Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage – Leviticus 24 – 25 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 17 – 18; Proverbs 12; Psalms 61 – 65
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Ephesians 4:32
Read last year’s post on this date – “Let’s Get Real”, by Melissa Dilley
Read a great article by Pastor Chappell – “You Pick Five”
A Study of the Women of the Bible
Orpay, A Woman Who Made The Wrong Decision
“And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law, Go, return each to her mother’s house: the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me.” (Ruth 1:8)
“And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her. And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law.” (Ruth 1:14-15)
Orpah will always be known as the woman who left her mother-in-law. But to Orpah, she thought she was making the right decision in a heartbreaking situation. At first Orpah followed Naomi with Ruth back to Israel. But when Naomi explained to them that there was no hope for them to remarry, Orpah decided to go back to her family in Moab. To Orpah it was the logical thing to do. She might of thought it would be easier to find someone to marry there. It just seemed to make more sense then going to Israel. It makes me wonder why Naomi told her daughter-in-laws to go back home. It was a heathen nation. Maybe because Naomi knew that they would only be able to live happy lives in Israel if they had the chance to choose their new country voluntarily. Maybe Naomi knew it wasn’t just a choice of a place to live, but a decision of being followers of God or not. What ever the case, we know that Ruth married and was mentioned in Christ genealogy. Orpah, was never heard of again. Orpah took the wrong road.
Sometimes the logical solution to a problem isn’t God’s solution. We may be asked to do something that just doesn’t make sense to us. When we start down the path that God asks us to go down, we start to feel doubt. Stepping out on faith is hard to do when we look at it from our view. But He is in control and is all knowing. We must trust Him. Orpah trusted in worldly security. Ruth trusted in God. Which road will you choose? It’s up to you.
Thank You
1 John 5:13
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What’s the Difference
Today’s Passage – Leviticus 19 – 21 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 13 – 14; Proverbs 10; Psalm 51 – 55
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Micah 6:8
Read a great article by Pastor Chappell – “You Pick Five”
“Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.” – (Leviticus 19:2)
“And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.” – (Leviticus 20:26)
In the passages which we have read from Leviticus today, we see that God intended there to be a difference in the people of Israel from the world that surrounded them; or actually would surround them when they finally entered into the land of Canaan where God was bringing them. God warns them not to be like the people of the land. God was removing them (the Canaanites, etc.) from the land because of their sinful lifestyles. God’s people would have to be different, or God would expel them out of the land as well.
In the three chapters that we have read today there are many different commandments from the Lord regarding how they were to be a holy people, set apart from the rest of the world. I will not take the time to deal with all of them, but I will mention a few here in this devotion. Think about the world we live in today as we examine these thoughts; and see if we, as Christians, are as “set apart” as we should be. Let’s take a quick look at how the children of Israel were to be different:
1 They were to be different morally. Much of chapter 20 deals with sexual sins such as adultery, homosexuality, and even bestiality. God says that the previous inhabitants of the land were all guilty of these things. The people in our world today are also very perverted in their ability to live morally pure lives. We live in the era of “if it feels good, do it.” God says that His children are to be different.
2 They were to be different in their compassion for others. They were to make provisions in their crops for the poor and the stranger. God reminds them that they were strangers at one time. He wanted them to leave the corners of their fields, and the gleanings for people who needed help. How concerned are we today about helping people? Many of us have been blessed of God with abundance. God wants us to share part of that blessing with others. I think the key here is that God wants us to remember that it all comes from him anyway. We are often like the kid who was eating with his dad at McDonalds. When his dad reached for a french fry out of his son’s meal, the son pulled them away. Not very wise considering the dad supplied the meal in the first place, and would be the supplier of many future meals.
