Awesome Hands – part 120

”Brokenhanded”

August 30, 2017

I will be the first to admit that without the Lord I am the most brokenhanded person on the planet. It may not appear what that means on the surface to some, and to others they may be nodding their heads in agreement, but the truth is the truth.

In fact, of those that count themselves among this group, I am the chief! I do not say this in jest, but I truly believe this. Often enough, I believe those in the body of Christ know and feel this about themselves because once you know WHO you are, then you can understand who you ARE NOT.

Without Christ we are nothing!

What then does it mean to be brokenhanded? In our study today, we are going to examine the rules given to the Aaron, his sons and all the children of Israel concerning being able to approach the Lord as it pertains to being “brokenhanded”, among other things.

Anyone who has a blemish

At first glance, the verses we are going to cover today do appear to be very cold-hearted of the Lord. After all, who needs mercy more than those who have afflictions of which they themselves have NOT caused to happen to themselves?

Lev 21:17  Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God.
Lev 21:18  For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,
Lev 21:19  Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,
Lev 21:20  Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
Lev 21:21  No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.
Lev 21:22  He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.
Lev 21:23  Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them.
Lev 21:24  And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.

Simply put, and expressed by the Lord, no one with a blemish is permitted to approach the altar of the Lord! Anyone with a blemish is not even allowed to go in unto the vail because they have a blemish.

I wonder who, among all human beings, do not have a blemish? Of course, there are some folks out there that may be great physical specimens from among humanity but even they have physical blemishes.

However, I think anyone in the body of Christ will be quick to realize that this has much more to do with spiritual blemishes than with those who have natural oddities or “blemishes”.

In truth, the only ones that can have the Lord truly bring forth life in them are those who KNOW who they are.

Let us take the story of Jacob and Laban for example. Bear with me as there are several verses that cover this part of Jacob’s story well.

Gen 30:27  And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.
Gen 30:28  And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.
Gen 30:29  And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.
Gen 30:30  For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?
Gen 30:31  And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock:
Gen 30:32  I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.
Gen 30:33  So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.
Gen 30:34  And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.
Gen 30:35  And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.
Gen 30:36  And he set three days’ journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
Gen 30:37  And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
Gen 30:38  And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.
Gen 30:39  And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.
Gen 30:40  And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban’s cattle.
Gen 30:41  And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.
Gen 30:42  But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.
Gen 30:43  And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.

Laban goes on to not appreciate the truth that the Lord gave Jacob many of the flock that was born speckled, spotted and ringstraked. To theme I want to focus on with this example is that the Lord CAN and DOES bless those with whom deal with blemishes.

All of these animals were blemished; yet, the Lord is able to work with them. This should give His people tremendous hope especially when you can look in the mirror and see your spots.

Jer 13:20  Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?
Jer 13:21  What wilt thou say when he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail?
Jer 13:22  And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare.
Jer 13:23  Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.

These verses can be used in many different ways, but I am here before you presenting them as hope to you.

If you have concluded in your heart, mind and soul that you are blotted and blemished, can the Lord then welcome you into His flock and into His kingdom?

Can a leopard change its spots? Can a person born maimed help that they are born that way? Can a dwarf make themselves taller? Can a blind man see? Can the deaf hear?

The answer, of course, is NO to all of these. However, how can we approach the altar who are first BORN NATURALLY with BLEMISHES which COMMAND that we cannot approach the Lord?

Mat 15:30  And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them:
Mat 15:31  Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.
Mat 15:32  Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.

Luk 14:11  For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Luk 14:12  Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.
Luk 14:13  But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:
Luk 14:14  And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.

Luk 14:21  So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.
Luk 14:22  And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.
Luk 14:23  And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
Luk 14:24  For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.

The recipe for success when it comes to the Lord is to admit there is no success without the Lord. In order to be given to understand this, we must respond with the appropriate mindset when the Lord sends us feast or famine, riches or poverty, sickness or health.

It is all in due season and happens according to the will of Him who has created all for His glory.

Yes, the physical priests and sons of Aaron could have no blemish, but our High priest has come to show us all that He welcomes those whom recognize that you MUST be blemished in order to receive HEALING.

Once healed, we can then approach the altar of God.

So, with this short message tonight I tell all of you who are heavy laden with sin, hopelessness, pain, sorrow, guilt, poverty and the many other trials and afflictions that can be given to us of the Lord, rest in the Lord knowing that He can and will heal us of those things which need it and will bring about good for us in whatever His answer is to us concerning these various trials.

They are all designed to bring us to the altar of the Lord, and there is no better place to be than eating the bread of the Lord with the Lord and His Christ.

Audio Links

Awesome Hands – Part 111

The Golden Calf

February 22, 2017

The golden calf is a fairly common and talked about story for many reasons, but some of the more common ones include how the children of Israel turned their back on the Lord so shortly after being freed from Egypt and also how they took what the Lord has given them and then worshipped those things.

While these points are important and accurate and will be discussed within this study, there are additional tidbits of godly wisdom hidden with the overall story of who we are in Christ today.

Our verses for today are found in Exodus 32:1-4 and are the next time we see hands mentioned since our last study’s group of verses.

Exo 32:1  And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
Exo 32:2  And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me.
Exo 32:3  And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
Exo 32:4  And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

When reading only these verses it is easy to hit our heads and think to ourselves, “what were they thinking!?” However, had we been there in their situation, we would have done the same thing. In truth, we do have this mindset on a regular basis, but it may not be readily apparent what spirit we have that is causing us to think this way.

As we look at these verses, there are some very interesting points which add a lot of detail to what it is we just read.

Remember, it is the Lord’s work, by His Hand alone, that the Israelites are in this situation to begin with.

Exodus 14:31  And Israel saw that great work^H3027 which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.

The very first verse of this chapter points us to why the Israelites went astray in their thinking.

Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

“And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount”, is nothing more than an admission and judgment on themselves out of their own mouths. It is not Moses who delays at all, but it the same voice that shook the mountain and thundered from the top that has Moses where he is.

In other words, they blamed Moses for what the Lord was doing through Moses and how it affected them.

“Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.”

Instead of waiting on the Lord who had done the “first works” by bringing them out of Egypt, they decided to petition the high priest to create a god that did the EXACT THING the One True God had already been doing for them. They didn’t want something different. They wanted it FASTER according to this verse.

“Make us gods which shall go before us” and make it happen right now!

So, what does Aaron do? What does their minister do? He listens to them, and in listening to them he “one ups” them.

Exo 32:2  And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me.
Exo 32:3  And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.

Isn’t it interesting that Aaron tells them to “break off” their golden earrings and the scriptures are recorded to make sure anyone reading this knows emphatically that the gold comes from their ears?

What then is the significance of breaking this gold from their ears? First, let us look at how “break” is used in other parts of scripture.

Exo 32:2  And Aaron^H175 said^H559 unto^H413 them, Break off^H6561 the golden^H2091 earrings,^H5141 which^H834 are in the ears^H241 of your wives,^H802 of your sons,^H1121 and of your daughters,^H1323 and bring^H935 them unto^H413 me.

H6561
pâraq
Total KJV Occurrences: 10
break, 3
Gen_27:40, Exo_32:2, Exo_32:24
brake, 1
Exo_32:3
broken, 1
Eze_19:12
deliver, 1
Lam_5:8
redeemed, 1
Psa_136:24
rending, 1
Psa_7:2
rent, 1
1Ki_19:11
tear, 1
Zec_11:16

Here are a few of the verses listed above:

Gen 27:40  And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.

Eze 19:12  But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit: her strong rods were broken and withered; the fire consumed them.

Lam 5:7  Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities.
Lam 5:8  Servants have ruled over us: there is none that doth deliver us out of their hand.

Psa 136:24  And hath redeemed us from our enemies: for his mercy endureth for ever.

What is the significance of this action of removing the gold the Lord had given them from their ears spiritually speaking? Remember, the Lord took the riches of Egypt and gave it to the Israelites when they left Egypt, and it was during the SMITING of Egypt that this happened.

Exo 3:20  And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go.
Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty:
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

Exo 11:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.
Exo 11:2  Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.

The Lord causes the Egyptians to give their gold to the Israelites because the Israelites asked to borrow the gold, and now they “break” it out of their ears to create their own gods?

This next set of verses may shed some Light on what is being told to us.

Exo 21:1  Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them.
Exo 21:2  If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing.
Exo 21:3  If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him.
Exo 21:4  If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master’s, and he shall go out by himself.
Exo 21:5  And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free:
Exo 21:6  Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.

