September 8, 2019 – Festivals and Foundations – Redeemed By the Blood

Redeemed by the Blood


Leviticus 23:26-32 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁶ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁷ “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present a food offering to the Lord. ²⁸ Do not do any work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God. ²⁹ Those who do not deny themselves on that day must be cut off from their people. ³⁰ I will destroy from among their people anyone who does any work on that day. ³¹ You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. ³² It is a day of sabbath rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath.”

Who did the Lord speak to (verse 26)?

What is to happen on the “tenth day of this seventh month” (verse 27)?

Who is atonement made for (verse 28)?

What will happen to “those who do not deny themselves” (verse 29)?

Who will be destroyed (verse 30)?

How much work can the Israelites do on this day (verse 31)?

When is the sabbath to be observed (verse 32)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Leviticus 16:6-22 - New International Version (NIV)           

⁶ “Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household. ⁷ Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ⁸ He is to cast lots for the two goats—one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat. ⁹ Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering. ¹⁰ But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.

¹¹ “Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household, and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. ¹² He is to take a censer full of burning coals from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain. ¹³ He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die. ¹⁴ He is to take some of the bull’s blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.

¹⁵ “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. ¹⁶ In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting, which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. ¹⁷ No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.

¹⁸ “Then he shall come out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar. ¹⁹ He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and to consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.

²⁰ “When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat. ²¹ He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. ²² The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.

What is Aaron offering the bull for (verse 6)?

Where are the two goats to be presented (verse 7)?

What happens to the goat whose lot falls to the Lord (verse 9)?

What is the goat whose lot falls to the scapegoat used for (verse 10)?

Why is Aaron to slaughter the bull (verse 11)?

Why is Aaron to “take a censer full of burning coals from the alter before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain.  He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke from the incense will conceal the atonement cover” (verses 12 & 13)?

Where is the bull’s blood sprinkled (verse 14)?

Who is the goat a sin offering for (verse 15)?

Why is Aaron to make an atonement “for the Most Holy Place” (verse 16)?

Who is Aaron making atonement for (verse 17)?

How does Aaron make atonement for the alter that is before the Lord (verses 18 and 19)?

What does Aaron do with the live goat (verse 21)?

Where does the goat carry the sins (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does the purposes of the sacrifices revealed by Leviticus 16:6-22 help explain why Leviticus 23:26-32 says that people who don’t deny themselves on the Day of Atonement are to be cut off from their people?

Mark 14:12-26 – New International Version (NIV)

¹² On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?”

¹³ So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. ¹⁴ Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹⁵ He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

¹⁶ The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover.

¹⁷ When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. ¹⁸ While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.”

¹⁹ They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, “Surely you don’t mean me?”

²⁰ “It is one of the Twelve,” he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. ²¹ The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

²² While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.”

²³ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it.

²⁴ “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. ²⁵ “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

²⁶ When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

When did Jesus disciples ask Him “where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover” (verse 12)?

Who were the disciples to meet (verse 13)?

Where were the disciples to make the preparation (verse 15)?

When did Jesus arrive with the twelve (verse 17)?

In your opinion, how is the one who Jesus says will betray Him in verse 18 like the person who works during the Day of Atonement in Leviticus 23:26-32?

What did the disciples say (verse 19)?

Who will betray Jesus (verse 20)?

What must “the Son of Man” do (verse 21)?

What did Jesus say to the disciples after He had taken the bread, broken it and given it to His disciples (verse 22)?

Who drank from the cup (verse 23)?

In your opinion, what did Jesus mean by “this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many” (verse 24)?

When will Jesus drink “again from the fruit of the vine” (verse 25)?

Where did they go (verse 26)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how does Jesus link the Day of Atonement that the Israelites are commanded to observe in Leviticus 23:26-32 to the Passover in Mark 14:12-26?