3 They were also to be different in their faith. The people of the land were very superstitious. They worshipped all kinds of “gods” and idols. Some were even guilty of sacrificing their own children. God wanted the people of Israel to stay far away from all of that stuff. No wizards; no witches; no familiar spirits; no divination; no astrologers; no soothsayers; none of that junk. God wants his children to be wholly dependent upon Him; and He does not want to share His glory; or His worship with anybody, or anything else. We have a lot of “idols” in our society today also, don’t we. They may not be little statues, but they are there none the less. An idol is anything that comes between us and God.
4 They were to be different in their respect for the older folks. I think that we are getting away from this in our world as well. There used to be a time in America when Granddad and Grandma were the patriarchs and matriarchs of the family. They were deeply revered and respected by their children and grandchildren. It isn’t like that any more; but we need to get back to it. Today, even young children will mock their elders, and answer back to them. Christian parents need to be very careful that they do not tolerate such behavior in their children.
5 They were to be different in their business dealings. They were to be fair and honest with people; never cheating them with unjust balances and such. The world today is replete with people who will are trying to steal money away from others. There are myriads of scams out their designed to rob others. God’s people should never be involved in any business dealing that is not providing a good product or service at a fair price.
These were just a few thoughts from the passage. There are many more examples contained in the text. But how do we fare today in this present world that we live in? Are we any different from them? Or are we just like them with the exception of the “fish emblems” on our cars. As time goes by, there ought to be more and more of a striking difference between God’s people and the people of this world. Just a thought.
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Abomination
Today’s Passage – Leviticus 16 – 18 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 11 – 12; Proverbs 9; Psalm 46 – 50
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 51:11
“Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.” – (Leviticus 18:22)
“For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.” – (Romans 1:26-27)
In chapter 18 of Leviticus, God gives His people His laws regarding marriage and sexual purity. He goes into great detail explaining who they could not “uncover”. He also specifically forbids a man lying with another man. It was very clear to the saints of old that sodomy was a sin, and was to be removed from a godly society. However, in recent years, the sin of sodomy, or homosexuality, has become a very unpopular sin to preach against in our churches. Our modern culture has gone beyond just tolerating this “abomination”, and has even promoted it in many ways. Many of our pulpits have been intimidated into silence, choosing to just leave this particular sin alone. It is not “politically correct” anymore to preach against homosexuality. Some “churches” have even ordained “gay” ministers. God help us. This is clearly a fulfillment of what God said in Romans 1 about the state of mankind as they get further and further away from Biblical principal, and closer and closer to the return of Christ. And the fact that our churches no longer talk about it is also a fulfillment of what God says in 2 Timothy 3:
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” – (2 Timothy 4:3-4)
Well, I don’t want to be “wishy-washy” about this subject. God has not changed His mind about it, so neither should I as a preacher – Homosexuality is clearly sin, and as such should be preached against with the same spirit and zeal that we might preach against any other sin. By the way, fornication and adultery are also still in the book, and should also be preached against in these modern times. However, as much as we need to be clear in our condemning of the sin, we must also be just as clear in informing the sinner of God’s love for them. I believe homosexuals can be saved; along with adulterers, fornicaters, liars, and any other type of sinner. I believe we all fall into one of those categories. I do realize that there will come a time that if a person continues in their sin, and also continues to reject Christ, their conscience will be seared, and their mind will become reprobate; and when a person gets to that point they will have no desire to repent of their sin, and come to Christ. But I also believe that the vast majority of the people that are living in sin, even sexual sin, still have a conscience , and can still come to Christ for forgiveness. However, once a person becomes saved, they must foresake the sin that they repented of. Jesus did tell the woman caught in adultery to “go and sin no more”.
One more thing – the rainbow is God’s symbol. It does not belong to the gay rights crowd.