The earrings of gold which the Israelites used for the golden calf are a type of the love the Israelites had for the Lord and His miraculous deliverance of them out of Egypt.

By breaking them and giving them to Aaron to create other gods to follow, we can see that the Israelites has turned their hearts and minds away from the Lord BUT STILL WANTED the things He alone provided for them from these gods they wanted created for them.

Does this at all sound familiar to your walk with the Lord?

We all create false gods and a false god, another Jesus, in our hearts and minds, sometimes not even known to us, which causes us to claim the name of the Lord but not actually have Him as our Husband.

We are drawn to the Lord with a deadly wound in our lives only to be healed of it, but how quickly we forget the deadly wound we had!

What makes this process so deceiving is that your ministers let you do it, did not protect the flock and even encourage and preach idol worship! This is what Aaron says about and to “the sheep bleating in his ears”.

1Sa 15:13  And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD.
1Sa 15:14  And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?

Here is Aaron’s response to the bleating of the Israelites by Moses delaying coming down from the mount:

Exo 32:3  And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron.
Exo 32:4  And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

Aaron not only forms the molten calf with a graving tool, the people then give all the credit of their deliverance to this golden calf!

What was Aaron’s response? Why, it was to double down!

Exo 32:5  And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD.
Exo 32:6  And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

Aaron actually goes on to make an altar for this golden calf and then have the audacity to say, “tomorrow is a feast TO THE LORD”! Wow!

As I think on this, I recall to myself my own mindset throughout my walk with Christ, and I can remember far worse offenses to the Lord that mimic this same exact thought process.

“I will dedicate this to the Lord,” whatever “this” might happen to be at the time “because the Lord will be pleased with it”.

“I’ll kill for God and country.”

“My sins are forgiven, therefore the Lord doesn’t care that I just sinned”.

“If you do this for me Lord, then I will do this for you”.

“It’s only a minor sin”.

“I know you have far greater evils to deal with then what I just did”.

“The Lord and I have an understanding, so He knows why I am the way I am and will not old me accountable for being me”.

On and on it goes, and I am guilty of them all and far more than these. Some of them I can’t even claim to have done in ignorance but fully knowing what I was doing without being ashamed at the time. Chief of sinners I am indeed.

What is important about Aaron’s response is that we all realize that the Lord also caused Aaron to take up the mindset he had that led him to think it was okay to do what he did. He not only listened to the flock when he should have been the one leading the flock during this time, but he then claimed to be dedicating to the Lord this feast they would have.

How then can we avoid falling in this pitfall again?

If we recall what it is that caused us to be brought before the judges to dedicate ourselves to our master, then we will be on the right track once we define things properly.

1Jn 5:3  For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

2Jn 1:6  And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.

Exo 21:5  And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free:
Exo 21:6  Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever.

It is the Love of the Lord that causes us to remember WHY it is we love Him.

If Love is to keep His commandments, what causes us to WANT to keep His commandments? I love how 2 John 1:6 defines keeping His commandments. We WALK AFTER His commandments.

We walk according to His commandments which is what walk “after” means according to the majority of the time “after” is translated.

What could be one heck of a strong reason to love the master who owns you as a slave so much so that you will have your freedom in 7 years, but you REFUSE that freedom? That is one heck of a love!

Could it be that your family is there, and you don’t want to leave them? Why, yes, of course, but not only that. Could it be that your master was so good to you as a slave that he ALLOWED you to have that family, while a slave, in the first place? That probably has a lot to do with it. Taking care of you and your family while under his rulership is not a light matter at all.

For us, we know we are prisoners of Christ and servants to His headship over us, but we also are WILLING SLAVES and servants. Sure, we could seek freedom to DIE outside of His love, but what benefit would that bring?

Sure a servant can be freed from his master in 7 years, but what is freedom if your family is still enslaved?

Phm 1:9  Yet for love’s sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ.

Gal 1:10  For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.

We are in good company when we consider other servants to Christ:

Col 4:12  Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

Tit 1:1  Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;

Phm 1:25  The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen. Written from Rome to Philemon, by Onesimus a servant.

Jas 1:1  James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.

2Pe 1:1  Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

Jud 1:1  Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:

Being servants, we also have a higher calling, which makes perfect sense to those who are in the know of what our purpose is and HOW IT IS that we “keep His commandments”.

Gal 4:5  To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Gal 4:6  And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Gal 4:7  Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Being a son NOW, allows us to become the ultimate servants of Christ to the Christ, His body, His church and His bride.

1Jn 5:2  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.

Rev 12:17  And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

We rest from our labors, but OUR WORKS, given VIA THE HANDS OF THE LORD, are what cause us to remember why it is we Love the Lord, because our remembrance of these things causes us to want to share it with the rest of the body of Christ.

We love the brethren, the church, by KEEPING THE FAITH that these things are true.

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
1Jn 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

Instead of building a golden calf with the gold from our ears, let us continue to show our Love for the Lord by wearing our spiritual golden earrings for all to see.

Audio Links

Awesome Hands – part 108

”Heave Offering”

January 11, 2017

Most days I, like many of us, find myself wondering what my day will bring and how it is the Lord will cause me to serve Him. Whether in sins which are committed and repented of or in acts of brotherly love that I am given to partake in, each and every day presents a clean slate for me to discover what the Lord has prepared for His children from before the world began.

2 Timothy 1:6  Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

In our study this evening, we will be looking at the portion of the offerings that has a very significant and very hidden meaning for the Lord – the heave offering.
For the elect of God, we just need to read what has been recorded for us, and the Lord will provide the increase of knowledge to us that He has preordained to happen.

Elevated offering

The start of our study is going to have us examining the first time the “heave” offering is mentioned in scripture.

Exodus 29:26  And thou shalt take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration, and wave it for a wave offering before the LORD: and it shall be thy part.
Exodus 29:27  And thou shalt sanctify the breast of the wave offering, and the shoulder of the heave offering, which is waved, and which is heaved up (H7311), of the ram of the consecration, even of that which is for Aaron, and of that which is for his sons:

H7311
BDB Definition:
1) to rise, rise up, be high, be lofty, be exalted
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to be high, be set on high
1a2) to be raised, be uplifted, be exalted
1a3) to be lifted, rise
1b) (Polel)
1b1) to raise or rear (children), cause to grow up
1b2) to lift up, raise, exalt
1b3) to exalt, extol
1c) (Polal) to be lifted up
1d) (Hiphil)
1d1) to raise, lift, lift up, take up, set up, erect, exalt, set on high
1d2) to lift up (and take away), remove
1d3) to lift off and present, contribute, offer, contribute
1e) (Hophal) to be taken off, be abolished
1f) (Hithpolel) to exalt oneself, magnify oneself
2) (Qal) to be rotten, be wormy
Part of Speech: verb
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: a primitive root

H7311
room
A primitive root; to be high actively to rise or raise (in various applications, literally or figuratively): – bring up, exalt (self), extol, give, go up, haughty, heave (up), (be, lift up on, make on, set up on, too) high (-er, one), hold up, levy, lift (-er) up, (be) lofty, (X a-) loud, mount up, offer (up), + presumptuously, (be) promote (-ion), proud, set up, tall (-er), take (away, off, up), breed worms.
Total KJV occurrences: 189

So, the heave offering is heaved up and it is also waved.

Exodus 29:27  And thou shalt sanctify the breast of the wave offering, and the shoulder of the heave offering, which is waved, and which is heaved up (H7311),

I am not going to list in this study all the times it is mentioned in scripture, but here are the times it is conveyed as being exalted or “lifted up”:

