Tag: tithe

Satisfaction and Sin

Numbers 18 29 NIV

Numbers 18

Everything in Israel that is devoted to the Lord is yours. – Numbers 18:14
The old saying to “save the best for last” might be our natural inclination as people, but when it comes to giving to God, the best should always come first. That was what God demanded of Israel. As the chosen servants of God, the Levites received that offering, the very best, as their own.
1st of all, the Levites enjoyed a distinguished role. They were God’s gift to Aaron. There should have been no confusion about Aaron’s authority over them; instead, they should have appreciated the fact that God had wanted them for His service.
That service was part of its unique responsibility. No one else in Israel could come so close to the Lord’s dwelling as the Levites. They were given the opportunity to care for and handle the holiest dwelling in the whole land. They were employed in the service of the Almighty.
God blessed them with material gifts as well. In exchange for their service to God, the Levites received the tithe offered by the entire community, the best that Israel had to offer.
For any among the Levites to have been unhappy, they must have been deceived or deluded about their stance with God. The proper response to all that He had given them was to give Him a tenth of what they received—not just any part of it, but the very best of the best. Instead, they demanded more. People who are not satisfied with the best, can never really be satisfied. Do you recognize what God has blessed you with?

Numbers 19

If a [unclean] person does not purify himself, he must be cut off from the community, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the Lord. – Numbers 19:20
It was very easy to become unclean without realizing it. To touch a corpse, to be in the same room as the dead, to stumble over a grave, was enough to defile the Israelite, and excommunicate him from the Tabernacle with its holy rites. Could anything more graphic give us a clear picture of sin? We cannot be in contact with people who are blatantly sinning, or using foul language, or watching movies or tv that express the evil of this world.
This is the reason why, at the end of the day, we often feel unable to pray, or hold fellowship with God: we are excluded from the Most Holy Place, because of this defilement. There is only one way of escaping it, and that is in being covered, sealed, by the Spirit of God. “In whom you were sealed until the day of redemption.”
Andy Cisneros
Today’s Bible reading, Numbers 18-20 can be read or listened to at https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Numbers+18-20&version=NIV
Tomorrow’s reading will be Numbers 21-22 as we continue the 2020 Chronological Bible Reading Plan

Meeting with God (Deuteronomy 12-15)

September 16
joseph-fri
By Joseph Partain
Have you had to buy another highlighter? And we’re only 11 chapters into Deuteronomy. There are so many passages that speak directly into our lives and need to be read and put into action. Today is no different. It seems as though “meeting with God on the Sabbath” has become indifferent to a lot of people. If it fits into my schedule, if I’m not on vacation, if my kids don’t have a sporting event, etc. God lets us know in Ch 12 that meeting together with God and others is very important. v7 speaks to our meeting in the presence of God, eating and praising him for all that he has blessed us with. Sounds like a potluck and that’s about as good as it gets. The importance of the family coming to worship God together is a teaching moment that is stressed throughout this chapter and this book. Make sure that all the idols and other forms of worship are completely destroyed. Do we have a joy in meeting with God or is it something we endure? We need to have an attitude like David when he said, “I was glad when they said unto me let us go into your house O Lord.”
The next three chapters go over the importance of worshiping the One true God, not being led astray by any false teachings. God says not to spare the one who would lead one of his people away from God. It also covers the animals that were to be eaten and the importance of tithing to God. The tithing that is mentioned in this text is to make sure that everyone has enough and God says that if we are faithful, he will bless all the works of our hands. We can’t out give God and this is not a prosperity teaching. Whenever we give, the benefits may not always be money and that shouldn’t be our motive. I know that for me I’ve always received more of a blessing from helping someone than the time or money spent. Ch 15 is a great chapter for anyone who owes someone else. God says that every seven years the loans are to be forgiven and the servants to be set free if they wanted freedom. A great foreshadowing of the payment God made with Jesus to set us free from sin. How joyful these debtors must have been to have the slate clean and a new beginning. If  you feel burdened in any way there is only one who can take that burden and the best thing is it is a free gift to us. A gift is free to the person receiving it, but it still had to be bought by someone. We are so thankful God and his Son were willing to pay that price to cancel our debt.