In your opinion, what parts of the atonement process that Aaron was to complete in Leviticus 16:6-22 does the celebration of the Passover in Mark 14:12-26 indicate that Jesus will fulfill?

Hebrews 9:11-22 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. ¹² He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. ¹³ The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. ¹⁴ How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

¹⁵ For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

¹⁶ In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, ¹⁷ because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. ¹⁸ This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. ¹⁹ When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. ²⁰ He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.” ²¹ In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. ²² In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

Where did Christ, the “high priest of the good things that are now already here”, go through (verse 11)?

How did Jesus enter “the Most Holy Place once for all” (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that the “blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean” (verse 13)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that the blood of Christ will “cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death” (verse 14)?

Why has Christ died (verse 15)?

What is necessary “in the case of a will” (verse 16)?

When does a will never take effect (verse 17)?

What did Moses do when he “had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people” (verse 19)?

What did Moses say (verse 20)?

What did Moses sprinkle with blood (verse 21)?

What can there not be without blood (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what ceremonial step that is commanded in Leviticus 23:26-32 does Paul say in Hebrews 9:11-22 that Jesus completed perfectly?

In your opinion, what is different about the atonement that Aaron was commanded to perform in Leviticus 16:6-22 and the atonement that Jesus completed in Hebrews 9:11-22?

In your opinion, how do the words of Jesus in Mark 14:12-26 demonstrate that He understood that He would do the things just as Paul later  proclaimecd  He did in Hebrews 9:11-22?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Leviticus, Mark and Hebrews teach us about the sacrifice Jesus made so that sinful people would have the opportunity for eternal life?

In your opinion, how should our lives proclaim what Jesus did for us when He entered the heavenly Most Holy Place once for all?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

September 1, 2019 – Festivals and Foundations – Heeding the Call

Heeding the Call


Leviticus 23:23-25 - New International Version (NIV)

²³ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁴ “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts. ²⁵ Do no regular work, but present a food offering to the Lord.’”

Who told Moses to “say to the Israelites” (verses 23 & 24)?

When are they to have “a day of sabbath rest” (verse 24)?

How is the sacred assembly to be commemorated (verse 24)?

What is to be presented “to the Lord” (verse 25)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Ezekial 33:1-9 - New International Version (NIV)    

¹ The word of the Lord came to me: ² “Son of man, speak to your people and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword against a land, and the people of the land choose one of their men and make him their watchman, ³ and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, ⁴ then if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning and the sword comes and takes their life, their blood will be on their own head. ⁵ Since they heard the sound of the trumpet but did not heed the warning, their blood will be on their own head. If they had heeded the warning, they would have saved themselves. ⁶ But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes someone’s life, that person’s life will be taken because of their sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for their blood.’

⁷ “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. ⁸ When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. ⁹ But if you do warn the wicked person to turn from their ways and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved.

What came to Ezekial (verse 1)?

Who chooses the watchman (verse 2)?

How does the watchman warn the people that the “sword is coming against the land” (verse 3)?

In your opinion, what does it mean that “if anyone hears the trumpet but does not heed the warning . . . their blood will be on their own head” (verse 4)?

What would happen if “they had heeded the warning” (verse 5)?

In your opinion, why, if the person’s “life will be taken because of their sin” will the Lord hold the watchman accountable (verse 6)?

Who made Ezekial “watchman for the people of Israel” (verse 7)?

When will Ezekial be held “accountable for the blood” of a wicked person (verse 8)?

How can Ezekial be saved even when the wicked person dies for their sin (verse 9)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the trumpet call of Leviticus 23:23-25 different from the trumpet call of Ezekial 33:1-9?

Matthew 24:23-31 – New International Version (NIV)

²³ At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, I have told you ahead of time.

²⁶ “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. ²⁷ For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ²⁸ Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

²⁹ “Immediately after the distress of those days

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’

³⁰ “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. ³¹ And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

Who is not be be believed (verse 23)?

