Kids Say the Dardest Things

Kids say the darndest things. Just the other day, my granddaughter Rachel, as she steps into the 92F pool water, declared, “It’s tdold!” (her way of saying ‘cold’). I thought that was one of the darndest things I ever heard, until I stepped into the pool. You know, she was right. When the the air temperature is 100F and you step into a 92F pool, it feels cold! You can hear some more of the darndest things here:  https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kids+say+the+darndest+things

Teens sometimes say the darndest things. I remember when my oldest daughter was, maybe 17 or 18, asking this question at the dinner table: “Did you know that they give [traffic] tickets for doing 65 in a 50 mile per hour zone?”... “Uhhhh, yes, I knew that…”

Preachers sometimes say the darndest things. When I think of the the darndest things I have ever heard, some came from kids, some from teens, but many came from the the guy in the pulpit.

I remember debating, I mean, discussing this with someone. He said that since the guy in the pulpit, the “priest” in his case, is learned, that the congregation shouldn’t question anything he says. So, he could say the darndest things and go unchallenged? And at what point during his study and training did he become...infallible? That reminds me of one of the darndest things I ever heard from a guy in the pulpit. He said: NEVER question what the guy in the pulpit says. I guess that in his mind (and his mind only) he had reached that infallible state. May I make a recommendation here? Question everything.

Recently I heard a preacher ask (something to this effect, may not be an exact quote): Jesus died for you, would you die for someone? My answer, that I did not verbalize: “Of course not!”.

I really don’t know why he asked. When I think of my death, I don’t think it will accomplish very much and won’t benefit anyone much. It may have some affect on some people, close family, depending on who survives me, but overall, it will not accomplish much. When I think of Jesus’s death, I think of all that was accomplished at the cross and how it has affected so many over the course of centuries...mind blown!

Preachers sometimes say the darndest things while dressed in the darndest outfits. Look at what some of them wear to make themselves stand out: robes of many colors, or special collars or collarless shirts.  The priests of ancient Israel stood out because while they were in service, wore clothing that was different from the common folk. The high priest, stood out from the lower priest because he wore something different. The high priest and lower priest were easily identified because of their priestly garb. The first time the priests were dressed in their special garb was during their eight day consecration.

Instructions for the consecration of Aaron (the first high priest) and his sons (the first lower priests) begins in Leviticus chapter 8. According to this chapter, Moses was to take Aaron and his four sons and while everyone was  assemble at doorway of the tabernacle, wash them with water. Then Moses was to clothe Aaron. After that Moses was to anoint the tabernacle with oil then pour oil, pour as if without measure, on Aaron. After the anointing, Moses was to slaughter a ram and apply the ram’s blood to Aaron.  Then the blood was applied to Aaron’s sons. The blood was then sprinkled around the altar of burnt offering then Aaron’s sons were anointed by sprinkling of oil.  Notice the order of events. Aaron was anointed, then an animal was slaughtered and the blood applied. The blood was applied to his sons and then the sons are anointed by oil by sprinkling.

That priesthood is dead. Maybe ‘dead’ is the wrong word. That Aaronic priesthood is no longer, it has been superseded by a better one. Aaron, the one and only high priest, typifies Jesus, who is currently serving as our one and only high priest. Aaron’s sons typify true believers. The anointing oil typifies the Holy Spirit and the blood typifies, well, blood.

Like Aaron, Jesus was anointed before His blood was shed. Jesus was anointed by the pouring out of the Spirit. Acts 10:38 seems to say that this happened at His baptism by John. But it may have been before His incarnation since He is called the anointed one at birth (Luke 2:11).  He was also anointed by oil by a woman (Mark 14:3-9). It was after His anointing that His blood was shed. It was only after His blood was shed could it be applied.

We become believers because of the shed blood. Like the lower priests, the blood had to be shed first. When we believe, the blood is applied. When we believe, we are anointed (in-dwelt) with the Holy Spirit. Perhaps, like the lower priests, we are anointed by sprinkling because if it was poured out without measure, we might stumble and fall under the sheer weight of it.

We have Jesus Christ (the anointed one). Jesus, who shed His blood for us, whose blood has been applied to us, who has inserted Himself between us and God, serving as our one and only high priest. Who needs someone dressed in the darndest clothes saying the darndest things?