H7311
Total KJV Occurrences: 193
exalted, 28
1Sa_2:1, 2Sa_22:47, 1Ki_14:7, 1Ki_16:2, 2Ki_19:22, Neh_9:5, Psa_12:8, Psa_13:2, Psa_18:46, Psa_21:13, Psa_46:10 (2), Psa_57:5, Psa_57:11, Psa_75:10, Psa_89:16-17 (2), Psa_89:19, Psa_89:24, Psa_108:5, Psa_112:9, Pro_11:11, Isa_30:18, Isa_33:10, Isa_37:23, Isa_49:11, Isa_52:13, Hos_13:6

high, 25
Exo_14:8, Num_33:3, Deu_12:2, Deu_32:27, 2Sa_22:49, Job_21:22, Job_22:12, Job_38:15, Psa_18:27 (2), Psa_78:69, Psa_89:13, Psa_99:2, Psa_113:4, Pro_24:6-7 (2), Isa_2:13-14 (2), Isa_6:1, Isa_57:15, Eze_6:13, Eze_17:22, Eze_20:28, Eze_31:4, Eze_34:6
lift, 18
Gen_7:17, Gen_14:22, Gen_41:44, Exo_14:16, 1Ch_25:5, Ezr_9:6, Job_38:34, Psa_75:3-5 (3), Psa_110:7, Isa_10:15 (2), Isa_40:9 (2), Isa_58:1, Isa_62:10, Eze_21:22
exalt, 17
Exo_15:2, 1Sa_2:10, Job_17:4, Psa_34:3, Psa_37:34, Psa_66:7, Psa_92:10, Psa_99:5, Psa_99:9, Psa_107:32, Psa_118:28, Psa_140:8, Isa_13:2, Isa_14:13, Isa_25:1, Dan_11:36, Hos_11:7
lifted, 16
Gen_39:15, Gen_39:18, Exo_7:20, Num_20:11, Deu_8:14, Deu_17:20, 2Sa_22:49, 1Ki_11:26-27 (2), 2Ch_5:13, Psa_27:6, Isa_26:11, Eze_10:17, Eze_31:10, Dan_11:12, Mic_5:9
offer, 14
Exo_35:24, Lev_22:15, Num_15:19-20 (2), Num_18:19, Num_18:24, Num_18:26, Num_18:28-29 (2), Eze_45:1, Eze_45:13, Eze_48:8-9 (2), Eze_48:20
take, 11
Lev_2:9, Lev_4:19, Lev_6:10, Lev_6:15, Num_16:37, Jos_4:5, 2Ki_6:7, Isa_57:14, Eze_21:26, Eze_45:9, Hos_11:4
set, 7
Gen_31:45, Ezr_9:9, Psa_27:5, Psa_89:42, Isa_49:22, Lam_2:17, Eze_31:4
gave, 4
2Ch_30:24, 2Ch_35:7-9 (3)
lifteth, 4
1Sa_2:7-8 (2), Psa_107:25, Psa_113:7
taken, 4
Lev_4:10, Lev_4:31, Lev_4:35, Dan_8:11
exalteth, 3
Psa_148:14, Pro_14:29, Pro_14:34
heaved, 3
Exo_29:27, Num_18:30, Num_18:32
lofty, 3
Psa_131:1, Pro_30:13, Isa_2:12

Since I am able to pick and choose from many verses, the example of exalted which I want to convey, I am going to choose an example that gets to the heart of those who are exalted.

Psalms 89:15  Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.
Psalms 89:16  In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted (H7311).
Psalms 89:17  For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted (H7311).
Psalms 89:18  For the LORD is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king.
Psalms 89:19  Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.

The italicized words in the verses above are added to scripture to help us better understand the meaning in English. However, the “one” added in verse 19 doesn’t help but actually hides the full meaning.

I have exalted one chosen out of the people. Let’s make that, “I have exalted chosen out of the people.”

Why am I suggesting that this be done? Let’s look at another example that will help make this clearer.

There are a few times that the same Hebrew word 7311, “rum”, is translated as “promotion”.

Here are those examples:

Proverbs 3:35  The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion of fools.

Proverbs 3:35  The wiseH2450 shall inheritH5157 glory:H3519 but shameH7036 shall be the promotionH7311 of fools.H3684

And:

Psalms 75:6  ForH3588 promotionH7311 cometh neitherH3808 from the east,H4480 H4161 nor from the west,H4480 H4628 norH3808 from the south.H4480 H4057

Here is it in full context:

Psalms 75:1  To the chief Musician, Altaschith, A Psalm or Song of Asaph. Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.
Psalms 75:2  When I shall receive the congregation I will judge uprightly.
Psalms 75:3  The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved: I bear up the pillars of it. Selah.
Psalms 75:4  I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn:
Psalms 75:5  Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
Psalms 75:6  For promotion (H7311) cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
Psalms 75:7  But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up (H7311) another.

Indeed, it is the Lord alone who sets up and puts down ANY and ALL things under His creation whom He judges uprightly.

He also bears/weighs up the PILLARS of the earth… the same earth which is DISSOLVED. That should indeed cause any of His congregation to second guess “lifting their horn on high”. The Hebrew word H8505 translated into English as “bears up” actually indicates a balancing and equaling of the thing being talked about.

What is this “horn” I speak of? It is the power given to the thing possessing the horn.

H7161
qeren
keh’-ren
From H7160; a horn (as projecting); by implication a flask, cornet; by resemblance an elephant’s tooth (that is, ivory), a corner (of the altar), a peak (of a mountain), a ray (of light); figuratively power: –  X hill, horn.
Total KJV occurrences: 76

With these few examples, it should be clear that the “heave” offering is one that is lifted up and exalted before the Lord as it is waved.

Now that we have established the way in which the heave offering is presented to the Lord (lifted up and waved), and that the heave offering wouldn’t even be able to be offered unless the Lord “setteth up” the offerings and the situation for the offering to be offered, what exactly is the spiritual significance of this type of offering?

Tithe of the tithe

Our brother Abe Ramos was inspired several months back to post a question on the email list about the heave offering and “the tenth of a tithe”.

It’s funny how the Lord works because in that email thread I commented that I planned to be doing this study the next day and that has been over 3 months ago. The Lord certainly had others plans for my time.

However, the entire thread helped solidify what the heave offering is all about.

Here is the verse which Abe presented as a part of his question on the mailing list:

Numbers 18:26  Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe.
Numbers 18:27  And this your heave offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress.
Numbers 18:28  Thus ye also shall offer an heave offering unto the LORD of all your tithes, which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD’S heave offering to Aaron the priest.

Remember, the Levites were given to the priest to minister to them and to also minister to the tabernacle. The priests are appointed to serve the sanctuary and the altar. These are two very different roles given by the Lord to different groups of people.

Seeing that the tithe of the tithe is given to Aaron the priest, and Aaron typifies Jesus Christ, who then can partake of this “tithe of the tithe?”

Hebrews 3:1  Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

Nehemiah 10:38  And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house.

The treasure house is physically and spiritually where the priests can distribute from to help the needs of the people.

Because God has dragged many of us here away from the outward churches when we use to be deceived to pay physical money as tithes….does not mean we quit tithing!

No….far from it.

We still tithe….our “mint, rue and cummin”, and do good unto others, as we have opportunity, we help those we can help near or far, we bestow our goods (carnal goods or good of the heart)  We MUST pay our tithe cheerfully as we are given opportunity.

The next level….the elevation (heave offering ) is what many…I say many, “pass over”…. omitt[ting] the weightier matters of the Law”!

It’s easier to give money…or do wonderful works of the flesh, than to FURTHER pay the “tenth part of the tithe”. I stand guilty of this too….

1 Corinthians 13:3 (KJV)
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, […tithe as any children of Israel/ of the church world & outside world  ] and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

The tenth part of the tithe, as Mike wrote below, is the offering up of all our lives…our body…(Rom 12:1-2) our flesh (#10)

That is the offering worthy for the God of gods…King of kings. Though elevated, we are commanded by our Lord “not to leave the other undone”, that is, the less weightier matter of the Law such as the BASIC tithe.

The tithe of the tithes is the more weightier matter ONLY given to us, God’s elect in Christ to fulfil.

“judgment, mercy, and faith:”
“judgment and the love of God”

1 John 5:3 (KJV)
3 For this is the love of God, [= the Tithe of the tithes..] that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

The Pharisees of this world (our Carnal religious self) cannot make that step/elevation/ heave offering. Woe unto them/us with taking pride in many good and wonderful works while omitting the weightier matters like laying down our lives with Christ.

Even the basic tithing principle itself….some don’t even keep the law in doing that! (Yes, again I admit, I seldomly gave 10% gross income money to the church ministers’, and I paid very very little rue and cummin to the fatherless..! )

John 7:19 (KJV)
19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?

Acts 7:53 (KJV)
53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

To conclude, the more excellent way has been consecrated for us ‘Sons of Aaron’ to fulfill at this time. God is working all things…and He’s using everyone in their place for a service for others. And along the way, He is magnifying the law for us to fulfil his righteousness, not that of the righteousness of the Law…elevating each principle, such as tithing above the standard pharisaical approach.
A tenth of the tithe is the “more excellent” portion for this our royal, peculiar Priesthood.

1 Peter 2:9 (KJV)
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

Isaiah 42:21 (KJV)
21 The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake;
he will magnify the law, and make it honourable.

I will end this study will showing one more point which really brings home the “hidden manna” found in the heave offering.

The tenth of the tithe is 1%. I will now quote a portion of my part of the exchange on the same email thread.