What will the “false messiahs and false prophets” perform (verse 24)?

In your opinion, why did Jesus tell this “ahead of time” (verse 25)?

What is not to be believed (verse 26)?

How visible will the “coming of the Son of Man” be (verse 27)?

Where do vultures gather (verse 28)?

When will the sun “be darkened” and the moon not give its light (verse 29)?

What will then appear (verse 30)?

In your opinion, why will “all the peoples of the earth” mourn when “they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory” (verse 30)?

What will the Lord use to “send his angels” (verse 31)?

What will the angels do (verse 31)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the trumpet call of Leviticus 23:23-25 similar to the trumpet call of Matthew 24:23-31?

In your opinion, do your think that the peoples of the earth that mourn with the coming of the Lord in Matthew 24:23-31 received a trumpet call of warning by a watchman like Ezekiel was charged to be in Exekiel 33:1-9?

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. ¹⁴ For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. ¹⁵ According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. ¹⁶ For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another with these words.

What does Paul not want the Thessalonians to be uninformed about (verse 13)?

Who has “no hope” (verse 13)?

Who do “we believe” God will bring with Jesus (verse 14)?

What will those “who are still alive” not do (verse 15)?

What will happen when the Lord comes “down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God” (verse 16)?

Where will all Christians, those who had been dead and those who are still alive, meet the Lord (verse 17)?

How long will Christians be with the Lord (verse 17)?

What does Paul want Christians to do with this information (verse 18)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the actions of the people of Israel after the trumpet call in Leviticus 23:23-25 similar to the actions of Christians after the trumpet call of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18?

In your opinion, how do people’s responses to the trumpet call of the watchmen like Ezekiel in Ezekiel 33:1-9 determine their response to “the trumpet call of God” of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18?

In your opinion, what do Paul and Jesus understand that causes Paul to say in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 that “the rest of mankind, who have no hope” and Jesus to say in Matthew 24:23-31 that “all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven”?

In your opinion, how do these passages from Leviticus, Ezekiel, Matthew and 1 Thessalonians teach us about how God uses a trumpet call?

In your opinion, are Christians today to be watchmen?  How should our message be similar to Ezekiel’s?  How should our message be different?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

August 25, 2019 – Festivals and Foundations – Sacred Offerings

-                        The

Sacred Offerings


Leviticus 23:15-22 - New International Version (NIV)

¹⁵ “‘From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. ¹⁶ Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. ¹⁷ From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord. ¹⁸ Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁹ Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering. ²⁰ The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest. ²¹ On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

²² “‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you. I am the Lord your God.’”

How long were the Israelites to count off after the day they “brought the sheaf of the wave offering” (verse 15)?

What are the Israelites to present (verse 16)?

Where are the “two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour” to come from (verse 17)?

What are the bread, seven male lambs, young bull and two rams to be (verse 18)?

What is the male goat for (verse 19)?

In your opinion, what is a wave offering (verse 20)?

How is the day to be set apart (verse 21)?

Why is the harvest not to include the edges of the fields or the gleanings (verse 22)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

John 15:26-16:15 - New International Version (NIV)           

²⁶ “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. ²⁷ And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.

¹ “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. ² They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. ³ They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. ⁴ I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, ⁵ but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ ⁶ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. ⁷ But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹ about sin, because people do not believe in me; ¹⁰ about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; ¹¹ and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.

¹² “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. ¹³ But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. ¹⁵ All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Who will the Advocate testify about (verse 26)?

Who else must testify (verse 27)?

Why has Jesus told the disciples these things (verse 1)?

In your opinion, why will people who kill the disciples “think they are offering a service to God” (verse 2)?

Why will people “do such things” (verse 3)?

When are the disciples to remember that Jesus warned them about those who would think killing the disciples was serving God (verse 4)?

Where is Jesus going (verse 5)?

What fills the disciples (verse 6)?

Why is it good for the disciples that Jesus is going away (verse 7)?

