Three Daily Actions

Scripture: Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down. Leviticus 9:22

Observation: Aaron and his sons are completing their week of purification to become the priests within the sanctuary, and it ends with a series of sacrifices. Some they present for their own absolution, and then some are presented on behalf of all Israel as part of the daily need to absolve them. In this matter, and ignoring all the 'methods and procedures' of the sacrifices - like which animals are used, what parts are waved, what parts are washed, when and where is blood spread, etc. - there are three kinds of offerings given, and these are consistently the three most common sacrifices performed.

-- Sin offering - Done to confess wrongdoing and seek forgiveness

-- Burnt offering - Fully burned up, it signifies total devotion to Yahweh

-- Fellowship offering - A means to declare relationship with the Lord

There are other types of offerings required to purify oneself after an event, or to declare a special decision in life, but these are the key ones everyone is to do regularly, if not daily. They effectively represent the daily relationship everyone is to have with the Lord. We are to seek forgiveness for our sins, declare our faith and devotion and trust in the Lord, and then joyfully make him part of our walk as our father in heaven.

Application: This model remains true today. It applies to Christians as well as Jews, and while it may not involve butchering and burning goats/cows/sheep anymore, it is a reminder of how we should all move into the presence of the Lord every morning.

I am to admit my sins and seek forgiveness, leaning into the salvation found through faith in Jesus as my comfort, knowing I am saved not by deeds but by faith.

I am to declare my full faith and devotion to the Lord, placing my burdens and hardship and resources and time and energy and thoughts before him, to be used however he would deem appropriate.

I am to embrace the fact that the Lord knows me, blesses me, holds me, and leads me, because he is my father - my abba - who loves me, and I love him and want to be in his presence every moment.

And in all this ... I am to pray, mixing my prayers into the pillar of smoke that arises in the throne room of heaven, a pleasing aroma before the Lord.

Prayer: Lord, I do seek your forgiveness for my sins, and continue to ask you for your wisdom and guidance in matters of my daily activities and thoughts. You are my Lord and my God, the only part of my life with true value, and I desire only to worship and honor you with my entire life. Please be with me this day, holding me in your hands, and showing me your perfect will. I thank you for your love, your mercy, and your blessings. May I return joy and honor and praise to you this day. Amen.

Rejecting Jesus while Seeking Jesus

Scripture: Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,
“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Mark 11:8-10

Observation: The event being described is now known as "Palm Sunday". It is the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a young donkey, and a large crowd celebrated him as Messiah. Five days later, he will be publicly executed.

From the reading of this, it seems very unlikely that the crowd doesn't really understand who "Messiah" really is. They are declaring "Hosanna" ... save us! ... and proclaiming Jesus as the coming kingdom of King David. Yes, they understood Messiah was to be an ancestor of David, but between these words and the laying down of cloaks and palm fronds on the grown, it seems they are welcoming Jesus as an ascending king, a new national leader, in politics if not military. The people want Jesus to somehow remove them from Roman tyranny, likely restore the proper kingship of Israel, and usher in a time of victory, security, and eventually peace.

Of course, this isn't what Jesus is about to do. He is about to usher in an entirely new kingdom, which allows all people to experience peace and security, by his willing sacrifice. Very few - if any - people in the crowd that day had any idea that was what they were actually celebrating.

Application: In all my time interacting with non-believers, when I talk to them about Jesus, a recurring understanding I have is that they have no idea who Jesus really was and is. They might think he was anything from a good teacher, to a radical revolutionary, to a fictional myth. Many times, these same people will have "personal philosophies" ... now days called "my truth" ... that they have developed using their own study and reflection over several years, and those personal principles are so closely aligned to Jesus' actual teaching. The interesting thing is that, not only do they not know that, one of their criticisms of Jesus will be that - because he was aligned to scriptural law - Jesus was too morally strict and irrelevant today.

So many people see and understand Jesus just ... wrong. Most a seeking in their life a path for peace, happiness, hope, and joy, and then look to invent their own path when Jesus literally tells them to just believe in him and they will receive all that. They invent a different definition of Jesus, then reject it, and instead seek ... that which is what Jesus actually is.

Prayer: Lord, may I simply walk with Jesus this week, understanding you as my savior, my Lord, and my only hope. Amen.