Down at the cross where my Savior died,

Down where for cleansing from sin I cried,

There to my heart was the blood applied;

Glory to His Name!     -- John H. Stockton

Go. And glorify His name...

On the Eighth Day, God...

One of the ten commandments was to keep the Sabbath.  The commandment was given once to the Israelites of the exodus and once to their grown children some 37 years later.  To the earlier group, the reason for keeping the Sabbath, was because God rested from His work of creation on the seventh day (Exo. 20:11).  The reason given to the later group was that it serves as a reminder that they were slaves in Egypt and that Jehovah thy God brought thee out thence with a powerful hand and with a stretched-out arm (Deut 5:15).  Certain groups of believers today think that believers should observe the Sabbath today.  I, personally do not because:

• The Sabbath was a type (Col 2:16)
• The antitype to the Sabbath is the Christ (Col 2:17, Heb. 3-4)
• The commandment to keep the Sabbath was to Israel (Deut 5:15)
• The commandment to keep the Sabbath is the only one of the ten commandments that is not repeated in the New Testament

Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week (Mark 16:9). After Jesus ascended into Heaven, the disciples met on the first day of the week to break bread (Acts 20:7).   The first day of the week is also the eighth day of the previous week.

On the eighth day of the first week, God went back to work.  Creation took the first six days, on the 7th God rested. As best I can tell, this is the only record of God resting, so on the eighth day, He must have returned to work.

On the eighth day, God commanded that baby boys be circumcised and their moms were no longer  ‘unclean’ (Lev 12:1).

On the eighth day, God commanded that the cleansed leper offer a series of sacrifices (Lev 14:8-10).

On the eighth day, God commanded that the first born (both animal and people) be present to Him (Exd 22:29-30).

So, it looks like the eighth day was a day of resurrection, regeneration and restoration.

On the eighth day, God killed Nadab and Abihu.

After Aaron and his sons were selected to be priests, God prescribed an eight day consecration before they could actually serve as priests.  This was a preparation time.  The eight days went something like this:

On the first day, with a crowd gathered, Aaron approached the newly constructed tabernacle with a series of offerings and bread.  Moses bathes Aaron and his four sons then dressed Aaron in his high priestly garments for the very first time. Moses then anointed and hallowed the the tabernacle and everything in it, anointed Aaron and then dressed Aaron’s sons.  A sin offering was offered then an offering of consecration offered. A series of rituals was performed and they were commanded to dwell in the tabernacle for seven days (Lev. 8).   

On the eighth day, a series of offerings were offered for the atonement of the sins of the priests.  Each of the offerings were burned on the altar.  The offerings were burning as the burning of incense. Once the offerings were all smoldering on the altar, there went out fire from before Jehovah, and consumed on the altar the burnt-offering, and the pieces of fat; and all the people saw it, and they shouted, and fell on their face (Lev. 9:24). Offering accepted.

By this point of the eighth day, the separated priestly family was cleansed, and sins atoned for.  Aaron’s two oldest sons took their censers and offered strange fire...and fire went out from Jehovah and consumed them. I don’t know about you, but to me, the punishment does not seem to fit the offense.

Most commentators and folks that post sermons on sermonaudio.com just say the flame of God slain them just because they did something that God did not command.  There has to be more because later that day, Aaron’s two surviving sons disobeyed God, and lived.

The two younger sons had to keep the eighth day going.  The show must go on!  The 2 younger sons got so wrapped up in the events of the day, that they inadvertently left the priest’s portion of the sacrifices on the altar fire a little too long.  Their portion burnt to a crisp and there was nothing for the them to eat.

On the eighth day, all four sons of Aaron sinned, two were saved and two were lost.  Reminds me of the thieves on the crosses with Jesus, one was saved the other lost  .  Which also reminds me of the cupbearer and the baker, one saved the other lost.  So why was one sin deserving of instant incineration and the other not?  Lets look at the two:

The sin of Nadab and Abihu was intentional, the sin of Eleazar and Ithamar was not.  But more important, the sin of Nadab and Abihu ruined the type.  Every offering ever offered (including those offered on the eighth day) represents the death of Jesus on the cross.  The offering represents Jesus, the fact that it was burned by God represents God’s acceptance of the offering, just like God was satisfied with the sacrifice of Jesus.  