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Unclean
Today’s Passage –Leviticus 13 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 7 – 8; Proverbs 7; Psalms 36 – 40
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 27:15
Read a Great Article by Pastor Paul Chappell – “A Hidden Message in Jesus’ Genealogy”
“And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be.” – (Leviticus 13:45-46)
This morning we have been reading all about the plague of leprosy from Leviticus 13. Leprosy was certainly a horrible disease which, I believe, was fatal in almost all cases. If a person was determined by the priests to be a leper, he was separated from all others in the congregation, including his family, and was required to live outside the camp presumably among other lepers. If they were ever in a situation where they were in a close proximity with non-lepers, they were required to cry out unclean, unclean, so as to warn the people to keep their distance. This policy may seem to be harsh to us, but it was the only way to keep leprosy from spreading throughout the entire congregation of Israel.
Leprosy in the Bible is a picture, or type, of sin. Sin is like leprosy in many ways. It starts out on the inside, but eventually works its way out to the outside. It starts out small, but soon covers the entire body. If not dealt with, it will also spread to everybody. It causes us to be separated from God, and the people we love; and it leads eventually to death. We are all sinners, so we should all be able to relate to this dreaded disease. Fortunately for us there is a cure, a cleansing for this spiritual leprosy that we are plagued with. It is called the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the song says, “What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.” What a blessing it is to know that there is a cure for the penalty of sin in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Even though we are unclean in our flesh, He comes near to us and cleanses us from our sin. Praise the Lord!
One more thought regarding the leprosy of sin. God spared no precaution in trying to keep the people away from leprosy, and He feels the same way today about sin. He wants us to stay as far away from sin as possible. We are supposed make much of sin, instead of trying to minimize it. Don’t try to justify the sin in your life; do your best to eradicate it. We will never be able to remove the presence of sin in our life altogether. There is no such thing as “sinless perfection”; but we can get as close to God as possible, and through our closeness to God, see sin as He sees it. Maybe then we will strive to keep sin as distant from us as Israel attempted to keep leprosy from their congregation. This does not mean we loathe the sinner; we are commanded to love them, and pray for them, and do everything we can do to help them get to the cure; just as somebody helped us
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Creeping Things
Today’s Passage –Leviticus 11 – 12 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 5 – 6; Proverbs 6; Psalm 31 – 35
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Proverbs 3:5 & 6
Read a Great Article by Pastor Cary Schmidt – “When You’re Spiritually Numb?”
“Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.” – (Leviticus 11:43)
How would you like to wake up with one of those creepy crawly things (above) on top of you? I thank the Lord that this particular bug is not native to our area. It is found far away from here in the Philippines. Remind me to never go there. The worst that we have to deal with here in Galloway Twp. is the Camel Cricket (below), which is an ugly looking critter, but is also harmless.
In our passage this morning, God is explaining to the children of Israel which animals, fish, and bugs were safe for them to eat, and or touch. Frankly, I am not sure about the reasons why God declared certain animals to be clean, and others to be an “abomination”. The people of God just had to obey the law by faith, believing that the omniscient God that created the universe knew better about what was best for them.
We know that in the New Testament period we are not under law regarding any of these things, and we will not face judgment for touching or eating any of these animals, etc. However, I can’t help but think that God had good reasons for banning these critters from the menus of the Israelites.
My thought this morning is not regarding what we should or shouldn’t eat, however. I got to thinking about all of the “creeping things” that God wants us to stay away from today. There are a lot of things out there that will hurt us if we “touch” them or partake of them. For instance, many of the philosophies that spew out this world system are “creeping things” that shouldn’t be touched, and certainly shouldn’t be allowed to enter into our minds. There are also many doctrinal heresies coming from some so-called theologians that attack the very foundation of our belief system. We should steer clear of these “creeping things” as well. There are also some pretty “creepy people”out there that should be avoided. People who have an ungodly perspective on living. I am not saying that we shouldn’t love these people and try to reach them with the gospel, but we shouldn’t run with them either, allowing their lifestyles and doctrines to influence us.
The “creeping things” today are not the same as in Moses’ day, but they are to be avoided nonetheless.