We have a very active role NOW, in our lives, to bare the “iniquity of the holy things” (Exo 28:38) of which the Levites cannot partake of. All the items that “make up” the physical tabernacle and the VERY ACTIONS (side to side WAVED, heaved UP) have meaning to the Lord since even the “hairs on your head are numbered”.

I emphasis regularly, like many of us do, just how involved the Lord is in the lives of those He is working with AND letting know He is working with us.

The “tithe of the tithe” reminds me of the 1 sheep that gets away and NEEDS its Shepherd to come find it. I do understand that 1 and 99 is not a direct correlation, since that is 1% and not 10%, but it does convey to us just how important even the “smallest” details are to the Lord and to US. He wants us to know that He is there directing our lives. He does care about even the smallest things happening with us because HE is causing them. Literally, a “10th of the 10th – tithe of the tithe” is 1 percent, and when you understand that, then you will know just how important you are, little lamb of the Lord!

The “tithe of tithes” connects us directly with the Lord so that while we are ministering to the “kingdom of God”, the tabernacle in others, we are also ministering to the kingdom of God within ourselves and by doing so we can see just how connected we all are because of the priesthood, the church of the Living God, being connected to the “iniquity of the holy things”. It is an odd thing to ponder how the Lord VALUES the “iniquity” of the “HOLY THINGS”.

The Lord has seen fit that the heave offering be given to the High Priest. Being that the High Priest resides in us and us in Him, we too can and will partake of the heave offering spiritually because the Lord wants all of us… not just a 10th.

Audio Links

Awesome Hands – part 106

Offerings as it pertains to bread

October 26, 2016

As we saw in our previous study, being a part of the priesthood and being set into this position by the Lord is something that should be looked upon as a wonderful, yet labor-filled, work of the Lord.

We ended our study last week with the two rams being offered in different ways to meet the standards the Lord is implementing in His tabernacle. These two rams are given to the priests as examples of how they are to make different offerings to the Lord from what will be various offerings coming from the children of Israel.

The rams are but two of many offerings which all have applications to us today and can be seen as types and shadows of the bonds the Lord has made with us.

In today’s study, we are going to be looking at our next set of verses which will move us from putting blood on the tip of our right ear, on our right thumb and right big toe and our garments to now making wave, heave and burnt offerings to the Lord.

Wave and burnt offerings

Here are the verses for consideration today:

Exo 29:22  Also thou shalt take of the ram the fat and the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and the right shoulder; for it is a ram of consecration:
Exo 29:23  And one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD:
Exo 29:24  And thou shalt put all in the hands of Aaron, and in the hands of his sons; and shalt wave them for a wave offering before the LORD.
Exo 29:25  And thou shalt receive them of their hands, and burn them upon the altar for a burnt offering, for a sweet savour before the LORD: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

I am going to break these verses down to more “chewable” sizes and hopefully find some practical applications to our Christian walks today as we chew on them.

Exo 29:22  Also thou shalt take of the ram the fat and the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and the right shoulder; for it is a ram of consecration:

So just like we saw with the bullock offering, the inwards are important to the Lord but specifically that fat that is on them is to remain with the item. The “increase” of the animal, also known as the richest and choice part of the beast, is going to be used of the Lord.

H2459

cheleb    chêleb
kheh’-leb, khay’-leb
From an unused root meaning to be fat; fat, whether literally or figuratively; hence the richest or choice part: –    X best, fat (-ness), X finest, grease, marrow.
Total KJV occurrences: 92

For this particular ram it is known as the ram of consecration, a ram of the “setting up” of the priesthood. As part of this continued consecration (of the various offerings), we see in our next verse that 3 different types of bread are used with this offering.

Exo 29:23  And one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD:
Exo 29:24  And thou shalt put all in the hands of Aaron, and in the hands of his sons; and shalt wave them for a wave offering before the LORD.

“Three” different types of bread immediately pop out to me as spiritually significant, and when we dig into the different types of bread mentioned it gives us some insight on why the Lord uses these different breads.

One loaf of bread:

H3603

kikâr
kik-kawr’
From H3769; a circle, that is, (by implication) a circumjacent tract or region, especially the Ghor or valley of the Jordan; also a (round) loaf; also a talent (or large (round) coin): – loaf, morsel, piece, plain, talent.
Total KJV occurrences: 68

H3603
kikâr
Total KJV Occurrences: 68
talents, 38
Exo_38:24-25 (2), Exo_38:27 (2), Exo_38:29, 1Ki_9:14, 1Ki_9:28, 1Ki_10:10, 1Ki_10:14, 1Ki_16:24, 2Ki_5:5, 2Ki_5:23 (2), 2Ki_15:19, 2Ki_18:14 (2), 2Ki_23:33, 1Ch_19:6, 1Ch_22:14 (2), 1Ch_29:4 (2), 1Ch_29:7 (4), 2Ch_3:8, 2Ch_8:18, 2Ch_9:9, 2Ch_9:13, 2Ch_25:6, 2Ch_25:9, 2Ch_27:5, 2Ch_36:3, Ezr_8:26 (3), Est_3:9
plain, 13
Gen_13:9-12 (4), Gen_19:17, Gen_19:25, Gen_19:28-29 (2), Deu_34:3, 2Sa_18:23, 1Ki_7:46, 2Ch_4:17, Neh_3:22, Neh_12:28
talent, 10
Exo_25:39, Exo_37:24, Exo_38:27, 2Sa_12:30, 1Ki_20:39, 2Ki_5:22, 2Ki_23:33, 1Ch_20:2, 2Ch_36:3, Zec_5:7
loaf, 2
Exo_29:23, 1Ch_16:3
loaves, 2
Jdg_8:5, 1Sa_10:3
piece, 2
Pro_6:26, Jer_37:21
morsel, 1
1Sa_2:36

It gets real interesting when you look at the root of “loaf”.

H3769

kârar
kaw-rar’
A primitive root; to dance (that is, whirl): – dance (-ing).
Total KJV occurrences: 2

H3769
kârar
Total KJV Occurrences: 2
danced, 1
2Sa_6:14
dancing, 1
2Sa_6:16

2Sa 6:13  And it was so, that when they that bare the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings.
2Sa 6:14  And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod.
2Sa 6:15  So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.
2Sa 6:16  And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart.
2Sa 6:17  And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in his place, in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it: and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.
2Sa 6:18  And as soon as David had made an end of offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts.

The connection to the loaf is that it is circular and is mostly translated as “talent(s)” in Hebrew. One cake of oiled bread:

Exo 29:23  And one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD:

one^H259 cake^H2471 of oiled^H8081 bread,^H3899

H2471
challâh
Total KJV Occurrences: 14
cake, 7
Exo_29:23, Lev_8:26 (2), Lev_24:5, Num_15:19-20 (2), 2Sa_6:19
cakes, 7
Exo_29:2, Lev_2:4, Lev_7:12-13 (3), Lev_24:5, Num_6:15

H2471

challâh
khal-law’
From H2490; a cake (as usually punctured): – cake.
Total KJV occurrences: 14

