be in relationship with Him. This helps us see how important it is for us to have others with us in relationship and in training for future ministry.  As Jesus continues to minister, He has another run in with the religious leaders who say He is able to cast out demons by the authority of Satan. Jesus responds by pointing out that no kingdom or house divided against itself can stand.  Finally, Jesus’ family gets involved. They think He might be crazy. When some in the crowd tell Jesus His family is looking for them, He tells the crowd anyone who does His Father’s will is His mother, and sister and brother. What a helpful reminder that Jesus ultimate goal was to bring each of us into His family, a family that will continue forever!

Exodus 12-14 offers us one of the most amazing events in the entire Old Testament: the parting of the Red Sea. Yet before it happened we are read of Moses instructing the Israelites not once, but twice how the Passover was to be observed every year forever in Israel’s history. God’s deliverance of the people of Israel from slavery is an amazing “redemption” story. After all, redemption is freeing slaves by paying the cost of their freedom.  The Passover foreshadows Jesus’ redemption of humanity through His death on the cross. Many have noted the Israelites were to put the blood of the Passover lambs over the tops of their doorframe and on the sides. If you “connect the dots” it forms a cross. Jesus told His disciples of the New Covenant He was about to establish through the shedding of His blood at a Passover celebration. The connection is obvious and intentional.

We read when the Israelites left Egypt they numbered 600,000 men, and of course the men had wives and children, so the population of Israel had multiplied from 70 people when Jacob went into Egypt to about two million 430 years later! God’s promise to Abraham was being fulfilled, and it had taken place through many storms. The storms weren’t over, as we read in chapter 14. As the Israelites left Egypt God had Moses lead them by a circuitous route rather than the direct one, because He didn’t want them to face battle against the Philistines. God knew His people, and even though they looked like an army as the left Egypt, they were not battle tested. As we start to see even in chapter 14, the slaves were leaving Egypt, but the slave mentality of Egypt was still in them.

When Pharaoh changed his mind and sent soldiers to attack the Israelites, the Israelites were literally stuck in the middle. The Red Sea was on one side and the Egyptian army on the other. They cried out in panic to Moses, but Moses’ words of reassurance are some of the most incredible in the entire Bible. Even though you have already read them, let’s read them again together: ¹³But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. ¹⁴The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” Exodus 14:13-14 (NLT)  Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today…Just stay calm. How many times we need to hear and heed those words.  Most of us are activists. We live by the old adage, “Don’t just stand there, do something!” Many times this is good advice. But there are times when God says, “Don’t just do something. Stand there. I have this.”

I’ve been going through a bit of that this past week with the death of Cheryl Marshall, my sister-in-law, who was like a second mother to me. I spent most of my summers with Tom and Cheryl from the time I was eight until I was in my early teens. When I received the call that Cheryl had experienced a major stroke, I drove to Ohio immediately to be with the family, but what could I do? The outcome was literally in God’s hands. I spent Thursday night next to Cheryl’s bed, and occasionally she would open her eyes, and she recognized me, but the stroke had paralyzed the right side of her body and taken away her ability to speak. She tried several times to say something, but she couldn’t.  What could I do? Again the answer was nothing.  I prayed with Cheryl. I quoted Scripture to her. And I sat and waited through the night.  The next morning the doctors told us what we already knew.  Nothing could be done for Cheryl. Tom and Lee Ann (Tom and Cheryl’s daughter) decided to have Cheryl transported to a facility in the Dover area where they live. That couldn’t be arranged until the next day. Once again, we stood (or sat) and waited.

The next day, which was Saturday, as Cheryl was being transported to Dover from the Cleveland Clinic, she made the transition every follower of Jesus longs to make one day. She died to this life, and as the Apostle Paul reminds us, to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Many times in the days ahead we will grieve our loss. Cheryl won’t be with us any longer. But we will also stand and wait, knowing God is in charge, and in the big picture, our day of being with Cheryl and all those who have gone before us in the Lord is coming soon, very soon from an eternal perspective.

In the case of the Israelites, God delivered an amazing miracle, parted the Red Sea, saved the Israelites and destroyed the Egyptians. Wow! What an amazing God.  In our case, God destroyed sin and death, and created a home for us with Him forever. Wow! What an amazing God.  I drove out to Ohio again yesterday to invest the day with Tom. I helped him clean up the house in preparation for the guests who will be coming on Wednesday and Thursday for Cheryl’s funeral. We reminisced about Cheryl, and at times we simply stood and waited. This storm is devastating from our temporal perspective, but we will get through it, because we know that God is good, and He ultimately has this, just as He has every moment in our lives whether we perceive the moment to be good or bad, regardless of what we are stuck between in our life.  Pray for Tom, Lee Ann, and the rest of our family, because while we know the ultimate truth that God is good and Cheryl is better off, we grieve one who has been so important to us for so long.

As we read Mark 2 again, we’re reminded how early in Jesus’ ministry the Jewish religious leaders came against Him. They couldn’t accept His power to forgive sin, or His choice of disciples, or His lack of observance of the religious rules.  At every point, Jesus reminded them He was Lord – Lord over sin, over disease, over people’s destinies and over the Sabbath. I am so grateful that Jesus has this, whatever the “this” may be in our lives right now!