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Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage – Leviticus 8 – 10 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – John 3 – 4; Proverbs 5; Psalm 26 – 30
Scripture Memorization for January – Proverbs 4
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 121
Read “Ten Pillars for Spiritual Leaders” by Pastor Paul Chappell
A Study of Women in the Bible
Athaliah, A Wicked Mother and Grandmother
And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his youngest son king in his stead: for the band of men that came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the eldest. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned. Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Athaliah the daughter of Omri. He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly. Wherefore he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father to his destruction. (2Chronicles 22:1-4)
But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah. But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons that were slain, and put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, (for she was the sister of Ahaziah,) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not. And he was with them hid in the house of God six years: and Athaliah reigned over the land. (2Chronicles 22:10-12)
Athaliah was the daughter of Israel’s wicked king Ahab. Instead of being a godly mother, the Bible tells us she encouraged her son Ahaziah, to do wrong. After becoming king of Judah, Ahaziah joined Joram, king of Israel, in a battle against Hazael, king of Aram. Jehu killed many of Ahaziah’s heirs and wiped out Judah’s king.
When Athaliah heard the news, she sought to kill off all her grandchildren so she could gain the throne. This power-hungry woman literally sacrificed her family on the altar of her own ambition. If she had been successful, the line of the Messiah would have been destroyed. So, God place a faithful woman, Jehosheba, by Ahaziah’s son Joash. For years the child remained in hiding at the temple while his grandmother ruled.
And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons which were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and shewed them the king’s son. (2Kings 11:1-4)
And he brought forth the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him the testimony; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they clapped their hands, and said, God save the king. And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the LORD. And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets: and Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried, Treason, Treason. But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them, Have her forth without the ranges: and him that followeth her kill with the sword. For the priest had said, Let her not be slain in the house of the LORD. And they laid hands on her; and she went by the way by the which the horses came into the king’s house: and there was she slain. (2Kings 11:12-16)
And he sat on the throne of the kings. And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet: and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king’s house. (2Kings 11:20)
Athaliah’s actions are shocking, or are they? Few women would sacrifice their child or grandchild to gain power. But with our fast paced lives causes us to sacrifice our time and attention with family. If our jobs always come first with long hours or travel, or when we need to place our child in the care of others, we’ve begun to make the same mistake as this wicked queen. We don’t have to serve a pagan god or want to rule a kingdom to get our priorities mixed up.
If we fail, we are not a wicked Athaliah, but we should get it right by confessing our wrong and find a way to make a change. It might be reorganizing our time, refusing a promotion, or working part-time. I know in today’s world, with needing two pay checks or being a single mom, many women must work. But let’s do whatever it takes, not to sacrifice our families to get ahead. In the end we won’t be ahead at all, we’ll lose it.
Thank You
I John 5:13
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It Is Finished!
Today’s Passage – Leviticus 1 – 4 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read –Luke 23 – 24; Proverbs 3 ; Psalm 16 – 20
Scripture Memorization for January – Philippians 3
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1 – 4
“And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar:” – (Leviticus 4:33-34)
“Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.” – (Luke 23:34)
I must confess that as I was reading the 4 chapters from Leviticus this morning, I kept thinking to myself: “what am I going to write about from this passage”. The four chapters are all about the Old Testament offerings. We read about the burnt offering, the meat offering, the peace offering, and the sin offering. I have been a student of the Bible for many years, and I still don’t have all of the Old Testament offerings straight in my head. I really was not looking forward to writing a devotion this morning on one or all of these Old Testament sacrifices. But then I read the “second miler” passage for this morning from Luke 23. I read where Jesus said, “Forgive them”, and I thought about when He said in John’s gospel, “It is finished”; and then it when I got excited. I realized that I don’t have to know all of the details of the Old Testament sacrificial system because all of those sacrifices and offerings pictured and pointed to one thing: the sacrifice that Christ would make on the Cross of Calvary. It truly is finished! We don’t have to run down to the Tabernacle or Temple every time that we sin. We do not have to keep it all straight, because Jesus Christ paid for it all when He died for our sins. Praise God!