H2490
châlal
Total KJV Occurrences: 143
began, 34
Gen_4:26, Gen_6:1, Gen_9:20, Gen_10:8, Gen_41:54, Gen_44:12, Num_25:1, Jdg_13:25, Jdg_16:19, Jdg_16:22, Jdg_20:31, Jdg_20:39-40 (2), 1Sa_3:2, 2Ki_10:32, 2Ki_15:37, 1Ch_1:10, 1Ch_27:24, 2Ch_3:1-2 (2), 2Ch_20:22, 2Ch_29:17, 2Ch_29:27 (2), 2Ch_31:7, 2Ch_31:10, 2Ch_31:21, 2Ch_34:3 (2), Ezr_3:6, Ezr_3:8, Neh_4:7, Eze_9:6, Jon_3:4
profane, 18
Lev_18:21, Lev_19:12, Lev_21:3-4 (2), Lev_21:6, Lev_21:9, Lev_21:12, Lev_21:15, Lev_21:23, Lev_22:2, Lev_22:9, Lev_22:15, Lev_22:32, Neh_13:17, Eze_23:39, Eze_24:21, Eze_28:16, Amo_2:7
profaned, 15
Lev_19:7-8 (2), Psa_89:39, Isa_43:28, Eze_22:8, Eze_22:26 (2), Eze_23:38, Eze_25:3, Eze_36:20-23 (5), Mal_1:12, Mal_2:11
polluted, 13
Exo_20:25, Isa_47:6, Isa_48:11, Jer_34:16, Lam_2:2, Eze_20:9, Eze_20:13-14 (2), Eze_20:16, Eze_20:21-22 (2), Eze_20:24, Zep_3:4
begin, 12
Gen_11:6, Deu_2:24-25 (2), Deu_2:31, Deu_16:9, Jos_3:7, Jdg_10:18, Jdg_13:5, 1Sa_3:12, 1Sa_22:15, Jer_25:29, Eze_9:6
pollute, 8
Num_18:32, Eze_7:21-22 (2), Eze_13:19, Eze_20:39, Eze_44:7 (2), Dan_11:31
begun, 6
Num_16:46-47 (2), Deu_2:31, Deu_3:24, Est_6:13, Est_9:23
defiled, 5
1Ch_5:1, Psa_74:7, Jer_16:18, Eze_7:24, Eze_28:18
break, 3
Num_30:2, Psa_89:31, Psa_89:34
wounded, 3
Psa_109:22, Isa_51:9, Isa_53:5
defile, 2
Eze_7:22, Eze_28:7
polluting, 2
Isa_56:2, Isa_56:6
profaning, 2
Neh_13:18, Mal_2:10
beginnest, 1
Deu_16:9
broken, 1
Psa_55:20
cast, 1
Eze_28:16
common, 1
Jer_31:5
defiledst, 1
Gen_49:4
defileth, 1
Exo_31:14
eat, 1
Deu_20:6
eaten, 1
Deu_20:6 (2)
first, 1
1Sa_14:35
gather, 1
Deu_28:30
inheritance, 1
Eze_22:16
piped, 1
1Ki_1:40
players, 1
Psa_87:7
profaneth, 1
Lev_21:9
prostitute, 1
Lev_19:29
slain, 1
Eze_32:26
slayeth, 1
Eze_28:9
slew, 1
1Ch_11:20
sorrow, 1
Hos_8:10
stain, 1
Isa_23:9

The Hebrew word “challah”^H2471 simply means a “punctured” cake, but the root tells us that this is equated to being profaned or polluted.

H2490

châlal
khaw-lal’
A primitive root (compare H2470); properly to bore, that is, (by implication) to wound, to dissolve; figuratively to profane (a person, place or thing), to break (one’s word), to begin (as if by an opening-wedge); denominatively (from H2485) to play (the flute): – begin (X men began), defile, X break, defile, X eat (as common things), X first, X gather the grape thereof, X take inheritance, pipe, player on instruments, pollute, (cast as) profane (self), prostitute, slay (slain), sorrow, stain, wound.
Total KJV occurrences: 142

It seems that these different types of breads being offered are pointing us to WHY there are 3 different types of bread being offered.

One bread is leavened bread, one type is punctured or “broken” and oiled and the last is sweet unleavened bread.

one^H259 wafer^H7550 out of the basket^{H4480 H5536} of the unleavened bread^H4682 that^H834 is before^H6440 the LORD:^H3068

H4682

matstsâh
mats-tsaw’
From H4711 in the sense of greedily devouring for sweetness; properly sweetness; concretely sweet (that is, not soured or bittered with yeast); specifically an unfermented cake or loaf, or (elliptically) the festival of Passover (because no leaven was then used): – unleavened (bread, cake), without leaven.
Total KJV occurrences: 53

Obviously, there are 3 types of bread being mentioned which points to a process of something happening, namely judgment, but how do these breads represent the process of spiritual judgment?

We know that Israel came out of Egypt and when they did they ate unleavened bread. This was a part of the overall time period with the Passover. So, this was the beginning, but in the verses covered today we see it mentioned last pf the three bread types mentioned.

Here are some familiar verses spoken by Jesus concerning leaven.

Mat 16:4  A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed.
Mat 16:5  And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.
Mat 16:6  Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
Mat 16:7  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread.
Mat 16:8  Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread?
Mat 16:9  Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
Mat 16:10  Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
Mat 16:11  How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?
Mat 16:12  Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven^G2219 of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Jesus Christ speaks about leaven as doctrine, but we know Babylon is in us all, and the Pharisees and Sadducees were just Judaism’s version of Babylon.

Looking a little closer at leaven we see that leaven in Hebrew and as defined in Strong’s means:

H7603
śe’ôr
seh-ore’
From H7604; barm or yeast cake (as swelling by fermentation): – leaven.
Total KJV occurrences: 5

And the root of leaven in Hebrew is:

H7604

shâ’ar
shaw-ar’
A primitive root; properly to swell up, that is, be (causatively make) redundant: – leave, (be) left, let, remain, remnant, reserve, the rest.
Total KJV occurrences: 134

H7604
shâ’ar
Total KJV Occurrences: 131
left, 65
Gen_32:8, Gen_42:38, Gen_47:18, Exo_10:12, Exo_10:26, Lev_26:36, Lev_26:39, Num_21:35, Deu_2:34, Deu_3:3, Deu_4:27, Deu_7:20, Deu_28:55, Deu_28:62, Jos_8:17, Jos_10:33, Jos_10:37, Jos_10:39-40 (2), Jos_11:8, Jos_11:14, Jdg_4:16, Jdg_6:4, Rth_1:3, Rth_1:5, 1Sa_5:4, 1Sa_9:24, 1Sa_11:11, 2Sa_14:7, 1Ki_15:29, 1Ki_16:11, 1Ki_19:18, 2Ki_3:25, 2Ki_7:13 (2), 2Ki_10:11, 2Ki_10:14, 2Ki_10:21, 2Ki_17:18, 2Ki_25:11-12 (2), 2Ki_25:22, 1Ch_13:2, 2Ch_21:17, 2Ch_34:21, Isa_4:2-3 (3), Isa_11:11, Isa_11:16, Isa_24:6 (2), Isa_24:12, Isa_49:21, Jer_21:7, Jer_38:22, Jer_39:10, Jer_40:6, Jer_42:2, Jer_52:16, Eze_9:8, Eze_36:36, Dan_10:8, Dan_10:17, Hag_2:3
remained, 23
Gen_7:23, Gen_14:10, Exo_8:31, Exo_10:19, Exo_14:28, Num_11:26, Deu_3:11, Jos_11:22, Jos_13:12, Jdg_7:3, 1Sa_11:11, 1Ki_22:46, 2Ki_10:11, 2Ki_10:17, 2Ki_24:14, 2Ki_25:22, Jer_34:7, Jer_37:10, Jer_41:9-10 (3), Jer_52:15, Dan_10:8
remain, 15
Exo_8:8-9 (2), Exo_8:11, Lev_25:52, Deu_19:20, Jos_23:4, Jos_23:7, Jos_23:12, 2Ki_7:13, Ezr_9:15, Jer_8:3 (2), Jer_24:8, Jer_38:4, Eze_17:21, Zec_12:14
leave, 13
Num_9:12, Deu_28:51, 1Sa_14:36, 1Sa_25:22, 2Ki_13:7 (2), Jer_49:8-9 (2), Joe_2:14, Amo_5:3 (2), Oba_1:5, Zep_3:12
remaineth, 8
Exo_10:5, Jos_13:1-2 (2), 1Sa_16:11, Ezr_1:4, Job_21:34, Eze_6:12, Zec_9:7
remnant, 4
2Ki_19:30, 2Ch_30:6, Neh_1:3, Isa_37:31
rest, 2
Zec_11:9 (2)
reserve, 1
Jer_50:20

Isa 37:31  And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward:

Looking at leaven in Greek we see it defined as:

G2219

zumē
dzoo’-may
Probably from G2204; ferment (as if boiling up): – leaven.
Total KJV occurrences: 13

G2204

dzeh’-o
A primary verb; to be hot (boil, of liquids; or glow, of solids), that is, (figuratively) be fervid (earnest): – be fervent.
Total KJV occurrences: 2

Ultimately the three breads represent the process of judgment that the Lord takes us through, and offering that process upon His altar is the recognition that it is all His work and none of ours.

Exo 29:23  And one loaf of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the LORD:

We go from the negative aspect of leaven which is the doctrine that we are all born but that shows itself in various ways. “All that is in the world” (1Jn 2:16), has us leavened fomr the moment we are born.

The Lord then punctures us and we move onto being under his anointing having nothing to do with being chosen to this new found life. Then finally, the leaven of the world is striped away so that we partake of the unleavened mindset that He would have us have.

If we are to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees, thereby emptying our hearts and minds of the leaven to become unleavened, what leaven are we to be leavened with?

Here is the root of leaven in Greek:

Act 18:24  And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus.
Act 18:25  This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.
Act 18:26  And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.