With the death of Jesus, the work is complete.  There is nothing more that can be done.  Redemption is done. The price paid. There is nothing we can add to the work.  Offering strange fire is adding works to the work of Jesus.

Eating the priest portion of the offering, on the other hand represents fellowship.  The priest shared fellowship between them, the High Priest and God.  We, believers today, are priests and share fellowship with our High Priest (Jesus) and God the Father.  Is fellowship a requirement for redemption? Fellowship between believers, between a believer and Jesus and between a believer and God the Father is optional, it not a requirement of salvation.  Look at it this way, you can be saved and not have fellowship, but you cannot be saved without the death of Jesus.  The death of Jesus was necessary and there is nothing you or I can do to what Jesus has done.  His sacrificial offering satisfies the Father...nothing can be added.

So, what about you?  Is Jesus’s death on the cross enough for you?  It is enough for God...

I need no other argument,
I need no other plea,
It is enough that Jesus died,
And that He died for me. - Eli­za E. Hew­itt

Indebted to Jesus

The four gospels writers paint four different pictures of one person, Jesus.  Reading trough the gospel of Mathew, you get the feeling that Mathew is trying to convince Jewish readers that Jesus is the Christ, the promised anointed one that was promised and anointed before the beginning of time.  Mark paints a picture of Jesus, the servant.  Luke gives us the Son of Man.  And John presents Jesus as God.  Four different authors, four different facets of one person.

In the beginning of the book of Leviticus, we are presented with five different offerings, each showing a different facet of Jesus. Just like the four gospels present the same person, from four different perspectives and seemingly written to four different people groups, the Five different offerings, illustrate five different aspects of the same person, Jesus, the Christ.  

Before we to study these offerings, I will like to define some terms. The problem with Bible dictionaries, is that if you look up one word in 6 different dictionaries, you can get 7 different definitions. Maybe it’s just me, but when I look up definitions of terms related to the service of the tabernacle, things get really muddled. For the purpose of this study, these are my definitions based on my understanding at this point in time.  These are gleaned from various sources over the years.  They may not be 100% accurate 100% of the time, but I tried to make them simple.  I like simplicity.

A gift is simply something given.
An offering is simply a gift from a lesser to a greater.
A sacrifice is simply an offering that involves blood shed.
An oblation is simply a food offering.

The five Levitical offerings can be divided into two groups: the ones that were smelled sweet and the ones that stunk.  The sweet smelling offerings included (using the King James vernacular) the continual burnt offering, the meat offering and the peace offering.  Each one was a sweet smelling savor.  The stinky offerings were the sin and trespass offerings. I guess God has nostrils and can distinguish between odors.  Listen to what He says by the prophet Amos:

I hate, I despise your feasts, and I will not smell [a sweet odour] in your solemn assemblies. For if ye offer up unto me burnt-offerings and your oblations, I will not accept [them]; neither will I regard the peace-offerings of your fatted beasts. Amos 5:21-2       

Hey, man was created in His image, if we can discern between something that smells sweet and something that stinks, so can He.

Generally, the sweet smelling offerings were to be burned on the altar of burnt offering.  The stinky offerings (for the most part) were to be burned outside the camp, that was probably miles from the nostrils of God.  

So, is there anything in the New Testament that point to sweet smelling odors regarding an gift, offering, or sacrifice?

Be ye therefore imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love, even as the Christ loved us, and delivered himself up for us, an offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour. Eph. 5:1-2

So, Jesus’ offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor.  Notice this verse indicates that Jesus voluntarily delivered Himself.

Did I mention that the Levitical offerings can be broken down into two groups? The voluntary offerings and the compulsory offerings.  The voluntary offerings included the burnt offering, the meat offering and the peace offerings.  The sin and the trespass offerings, the stinky ones, were compulsory.   

God demands offerings for trespasses and sin.  Peace, meat and burnt offerings were made on a totally voluntary free will basis.

Death is the compulsory penalty for sin....the wages of sin is death (Rom 3:23). Starting in the garden Death was required (Gen 3:21).  Starting with the garden a substitutionary death (death of an innocent animal to pay for the debt of the guilty sinner) was acceptable to God. Jesus voluntarily went to the cross and died to pay that debt that we owe but we cannot pay. He voluntarily paid a required debt.  Do you feel indebted to Him for it?

Jesus paid it all,
All to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain,
He washed it white as snow. -- Elvina M. Hall