Saturday, August 24, 2019

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: “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, and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows the trumpet to warn the people, 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. 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. 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.’

“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. 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. 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, 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)

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