Rom 12:9  Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
Rom 12:10  Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;
Rom 12:11  Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
Rom 12:12  Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;
Rom 12:13  Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.
Rom 12:14  Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
Rom 12:15  Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
Rom 12:16  Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.

1Co 5:6  Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

We keep the feast of the Passover by eating the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth, and in doing so, we are leavened with the fervent spirit of the Lord to desire to keep His commandments.

Next study we will continue to look at this wave offering, of which these breads are offered up, and we will also be looking at the heave offering.

Audio Links

Awesome Hands – part 94

“The making of the tabernacle – recap”

January 13, 2015

The latest group of studies in the Awesome Hands series have been covering the tabernacle as instructed to be built by the Lord to Moses and the Israelites.

Since this part of the series started at the beginning of October 2015, I thought this would be a good point to do a recap on the various parts of the tabernacle that have already been covered so that we can start our next study from where we left off.

Recap

In Awesome Hands part 88, we started the studies on the tabernacle which themselves start in chapter 25 of Exodus.

Often times I ask myself how do scriptures which were pinned thousands of years ago apply to me today. After all, the world will tell you as a Christian that the bible is just a collection of stories written by sheep herders and superstitious neanderthals.

So when I dive into the topic of the tabernacle and what is means for me today, given that it is no longer physically around, I have to consider what the world thinks (and by extension what most naturally comes to my mind too) and what we know as being Holy Spirit inspired writings. After all, it does take Faith to believe and of the bible.

Having arrived at our first verses covering the commandments of the tabernacle, we read:

Exo 25:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.

In this first study, we covered what it means to willingly offer to the Lord. Given that we know that freewill is a false doctrine according to scripture, we covered various scriptures that show that it is the Lord Himself who places a thought or action upon the hearts of those He is going to work with.

Act 7:22  And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds.
Act 7:23  And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

Here in Acts, Stephen expounds on what the tabernacle meant for the children of Israel even though they had no clue what was happening except for what the PHYSICALLY could relate to.

As a result of simply leaning towards their own understandings and the desires of their carnal hearts, this is how they reacted to Moses and how WE react to those God sends our way. Anyone we are sent to will have the SAME reaction.

Act 7:35  This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.
Act 7:36  He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.
Act 7:37  This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.
Act 7:38  This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:
Act 7:39  To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,
Act 7:40  Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
Act 7:41  And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

Because we all rejoice in the works of our own hands, we know that this series of studies we are covering about the tabernacle are telling us how the tabernacle is one of WITNESS to and for us.

Act 7:44  Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to the fashion that he had seen.

The other major point that was brought out in the first study covering the tabernacle is that Stephen looked stedfastly into heaven instead of how the KJV says that he looked “up”. This is an important distinction because it shows us that Stephen, under the influence of the Holy Ghost, was able to see the heavenly things versus only being able to see physical things.

Truly, the tabernacle that we are talking about and that Stephen emphasized to those gathered to accuse him of being blasphemous against the law is of one witness against them. This was what Stephen was caused to “willingly” do as an angel/messenger of God and it is the same for us today.

Act 6:15  And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.

The purpose of studying the witness of the tabernacle

We all need to understand the spiritual significance of what the tabernacle, which God is building with His hands, means to us today and in our lives directly. This was the focus of the second study in this covering of the tabernacle.

After all, we are the temple of God where God dwells and when folks desire to “see God” they have this desire because God has sent them to you in your lives for your and their benefit. Likewise, we are always on display as the temple for all of those we interact with everyday.

Like Stephen, we will be questioned and ridiculed for what and why we believe what we do. Our job is NOT to worry and answer their criticisms because THEY HAVE NO FAITH which can only be gifted by God. Rather, we are to be a WITNESS to those around us.

We are who God would have WORSHIP Him and how do we worship God?

Act 6:14  For we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us.
Act 6:15  And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.

Act 7:1  Then said the high priest, Are these things so?
Act 7:2  And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,

Joh 4:22  Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Joh 4:25  The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Joh 4:26  Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.
Joh 4:27  And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, What seekest thou? or, Why talkest thou with her?

See, Jesus comes on a cloud of great witnesses who worship in spirit and truth. We have Faith to know and believe the Truth.

Our worship is to be a witness to this and that is what the tabernacle is all about.

The items within the tabernacle are placed there to witness to us who it is we are to the Lord. There are various chambers or rooms, various components with those chambers and they all have spiritual significance.

In the second part of the series covering the tabernacle we studied the connection what God telling us what we must do as working for the tabernacle and what that Love would look like.

We saw that God will call teachers to teach and bear fruit of the Truth of the Word of God, but that we all in some capacity have been called to teach to those sent our way. There are certainly “callings” which tell us how to act in certain situations, but we all have been given the capacity to teach the Word of God in deed and example.

There are men who have been called to teach when the church is gathered, there are women who have been called to teach the younger women and children. Men have been called to rule their homes well and women have been called to teach their children the ways of the Lord. We all have been given a capacity and role to teach.

This is the willing offering of our service to the Lord, but within that offering there are fine details that reveal to us the mind of the Lord on the importance of the place He dwells spiritually.

The example and shadow of heavenly things

The third study covered the various items of gold, silver and brass and specifically the differences with some items being made of solid gold while others are overlaid with it.

The spiritual significance of an item being overlaid with gold versus simply being beaten out of solid gold is that the same word used as “overlay” in Hebrew, H6823, is mentioned as “probably rather identical with” H6822 overlay or “tsaw-faw”.

H6822
tsâphâh
BDB Definition:
1) to look out or about, spy, keep watch, observe, watch
1a) (Qal) to keep watch, spy
1b) (Piel) to watch, watch closely
Part of Speech: verb
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: a primitive root
Same Word by TWOT Number: 1950
H6822
tsâphâh
Total KJV Occurrences: 38
watchman, 14
2Sa_18:24-27 (5), 2Ki_9:17-18 (2), 2Ki_9:20, Isa_21:6, Eze_3:17, Eze_33:2, Hos_9:6-8 (3)
watch, 5
Gen_31:49, 2Sa_13:34, Isa_21:5, Hab_2:1 (2)
watchmen, 5
1Sa_14:16, Isa_52:8, Isa_56:10, Jer_6:17, Mic_7:4
look, 2
Psa_5:3, Mic_7:7
looketh, 2
Pro_31:27, Son_7:4
watching, 2
1Sa_4:13, Lam_4:17
behold, 1
Psa_66:7
beholding, 1
Pro_15:3
espy, 1
Jer_48:19
waited, 1
Job_15:22
watched, 1
Lam_4:17
watcheth, 1
Psa_37:32
watchman’s, 1
Eze_33:6
well, 1
Pro_31:27

A watchman COVERS the thing he is watching with the concept of “I am covering your back” or I am “looking out for the city”.

The watchman covers the city with his ability and the safety net of covering the city with a watchful attendance to said safety.

The significance of items being overlaid is that they show us that we are watchmen for the things concerning the temple of God, the tabernacle where He dwells. Our service is to serve in this capacity by worshiping in spirit and truth.

The ark is overlaid with gold while the mercy seat and cherubim are of solid beaten gold.

Hearken to the sound of the trumpet

The item that we covered in the fourth study was the table of shewbread.  Like the ark, this is a table made of wood but overlaid with gold.

Given what we learned with the connection of overlaid gold being directly rooted in watchmen, this table of bread takes on an important spiritual significance to us.

The table we are concerned with is not the physical table overlaid with gold in the physical tabernacle that is being setup with Moses, but we are concerning ourselves with what the table represents to us in the Spirit.

Luk 22:29  And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;
Luk 22:30  That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

There is the “table of the Lord” we must all be aware of. At this table, we partake of the cup of the Lord with the Lord, so like any table we have fellowship at (since that is what eating a meal at a table is all about – fellowship with family, friends, peers and loved ones) we must know the “manners” which are expected.

When eating at the Lord’s Table we must recognize the table we have been seated at. Here is what is on the table.

Lev 24:5  And thou shalt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth deals shall be in one cake.
Lev 24:6  And thou shalt set them in two rows, six on a row, upon the pure table before the LORD.
Lev 24:7  And thou shalt put pure frankincense upon each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Lev 24:8  Every sabbath he shall set it in order before the LORD continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant.
Lev 24:9  And it shall be Aaron’s and his sons’; and they shall eat it in the holy place: for it is most holy unto him of the offerings of the LORD made by fire by a perpetual statute.

We studied that before we can ever consider eating at the table of the Lord, this spiritual table of shewbread, we must deal with the “devils” that desire to sit with us at this table.