The next thing that I thought about this morning was that I don’t fully appreciate what the Lord did for me on the Cross. I cannot imagine what it must have been like to live in Old Testament Israel. It certainly would have been very burdensome to live under the Law; and it was also impossible to live it perfectly. Do you think that even the best of the Israelites did everything the way they were supposed to. Do you think that every time they committed a sin of ignorance (and didn’t get caught) they went down to the priests with a sacrifice. I doubt it. But then that must have led to a lot of guilt, because they knew in their hearts that they were not fully obeying the Lord. What a relief it is to know that all sin: every sin, whether they be sins of ignorance or not, are forgiven. They are all under the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. I feel like speaking in tongues right now! (just kidding) Praise God for Jesus!!!!
Oh Oh! I just got another thought: a thought about sacrifices. There is one more sacrifice that I should consider today: the living sacrifice. I am to present my body a living sacrifice to the Lord. I am no longer my own: I am bought with a price, and I belong to Him; and that is my reasonable service. It is the least that I can do to live for the Lord since He was willing to die for me.
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The Glory of the Lord
Today’s Passage – Exodus 39 – 40 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read –Luke 21 – 22; Proverbs 2; Psalms 11 – 15
Scripture Memorization for January – Philippians 3
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1
“Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” – (Exodus 40:34)
“And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.” – (Leviticus 9:24)
“Now when Solomon had made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house.” – (2 Chronicles 7:1)
“Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.” – (1 Kings 18:38)
The first two verses referenced above deal with the event that is taking place in Exodus 40: the dedication of the Tabernacle. Moses and the people of Israel have completed all that God had asked them to do regarding the construction of the Tabernacle. They had followed God’s instructions perfectly, building everything precisely as God had showed Moses. They anointed Aaron and his sons, and now everything is ready for God to put His blessing upon it. Exodus 40:34 tells us that the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. Leviticus tells us that a fire came down from Heaven. You will notice that 2 Chronicles tells us that later in Israel’s history, in the days of King Solomon, that the fire fell again when they dedicated the Temple. It also fell in the time of Elijah when God was showing the people of Israel His power on Mount Carmel.
I remember years ago when Pastor Rick Wedemeyer and a handful of people first started the Christian Bible Church in South Tom’s River. There is no better way to say it than to say that in those early days the church was “on fire”. It was new, and it was fulfilling the purposes of glorifying the Lord and winning souls for Christ. The people were committed wholly to the Lord and His will for their lives. And the fire fell. God put a zeal, a fervor in the hearts of those people; and within a very short time the church had grown as many people were saved; and converts were being discipled and getting involved in the service of the Lord.
I also have seen the fire of the Lord fall upon our ministry here at Jersey Shore Baptist Church; but unfortunately it has only been at certain seasons, and for a limited time. There have been times when the people were revived, and very zealous for the work of the Lord. Then there have been other times when the church seemed very lethargic. I pray constantly for the Lord to revive me, and our people; that He will once again set us on fire for His work, and His glory. I believe if God’s people will separate themselves from the world, and then dedicate themselves to the Lord and His purposes, the fire will fall once again. It really is all about what we desire. In our passage, the people of Israel were wholly focused on the Lord. And the fire fell. And if we were to wholly focus on the Lord in our lives and ministries, we would also see the fire of God fall to bless His work. Remember when you first trusted Christ as your Saviour? You were probably more “on fire” than you are now. I don’t know why, but it just happens that Christians, as well as churches, cool off in their spiritual zeal. However, now that we recognize that the fire in our hearts is not blazing as it once was, let’s confess our apathy to the Lord, and then ask Him to stoke the embers of our hearts and revive us. And the fire will fall once again.
