Hello My Friend/Guest,

Today is Tuesday January 27, 2009 and we are continuing our studies on the book of Exodus.

Today's Message:Cleansed
All who accept Jesus into their lives are cleansed from their sins and no longer have to sacrifice animals to be saved. Although we are saved and Jesus lives within us it is still important to find the right church and get around those who also worship God.He teaches us that worship is not just an activity for us as individuals, but is also intended to be done as a group so that we can be cleansed from the corruption of the world.

Today's Bible Reading: Exodus Chapters 29-31
You can read the chapters by clicking on the link above, if the link does not work you can copy and paste this link into your browser: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2029-31&version=9

In order for the priests (Aaron and his sons) to be able to minister in the Tabernacle they had to be cleansed before entering. "And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest's office: Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish,And unleavened bread, and cakes unleavened tempered with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of wheaten flour shalt thou make them.And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two rams.And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water............Then shalt thou kill the ram, and take of his blood, and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons, and upon the thumb of their right hand, and upon the great toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.And thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be hallowed, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him." (Exodus 29:1-4, 20-21). Anointing them as priests did not exempt them from having to offer sacrifices unto the Lord, for they too were sinners. Today, we are blessed that we no longer have to sprinkle the blood of an animal on our bodies in order to be cleansed because Jesus Christ shed His blood on all of us when He died on the cross to cleanse us.He needs to be recognized for this daily as without Him we would still be practicing this ritual in order to be saved.

Before they could even enter they had to wash their hands and feet, which provided cleansing from the activities of life. "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the LORD:So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations." (30:17-21).They were now qualified to enter the Tabernacle throughthe heavy linen veil which was the only entrance into the Holy Place. No matter how much we try to stay away from people and things that corrupt us we are still subject to it daily. It is important that we cleanse ourselves daily so that we too are qualified to meet with God each day.

The Command to keep the Sabbath was already included in the Ten Commandments, but more emphasis was made on this. "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you.Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people." (31:12-14). Since it appears at the conclusion of the instructions regarding the Tabernacle, it appears that the intention was to teach the connection which existed between the Sabbath, the Tabernacle and our daily lives.

The true Church is not a building, but is made up of born-again believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of their lives. "And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence." (Colossians 1:18). However, the churchbuilding isa place where we meet with other believers to worship Christ, who is Head of the Church. It also becomes a place to study His Word and a place where our spiritual nature is developed. "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ." (I Peter 2:1-5).

The sacredness of the Lord's Day is indicated by the fact that the Israelites, having a great sacred work to do in building the Tabernacle where God would dwell, were not to build it even on the Sabbath. Surely a child of God, saved and cleansed from his sins under the precious blood of Jesus, should love and respect the Lord's Day.A person who has Christ indwelling him, will desire to worship with others as did the first Christians in Jerusalem.

Jesus Christ is Revealed: Through the Laver, which held holy water
"Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein." (Exodus 30:18). Jesus is the Living water that quenches our thirst.

Today's Psalm: 51:1-2
"Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin."

Today's Prayer:
Dear God,
We pray that You will empower us to live responsible lives so that we can be living examples of what it means to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age. Help us to resist temptations that weaken our resolve to live holy lives by memorizing and quoting Scripture that speaks to that sinful behavior, even while we?re being tempted. We desire to bring joy to Your heart as we live responsibly and cast off that which hinders our spiritual growth. We want to seek first Your Kingdom and Your righteousness so that we will be kingdom servants pursuing righteous living.In Jesus' name...........Amen.

Have a wonderful day/night and many blessings to you.
God Bless,
Christina

Visit A Spiritual Guide
www.aspiritualguide.net