1Co 10:14  Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.
1Co 10:15  I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say.
1Co 10:16  The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
1Co 10:17  For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.
1Co 10:18  Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?

The bread we break is the COMMUNION of the body of Christ. Since we are focusing on doctrines of devils within this 4th study, we must also recognize that as watchmen we watch the gate of “that great city”.

Whenever we allow someone to worship false idols and false spirits, i.e. false doctrine WHOM we consider a brother or sister in Christ, then we are allowing the polluted bread to sit on this table the Lord has covered with His gold.

How does the gold “overlaid” on the showbread table have anything to with doctrine? Remember, we are at the gate COVERING the protection for the city called JERUSALEM.

We are the watchmen of the gate and MUST keep the sanctuary holy by doing what the Lord commands. Our duty as watchmen is to tell God’s people to listen to the trumpet of the Lord!

Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
1Jn 4:6  We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

The golden candlestick

In the fifth study we covered the golden candlestick and how it was made. The candlestick itself was very important in that it has many details which can easily be read over and missed if not looked into.

For one, there are almond shaped blossoms on each of the branches and on the stem multiple times.

Almond trees which produce these blossoms do so as one of the first trees in the spring to blossom.

What we can learn spiritually will add to this knowledge that the almond tree is among the first to “do something”.

The Hebrew word H824 used as almonds in the verses we are covering on the tabernacle is a denominative word form H8247 meaning “almond”. This Hebrew word (H8247) has a root of H8245.

H8245
shâqad
shaw-kad’
A primitive root; to be alert, that is, sleepless; hence to be on the lookout (whether for good or ill): – hasten, remain, wake, watch (for).
Total KJV occurrences: 12
H8245
shâqad
Total KJV Occurrences: 12
watch, 6
Ezr_8:29, Psa_102:7, Isa_29:20, Jer_5:6, Jer_31:28, Jer_44:27
watched, 2
Jer_31:27-28 (2), Dan_9:14
hasten, 1
Jer_1:12
remain, 1
Job_21:32
waketh, 1
Psa_127:1
   watching, 1
Pro_8:34

What was very significant about the almonds who are all over the candlestick of LIGHT, is that they are also connected to the watchmen.

Ezr 8:29  Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them before the chief of the priests and the Levites, and chief of the fathers of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the house of the LORD.
Psa 102:7  I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.
Jer 31:28  And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, saith the LORD.

In order to solidify the connection of “watching” with the almond and almond tree, here is what the Lord gave to Jeremiah to admonish us with:

Jer 1:11  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.
Jer 1:12  Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.

The word used in verse 12 here in English is “hasten”, but it is the only time that the translators of the King James used “hasten”. If you look at the Strong’s list I posted above, you see this is the same word H8245 meaning “watch”.

(ASV)  Then said Jehovah unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I watch over my word to perform it.
(BBE)  Then the Lord said to me, You have seen well: for I keep watch over my word to give effect to it.

The last connection we covered with the golden candlestick was its connection to Zechariah 4 and the two olive trees which provide the oil for the light.

Without recovering that entire study here, I’ll just say that oil is connected with the spirit of the Lord and the anointing of the Spirit.

Zec 4:5  Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
1Jn 2:27  But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

The two anointed ones stand by the Lord and pour out the oil which they themselves have been anointed with.

As can be seen by those with eyes to see and ears to hear, the Holy Spirit has revealed that gold, almonds (watching) and olive oil (Holy Spirit and power of God the Father) are VERY important to our Christian lives today. We are the priests who are being trained up first on how to handle the items of the sanctuary and to do the duty of a priest which is to keep His commandments faithfully.

The splendor of the tabernacle

The last study that has been completed before this recap study was on the beginning of chapter 26 of Exodus.

We talked about the various layers of the covering of the tabernacle and how they represent different aspects of Jesus Christ and our relationship with Him.

There are layers of fine linen, goats skins and rams and badgers skins.

The blue, purple and scarlet colors are all important to show us the progression we make in our walks with the Lord and what we are being called to.

We have a war of the flesh and spiritual happening daily, and as this war rages on, we have a progression happening from fleshly carnally minded “red” to heavenly minded “blue”.

The layer of fine linen, in particular, is the only part of the covering of the tabernacle that is referred to as “the tabernacle” whiles the other layers are those which are seen on the outside.

The splendor of what was seen on the inside of the tabernacle was not something that could be seen from the outside because what was seen on the outside was the basest layer of “flesh”.

Someone “passing by” would never know all these gold items and wonderfully made linen coverings and curtains were hidden inside.

This is equivalent in many spiritual types to what is held on the inside of us since we know where the spirit of God is and it is in His kingdom.

In the next study, we are going to pick up with the second part of Exodus 26 and continue covering the fine details of what the Lord has given us in order to help us understand our calling in Him and our relationship with our Lord.

Audio Links

The prize of the high calling

By Steven Crook

June 24th, 2015

Often times when we see a prize or hear about a reward we naturally think about what it would be like to win said prize or reward.

How would it change our lives? What would we do with the reward?  Who would be our family and friends after obtaining a grand reward?

While these questions are applicable to earthy based prizes which can be used to better our lives now, how do these same questions apply to the prize of the HIGH CALLING found in Philippians?

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

In this study, we are going to examine just what this prize is and what the qualifications are to even start the race that has this prize given to the victors.

Enemies of the Cross

Before we can ever hope to obtain to the level of “pressing toward” the mark of the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus, we must realize that we are all enemies of the cross. Yes, we are all enemies of the cross of Christ Jesus.

This may seem like a harsh reality and even untrue to those who believe they are “true Christians”, but we all inherently have flesh battling the Spirit of God each day.

The book of Philippians is a collection of scriptures given to us as a guidepost on how to mark our walk in Christ but to also remind us of who we are in Jesus.

Notice, the “high calling of God” is “in Jesus Christ”. If the “high calling” is in Jesus Christ, then what does it mean to be in Jesus Christ in this regard, so that you can press toward this mark?

We do not have to go very far outside of the book of Philippians to realize what Paul is telling us.

Php 3:1  Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.
Php 3:2  Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
Php 3:3  For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

Indeed, writing and speaking the same things, speaking the same mind as what scriptures lay out to us, is SAFETY for those being spoken to.

What then is then does Paul choose to start off with as “things written for safety”?

Beware of dogs)

Thayer’s greek definitions defines this Greek word as:

G2965
kuōn

Thayer Definition:
1) a dog
2) metaphorically a man of impure mind, an impudent man
Part of Speech: noun masculine
A Related Word by Thayer’s/Strong’s Number: a root word
Citing in TDNT: 3:1101,

“Dogs” as spoken about in this context are those who have an impure mind i.e. anything not the mind of Christ, and speak offensively boldly about scripture and about the mind of God of which they have NO CLUE about.
Here are the other 4 times (5 in total) that these dogs are spoken about:

G2965
kuōn
Total KJV Occurrences: 5
dogs, 4
Mat_7:6, Luk_16:21, Phi_3:2, Rev_22:15
dog, 1
2Pe_2:22

Mat 7:6  Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
Mat 7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

A “dog” is NOT someone seeking to know Christ or His Christ and they certainly are not looking to find answers to their questions. In fact, their questions are asked in pretense.

Luk 16:20  And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
Luk 16:21  And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

It is “dogs” who lick the sores of flesh which Lazarus is full of. Lazarus is the one who is in the bosom of Abraham due to what he experienced in this “tabernacle of flesh”.

Have you ever asked yourself why it is the dogs tend to the flesh of Lazarus? They do so to EASE the pain that Lazarus is in. Since we are talking about a parable, we know we are talking about the kingdom of heaven.

What we are being told spiritually about the dogs who lick the sores of Lazarus is that Lazarus, though “in the bosom of the Father” still but contend with those who want to concentrate on the flesh. Dealing with physical flesh and its pains are NOT the focus of this parable.

2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

“The dog is turned again to his own vomit” spoken about here is not speaking about them that are out there in the world who do not know the holy commandments of God but rather are those who HAVE KNOWN them but rather choose to go BACK to the pollutions of the world.

So, it is clear that there are dogs WITHIN us and WITHOUT us. There are dogs who are “of the world” and simply seek to please the flesh and then there are “domesticated dogs” who have learned about and from their Master but have AGAIN become entangled with the “pollutions of the world”.

Beware of evil workers)

Being aware of “evil workers” may seem like an easy thing to discern, but it is in fact something that can be hard to detect at times.

The surface “evils” are easy to detect and judge but it is those evils which lurk “below the surface” that we are to beware of.