What will the Advoate prove the world is wrong about (verse 8)?

Why is the world wrong about sin (verse 9)?

Why is the world wrong about righteousness (verse 10)?

Why is the world wrong about judgment (verse 11)?

Who will guide the disciples “into all the truth” (verse 13)?

Who will be glorified (verse 14)?

What belongs to Jesus (verse 15)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the burnt offerings, sin offerings, fellowship offerings and wave offerings of Leviticus 23:15-22 related to the Advocate’s teaching of “sin and righteousness and judgment” in John 15:26-16:15?

Acts 2:1-12 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

⁵ Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. ⁶ When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. ⁷ Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” ¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

Where were the followers of Jesus “when the day of Pentecost came” (verse 1)?

What sound “filled the whole house where they were sitting” (verse 2)?

What “came to rest on each of them” (verse 3)?

Who was “filled with the Holy Spirit” (verse 4)?

How were they able to “speak in other tongues” (verse 4)?

Who was “staying in Jerusalem” (verse 5)?

Why was the crowd bewildered (verses 6-11)?

What did the “amazed and perplexed” crowd ask one another (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does it mean that on the day the Israelite people were supposed to be dedicating the harvest as described in Leviticus 23:15-22 the Holy Spirit “came to rest on each of them” in Acts 2:1-12?

In your opinion, how does what Jesus told his disciples in John 15:26-16:15 answer the question asked by the crowd in Acts 2:1-12, “what does this mean”?

1 Corinthians 12:1-11 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Now about the gifts of the Spirit, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. ² You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols. ³ Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

⁴ There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. ⁵ There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. ⁶ There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.

⁷ Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. ⁸ To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, ⁹ to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, ¹⁰ to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. ¹¹ All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines.

About what does Paul not want the Corinthians to be uninformed (verse 1)?

When were the Corinthians “influenced and led astray to mute idols” (verse 2)?

Who cannot say “Jesus be cursed” (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why is it important that “there are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them” (verse 4)?

Who is served by the “different kinds of service” (verse 5)?

Where is “the same God at work” (verse 6)?

Why is each “manifestation of the Spirit” given (verse 7)?

Whose work is the message of wisdom, the message of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in different kinds of tongues and interpretation of tongues (verses 8 through 11)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how are the waving of the lambs and bread in Leviticus 23:15-22 and the “manisfestation of the Spirit” in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 similar?

In your opinion, how is Jesus statement that “He will glorify me” in John 15:26-16:15 fulfilled through what the Holy Spirit does in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s lesson in 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 also answer the question of the crowd in Acts 2:1-12, “what does this mean”?

In your opinion, how do these passages from Leviticus, John, Acts and 1 Corinthians help us understand about how the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts is a fulfillment of the Pentecost worship outlined in Leviticus 23:15-22?


In your opinion, how can we who have received the transformation of the sin offering of Christ and are the firstfruits of the harvest wave offering of the Spirit of God to fulfill the command of Jesus to “testify about me”?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

August 18, 2019 – Festivals and Foundations – God’s Bounty

God’s Bounty


Leviticus 23:9-14 - New International Version (NIV)

⁹ The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁰ “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest. ¹¹ He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. ¹² On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect, ¹³ together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil—a food offering presented to the Lord, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine. ¹⁴ You must not eat any bread, or roasted or new grain, until the very day you bring this offering to your God. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

Who spoke to Moses (verse 9)?

When are the Israelites to “bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest” (verse 10)?

Where is the priest supposed to “wave the sheaf” (verse 11)?

What else is to happen “on the day you wave the sheaf” (verses 12 and 13)?

What are the Israelites forbidden to do “until the very day you bring this offering” (verse 14)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Joshua 5:2-12 - New International Version (NIV)    

² At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites again.” ³ So Joshua made flint knives and circumcised the Israelites at Gibeath Haaraloth.