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Willing Servants
Today’s Passage – Exodus 33 – 35 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read –Luke 17 – 18; Proverbs 31; Psalms 1 – 5 (Jump start on February because it is a short month)
Scripture Memorization for January – Philippians 3
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 61:1 – 3
“And Moses spake unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the LORD commanded, saying, Take ye from among you an offering unto the LORD: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the LORD; gold, and silver, and brass, … And every wise hearted among you shall come, and make all that the LORD hath commanded; … And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORD’S offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments. And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered offered an offering of gold unto the LORD. … The children of Israel brought a willing offering unto the LORD, every man and woman, whose heart made them willing to bring for all manner of work, which the LORD had commanded to be made by the hand of Moses.” – (Exodus 35:4-5, 10, 21-22, 29)
“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” – (Philippians 1:27)
Notice in our passage today, in chapter 35, how many times the word willing is used. There is nothing sweeter than to see the people of God doing what God has called them to do with a willing heart. Preachers love it when the people all want to pitch in to do the work of the Lord. Unfortunately, there is often not always this type of spirit within the church, which tempts us to use “methods of persuation” in order to accomplish the work that needs to be done. I must admit that there have been times that I have tried to “guilt” people into serving, and I may have even been successfulat getting them to do things, at least for a short while. However, if God’s work is going to be done the way God wants it done, it will have to be done by willing servants who are excited about serving and who are absolutely convinced that they are doing what God wants them to do.
Notice from this passage:
1 God gave the congregation a job to do – building the tabernacle
2 God gave them instructions as to how the tabernacle was to be built, and how they were to acquire the necessary materials for building.
3 God equipped them – He gave specific people specific skill in order for the work to get done.
4 The people willingly offered to give. In fact, we will soon learn that they gave too much.
5 The people willingly offered to work. They gave themselves to the task that God had given them.
God has a job for us to do today as well. The task is different from what the Israelites had to do, but the process for completing the task is the same. God told us what to – fulfill His Great Commission; He equips us to fulfill the task, giving each participant the gifts that they need to their part. Now, it is up to us to willingly give ourselves to the task that God has given us. Let’s do it. Get excited about serving God!
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Just for Ladies – by Camille Stahl
Today’s Passage – Exodus 28 – 29 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Luke 13 – 14; Proverbs 29; Psalms 141 – 145
Scripture Memorization for January – Philippians 3
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 51
A Study of Women in the Bible
Naaman’s Servant Girl
“Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper. And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife. And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.” (2Kings 5:1-3)
Today we will be talking about another nameless girl. She was a Jewish girl who was taken form her home and all that was familiar. She became a slave by the hands of Syrians, to the captain of the host, Naaman’s, wife. Although she was torn form her home, she was not torn away from her faith. She was in a heathen country, but still kept the teaching of Jehovah God and she knew exactly where to go for help. We also see she was not shy about telling her mistress, that her husband Naaman, needed to see a man of God. Remember these people did not worship the Lord God.
Although very little is written about this young girl, but I believe we can learn a few important facts from her. She was surrounded by unbelievers. When working outside the home, their are lost people all around us. We listen to their talk, their music and their stories. We see the way they dress, the places they go and the way they act. If we are not keeping our minds fully on the Lord, their ways will become our ways. It was not so with the servant girl. She kept her faith. She must have been a good servant and a good testimony, because Naaman listened and did what she suggested. She also was not ashamed about telling Naaman and his wife about God. (Would God my lord we with the prophet that si in Samaria….). Notice the word God is capitalized. We too must be a bold witness for the Lord. Who knows what can become of someone sharing the Gospel. In the case of the servant girl, Naaman turned to the Lord.
“And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.” (2King 5:15)
Are we witnesses in our everyday life? Or are our mouths closed by doubt and fear? Like the unimportant servant girl, we need to do God’s will wherever we are. Let’s not distracted by our place in life, our enemies or anything else. God uses the most amazing people to serve Him. Are you willing?
Thank You
I John 5:13
Posted in Just for Ladies by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.