“The blood avenger himself shall put the murderer to death; he shall put him to death where he meets him.” Numbers 35:19 Blood avenger – It all begins with this question: Am I my brother’s keeper? It was the most fatal question Cain could have asked. He asked it on behalf of all humanity –…
“Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!”” Isaiah 6:8 Send – God uses a voluntary army. He rarely drafts soldiers. In fact, He doesn’t even require that you register for the draft. He asks for volunteers. Even Jesus volunteered for the assignment. God never insisted of service, even for His own Son. Look at…
“So I gave them over to the stubbornness of their heart, to walk in their own devices.” Psalm 81:12 Gave over – Fly-fishing with God is a little different than the usual rod and reel exercise. God instructs us to “cast away” our acts of disobedience. He tells us that the “bait” found in sin…
“Cast away, each of you, the detestable things of his eyes, and do not defile yourselves” Ezekiel 20:7 Cast away – You stand before God. He pulls out the record book of your life and begins to read. Every sin you have ever committed, every mis-deed, every harmful thought. The list goes on an on. …
“The LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.” Numbers 6:26 Peace – Why look at this word again? We already know that it is shalom, the common greeting among Jews. We already know that it carries the sense of “well-being”. We already know that it is used more than 250 times…
“The LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.” Numbers 6:26 Countenance – My daughter is very special to me. She is my only girl. She is my youngest child. She is absolutely wonderful (what did you expect?). I have her picture on my desk. I have another picture by my bed…
“The LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you;” Numbers 6:25 Shine – The first command of God involved the same root word. The first event of every day contains the same idea. The most essential factor in all life on this planet is wrapped up in this concept. It’s all…
“The LORD bless you, and keep you.” Numbers 6:24 Keep – Numbers is God’s accounting ledger. The name in English comes from the fact that this document numbers the tribes of Israel. It is a mix of historical records and laws. In this general ledger is one of the most often used blessings of Scripture. …
“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 For – A lot of theology is in prepositions. So many times we find that small prepositions make all the difference. Think of the importance of words like “with”…
“punishing the wicked by bringing his way on his own head” 2 Chronicles 6:23 Wicked – Axe murders? Rapists? Someone who tortures another? When we think of “wicked” we often picture crimes of extreme violence. We think of the headlines. Then our descriptions get a little broader. Embezzlers, thieves, cheats, arsonists, terrorists. All those things…