G2040
ergatēs
Total KJV Occurrences: 17
labourers, 8
Mat_9:37-38 (2), Mat_20:1-2 (2), Mat_20:8, Luk_10:2 (2), Jam_5:4
workers, 3
Luk_13:27, 2Co_11:13, Phi_3:2
labourer, 2
Luk_10:7, 1Ti_5:18
workman, 2
Mat_10:10, 2Ti_2:15
work, 1
Act_13:41
workmen, 1
Act_19:25

A worker, workman or laborers are all interchangeable in the context of who Paul is telling us to beware of. To understand what “type” of workman we are referring to, I will use a few verses to present it from scripture.

Mat 9:37  Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
Mat 9:38  Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.

Jas 5:4  Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

Luk 13:26  Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets.
Luk 13:27  But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.

2Co 11:12  But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we.
2Co 11:13  For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
2Co 11:14  And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

These are workers which appear to be angels of light but are themselves deceitful workers.

What do these deceitful workers do whether or not they are aware of it?

Beware of the concision)

G2699
katatomē
Total KJV Occurrences: 1
concision, 1
Phi_3:2

G2699
katatomē
kat-at-om-ay’
From a compound of G2596 and τέμνω temnō (to cut); a cutting down (off), that is, mutilation (ironically): – concision. Compare G609.

There aren’t many other verses which use this exact Greek word but we do not need to go any further than the next verses to know who those “of the concision” Paul is referring to.

Php 3:3  For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

Paul is specifically telling us to beware of three specific groups. Gentiles (dogs), false apostles / workers of iniquity (Christians who say they are Jews but are not), and those who are “of the law” (concision).

The true focus of all these groups is COMMON. We worship in Spirit and Truth and they worship in the FLESH.

Here is what Paul has to say, as inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, to have written for our “safety”.

Php 3:4  Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:
Php 3:5  Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
Php 3:6  Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
Php 3:7  But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss FOR CHRIST.
Php 3:8  Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
Php 3:9  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Paul doesn’t mince words when he tells us that all things he was according to the flesh were counted as LOSS so that he could obtain the EXCELLENCY of the KNOWLEDGE of Jesus Christ our Lord.

What is the knowledge of Jesus Christ?

Tit 1:14  Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.
Tit 1:15  Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
Tit 1:16  They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

Joh 17:2  As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Counting all things loss, according to Paul, means things which are LOSS cannot then be used as his own righteousness.

In other words, if I lose a $20 bill I cannot later then use a lost $20 bill to pay for goods. It simply isn’t there to be used. What Paul could and did use was the FAITH OF CHRIST which is RGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD.

Want to be righteous with God? Keep the Faith. Need faith? Ask for it.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Mat 21:22  And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Joh 16:24  Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

Jas 4:3  Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

Mar 9:24  And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

The father of the child in Mark 9 had lived with a terrible spirit living within his child. Do any of you know of anyone around you, any family and friends or YOURSELF who may have an evil spirit causing them or you to do what that spirit commands?

Listen to Jesus’ advice to them and you.

Mar 9:21  And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
Mar 9:22  And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
Mar 9:23  Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE to him that believeth.

Do you believe your Lord? Do you think He changes? Is His power still alive and well today within His people?

Ask Him for His compassion and help and await His answer, but BEWARE of those who are all around you who will not be able to resist standing in your way to DENY your FLESH its DESIRES.

I am confident everyone reading or listening to this study wants to know Jesus Christ. We all want eternal life. However, life comes through death!

Php 3:10  That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
Php 3:11  If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

In order to know him, the power of His resurrection, the fellowship of His sufferings and to be made conformable to His death so that we can ATTAIN unto the resurrection of the DEAD is for us to DIE to the things that DRAW on us the MOST while in this tabernacle OF DEATH.

Last study I spoke about the pulls of the earth on the “cloud of great witnesses” and we are ALL the EARTH. We all contend with this flesh JUST LIKE Jesus did.

We cannot be perfect in this point in our walk just like Jesus had not yet gone one to perfection while in this flesh. First He has to die and be resurrected to go on to perfection (Luke 13:32/John 20:17).

We are to be as Paul an apprehend that which Jesus Christ apprehends in us. Here is what is apprehended.

Php 3:14  I press(G1377) toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Php 3:15  Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.

The Greek word G1377 translated as press here in the KJV is very concealing. Indeed, the Lord willed that this be the case. However, we are not left in the dark, so to speak, about the meaning of “pressing” toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

G1377
diōkō
dee-o’-ko
A prolonged (and causative) form of a primary verb δίω diō (to flee; compare the base of G1169 and G1249); to pursue (literally or figuratively); by implication to persecute: – ensue, follow (after), given to, (suffer) persecute (-ion), press toward.

G1377
diōkō
Thayer Definition:
1) to make to run or flee, put to flight, drive away
2) to run swiftly in order to catch a person or thing, to run after
2a) to press on: figuratively of one who in a race runs swiftly to reach the goal
2b) to pursue (in a hostile manner)
3) in any way whatever to harass, trouble, molest one
3a) to persecute
3b) to be mistreated, suffer persecution on account of something
4) without the idea of hostility, to run after, follow after: someone
5) metaphorically, to pursue
5a) to seek after eagerly, earnestly endeavour to acquire
Part of Speech: verb
A Related Word by Thayer’s/Strong’s Number: a prolonged (and causative) form of a primary verb dio (to flee; compare the base of G1169 and G1249)
Citing in TDNT: 2:229, 177

Here are the other times this Greek word “deoko” is used in scripture.

G1377
diōkō
Total KJV Occurrences: 48
persecuted, 13
Mat_5:10, Mat_5:12, Joh_15:20, Act_7:52, Act_22:4, Act_26:11, 1Co_4:12, 1Co_15:9, 2Co_4:9, Gal_1:13, Gal_1:23, Gal_4:29, Rev_12:13
follow, 8
Luk_17:23, Rom_14:19, 1Co_14:1, Phi_3:12, 1Th_5:15, 1Ti_6:11, 2Ti_2:22, Heb_12:14
persecute, 8
Mat_5:11, Mat_5:44, Mat_10:23, Mat_23:34, Luk_21:12, Joh_5:16, Joh_15:20, Rom_12:14
persecutest, 6
Act_9:4-5 (2), Act_22:7-8 (2), Act_26:14-15 (2)
persecution, 3
Gal_6:11-12 (2), 2Ti_3:12
suffer, 3
Gal_6:11-12 (2), 2Ti_3:12
followed, 2
Rom_9:30-31 (2)
after, 1
Rom_14:19
ensue, 1
1Pe_3:11
given, 1
Rom_12:13
persecuting, 1
Phi_3:6
press, 1
Phi_3:14

Here are a few of these verses conveying the idea of “pressing toward”:

Mat 5:12  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

1Co 4:12  And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:

Mat 5:10  Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

1Ti 6:11  But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

Rom 14:19  Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.

The word used as “press” in Philippians 3:14 is spiritually obvious to those with eyes to see and ears to ear to mean persecute or persecuted.

What does this mean then? What is being persecuted?

Php 3:14  I persecute toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

What WE “persecute toward” in order to hit the mark, is instead of lackadaisically proceeding toward the mark, we PERSECUTE the flesh in us and all of those around us who would have us mind the things of the flesh and not the thing of the spirit.

Does anyone think that when Paul was Saul and he was persecuting the church, he was doing killing people without really caring about it that much?

Here are Paul’s own words found in the same chapter of Philippians and a confirmation of it found in Galatians.

Php 3:6  Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

Gal 1:23  But they had heard only, That he which persecuted us in times past now preacheth the faith which once he destroyed.

Yes, we will be persecuted by others but before we can be persecuted by others we should be JUDGING ourselves and PERSECUTING those things that keep us from HAVING Faith in God.

Luk 21:12  But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.

2Ti 3:12  Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

We are to suffer persecution at our own hands as well as at the hands of others byt judging ourselves according to the Words which live in us.

To bring this point home and to make sure we understand this, Paul finishes Philippians 3 this way.

Php 3:16  Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.
Php 3:17  Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.
Php 3:18  (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
Php 3:19  Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, WHO MIND EARTHLY THINGS.)
Php 3:20  For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:
Php 3:21  Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

As we need help in our walk, we have witnessed that we can ask for Faith to endure in this process. The Lord tells us that He has overcome the world and we too will be given the strength to do so, but it will come with persecutions and sufferings. If we are not willing to suffer with Christ then we are enemies of the Cross in our walk. Lord, help our unbelief. Amen.

Dallas, TX. Conference Video – February 5-6, 2007