⁴ Now this is why he did so: All those who came out of Egypt—all the men of military age—died in the wilderness on the way after leaving Egypt. ⁵ All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the wilderness during the journey from Egypt had not. ⁶ The Israelites had moved about in the wilderness forty years until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the Lord. For the Lord had sworn to them that they would not see the land he had solemnly promised their ancestors to give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. ⁷ So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised. They were still uncircumcised because they had not been circumcised on the way. ⁸ And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed.

⁹ Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” So the place has been called Gilgal to this day.

¹⁰ On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. ¹¹ The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. ¹² The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.

Who was to “make flint knives and circumcise the Israelites again” (verse 2)?

Where were the flint knives made and the circumcision to happen (verse 3)?

What had happened to “all those who came out of Egypt-all the men of military age” (verse 4)?

In your opinion, why had all the people who had come out of Egypt been circumcised and those who were born in the wilderness hadn’t (verse 5)?

Why had the Israelites “moved about in the wilderness forty years” (verse 6)?

Who had the Lord raised up (verse 7)?

How long did they stay in camp (verse 8)?

In your opinion, what was the “reproach of Egypt” that the Lord rolled away (verse 9)?

When did the Israelites celebrate the Passover (verse 10)?

What did the Israelites do the “day after the Passover” (verse 11)?

When did the manna stop (verse 12)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

Luke 15:1-7 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. ² But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

³ Then Jesus told them this parable: ⁴ “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? ⁵ And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders ⁶ and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ ⁷ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Who was gathering around to hear Jesus (verse 1)?

What did the “Pharisees and the teachers of the law” mutter (verse 2)?

What did Jesus tell them (verse 3)?

In your opinion, why does the shepherd leave the ninety-nine sheep “in the open country” when he goes after the lost sheep (verse 4)?

Where does the shepherd put the sheep when he finds it (verse 5)?

What does the shepherd want his friends and neighbors to do (verse 6)?

Where is there more rejoicing “over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (verse 7)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the lost sheep that the shepherd rejoiced finding in Luke 15:1-7 similar to the people of Israel who had their reproach lifted at Gilgal in Joshua 5:2-12?

1 Corinthians 15:12-26 – New International Version (NIV)

¹² But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. ¹⁴ And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. ¹⁵ More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. ¹⁶ For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. ¹⁸ Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. ¹⁹ If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.

²⁰ But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. ²¹ For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. ²² For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. ²³ But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. ²⁴ Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. ²⁵ For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. ²⁶ The last enemy to be destroyed is death.

What were some people saying (verse 12)?

Who could not be raised from the dead if there is no resurrection of the dead (verse 13)?

In your opinion, why is Paul’s preaching useless if Christ has not been raised (verse 14)?

Why is Paul a false witness if Christ has not been raised (verse 15)?

Where would the Corinthians be if Christ “has not been raised” (verse 17)?

In your opinion, why would “those also who have fallen asleep” be lost if Christ has not been raised (verse 18)?

Who is “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (verse 20)?

What two things came “through a man” (verse 21)?

How will “all be made alive” (verse 22)?

Who will be made alive after “Christ, the firstfruits” (verse 23)?

When will the end come (verse 24)?

How long will Christ reign (verse 25)?

What is the “last enemy to be destroyed” (verse 26)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, how is the new generation who had been raised up by the Lord, had their reproach removed, and dined on the food of the promised land in Joshua 5:2-12 similar to those who Paul says are raised up by Christ, the first fruit in 1 Corinthians 15:12-26?

In your opinion, how does Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 15:12-26 that “as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” enhance your understanding of the one lost sheep and ninety-nine “left in the open country” in Luke 15:1-7?

In your opinion, how do these passages from Leviticus, Joshua, Luke and 1 Corinthians teach us about how to recognize the Lord’s bounty?

In your opinion, how can we, the rescued “lost sheep”, celebrate God’s bounty today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)