Read to prACTice

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Privilege or Burden... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 9   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord instructed the Israelites to observe the Passover on the 14th day of the first month of the year at the appointed time...) 6  But there were some men who were unclean because of the dead person, so that they could not observe Passover on that day; so they came before Moses and Aaron on that day.   7  Those men said to him, “Though we are unclean because of the dead person, why are we restrained from presenting the offering of the  Lord  at its appointed time among the sons of Israel?” III. Reflection *  Questions :  What did some Israelites complain about? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me a number of Your people complaining about losing the opportunity to present an offering to You to ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Light up vs. Shine on... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 8   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord spoke to Moses, saying...) 2  “Speak to Aaron and say to him, ‘When you mount the lamps, the seven lamps will give light in the front of the lampstand.’”   3  Aaron therefore did so; he mounted its lamps at the front of the lampstand, just as the  Lord  had commanded Moses.   III. Reflection *  Questions :  What were the two specific actions that the Lord instructed Aaron to do? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me what is important in Your eyes--it's not enough that there is light; it's equally important that the light shines in the right direction. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching that my light must shine before people ( Matthew 5:16 ). O Lord! Today, please light me up ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* No competing in the kingdom serving... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 7   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (Offerings made to the Lord on the occasion of the Tabernacle dedication...) 12  Now the one who presented his offering on the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah;   13   and his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering;   14  one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;   15  one  bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering;   16   one male goat for a sin offering;   17  and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male l...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Learn to live vs. Live and learn... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 6   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  () 22  Then the  Lord  spoke to Moses, saying,   23  “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:  The  Lord  bless you, and keep you; The  Lord  make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The  Lord  lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’ III. Reflection *  Questions :  What did the Lord instruct Aaron to do? To someone who speaks well, was it really necessary? IV. Application : Dear Lord God: Although You knew Aaron as someone who spoke well ( Exodus 4:14 ), You still taught him how to say things properly and acceptably. I thank You, God, for showing me that Aaron wasn't so prideful. The eloquent...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Forgotten sin, hidden sin, reminded sin... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 5   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (when his wife commits undetectable adultery or the husband is jealous because of the suspicion that he has about his wife's fidelity...) 15  the man shall then bring his wife to the priest, and shall bring  as  an offering for her one-tenth of an  ephah of barley meal; he shall not pour oil on it nor put frankincense on it, for it is a grain offering of jealousy, a grain offering of memorial,  a reminder of iniquity... III. Reflection *  Questions : What can go into the following blanks to describe today's reminder of iniquity ____ ____ ____? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for teaching me that there was an established offering as a reminder of a person's sin for Your people of Israel back then. Sin cannot be neglected. It was either be ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Reality or Discrimination... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 4   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord gave instructions on recruiting people to do work in the Tabernacle...)  2  Take a census of the descendants of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ households,   3  from thirty years and upward, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tent of meeting . . .  22 . . .  the sons of Gershon also  23  from thirty years and upward to fifty years old . . .  29  As for the sons of Merari . . .  30  from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old . . .  38  . . . the sons of Gershon . . .  39  from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old . . .    III. Reflection *  Questions :  In recruiting hu...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Recruit and Appoint. Wait not! I. Click here to READ  Numbers 3   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (Aaron's family became smaller with the death of his two older sons. The younger two sons had been helping their father out with the priesthood...) 5  Then the  Lord  spoke to Moses, saying,   6  “Bring the tribe of Levi near and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him.   7  They shall perform the duties for him and for the whole congregation before the tent of meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.   8  They shall also keep all the furnishings of the tent of meeting, along with the duties of the sons of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle. III. Reflection *  Questions :  Being a family of three, what would happen to the priesthood when Aaron, Eleazar, and Ithamar passed away? IV. Application : Dear L...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* To minister humbly and gently... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 2   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord told the Israelites the order of marching when there is an order to move on with the tabernacle being in the midst of them...) 9  The total of the numbered men of the camp of Judah: 186,400, by their armies.  They shall set out first . . .  16  The total of the numbered men of the camp of Reuben: 151,450 by their armies. And  they shall set out second . . .  24  The total of the numbered men of the camp of Ephraim: 108,100, by their armies. And  they shall set out third.  31  The total of the numbered men of the camp of Dan  was  157,600.  They shall set out last by their standards. III. Reflection *  Questions :  Which tribe of Israel was to go first to lead the march of God's crowded people? Who was the f...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Living together but differently... I. Click here to READ  Numbers 1   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : 52  The children of Israel shall pitch their tents,  everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies. III. Reflection *  Questions :  How is it that living together does not have to be cookie-cutter? Can people live together differently? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me that You allowed Your people living in a community to be different. They can have their own tents, own camps, and own standards. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching that You have other sheep not in the same fold ( John 10:16 ) that You must bring them. O Lord Jesus! Help me to gladly accept different people with different backgrounds and different viewpoints as long as everyone makes the same commitment t...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Pay to stay serving... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 27   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : 1  Now the  Lord  spoke to Moses, saying,  2  “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When a man consecrates by a vow certain persons to the  Lord , according to your valuation,  3  if your valuation is of a male from twenty years old up to sixty years old, then your valuation shall be fifty shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary.  4  If it is a female, then your valuation shall be thirty shekels; III. Reflection *  Questions :  Why a double offering--dedicating a person to serve God and then paying for that person to stay serving? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for reminding me that it cost, back then, to set apart a person to serve You. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for r...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* One if and 30 blessings to follow... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 26   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : (The Lord instructed His people...) 3  “If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them,   4  then I will give you... 5  ... And you shall eat... 6  I will give... And I will remove... 7  You shall chase...    9  I will turn to... and will confirm... 10  You shall eat... and you shall clear out... 11  I will make... 12  And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.   13  I am the  Lord  your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect. III. Reflection *  Questions : How many blessings follow the conditional if statem...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* One does not come, one does not get... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 25   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : (The Lord spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying...) 2   “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall keep a Sabbath to the  Lord . III. Reflection *  Questions : How can the land be given? What does the land need? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me that the land can be given only to those who come to receive it. One does not come, one does not get. The land cannot be had remotely. I thank You for taking me to this point to remind me of the condition to have eternal life. It's not by merit; it's not by earning. It must only be by receiving Him, Jesus ( Jn 1:12 ). I thank You, Lord Jesus, for giving Yourself even to the point of death on the cross for all humanity. I pray for certain...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* God's will takes time to seek... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 24   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (Two people among the Israelites were fighting in the camp...) 11  T he son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the  Name and cursed. So they brought him to Moses. (Now his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.)   12  They put him in  custody  so that  the command of the  Lord  might be made clear to them. III. Reflection *  Questions :  What was the benefit of putting someone in custody first? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me the wisdom of Your people when they did not act immediately upon getting emotionally hurt, or were in a rage. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching, and example, that I ought to be quick to hear, slow to spe...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Today is the favorable time... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 23   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : 26  The  Lord  spoke to Moses, saying,   27  “On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement; it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the  Lord . III. Reflection *  Questions :  Why don't we keep this day of atonement anymore? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for reminding me that because the day of atonement was tied to the tenth day of the seventh month, it came only once a year!  Establishing the day of atonement for Your people indicated that You always wanted us to be cleansed of our sins in our lives. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me that with Your sacrificing Yourself on the cross, the day of atonemen...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Offer to be accepted... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 22   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord instructed Israel regarding offerings...) 29  When you sacrifice  a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the  Lord , you shall sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. III. Reflection *  Questions :  When you give to the Lord through offering, have you ever thought that the Lord may not accept it? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, please forgive me for the times when I naively thought that the offerings that I gave, You would surely accept. I thank You for telling me that the acceptance of my offerings has never been automatic or expected ( v29 ). Please forgive my inappropriate attitude when I gave, went to church, and worshiped You. You are not obligated to accept my offerings at all! Today, please help me watch my arrogance! Today, please remind me to give offerings ...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Accept God's exceptions... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 21   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord instructed about His priests...) 1  And the  Lord  said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them, No one shall make himself unclean for the dead among his people,  2  except for his closest relatives, his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother,  3  or his virgin sister (who is near to him because she has had no husband; for her he may make himself unclean). III. Reflection *  Questions : What  shows the understanding aspect of God's rules? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for showing me the understanding aspects of Your rules. You do make exceptions, and You do set boundaries. O God, please help me understand Your being a flexible God. Please help me show understanding when except...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* God separates. We differentiate... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 20   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : 24 . . . I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples. 25 ‘You are therefore to make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean; III. Reflection *  Questions :  How is making a distinction different from discrimination? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for the reminder that after You separated us from the world's peoples, You expected us to make a distinction in our daily life between the clean and the unclean. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me of Your teaching that I am to be the salt of the world . . .  I am to be the light of the world ( Matthew 5:13-14 ). O Lord! Today, please help me to live a life that is worthy of being separated from the world. Please h...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* My... My... My... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 19   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : 3 . . . You shall keep  My sabbaths ... 12  You shall not swear by My name falsely ... 19  “You shall keep My statutes ... 30  You shall keep...  reverence My sanctuary ... 37  And  you shall observe all... My rules... III. Reflection *  Questions :  What is the one similarity in the above 5 verses? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for bringing to my attention that You specifically declare Your possessions five times in the above five verses regarding five different things. They are important to You. They are Your rules, Your sanctuary, Your statutes, Your name, and Your sabbaths. Among them,  You personalized the sabbaths--You called it "My sabbaths." You took it seriously when people violated it ( Ex 35:2 ). I thank You, Lord God, for teaching m...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* God owns me vs He's my own God... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 18   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : (The Lord's instructions to the Israelites...) 4  You are to perform My judgments and keep My statutes, to live in accord with them; I am the  Lord  your God.   5  So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them; I am the  Lord . III. Reflection *  Questions :  How many times in this chapter did the Lord say to His people, "I am the Lord your God"? IV. Application : Dear Lord God: it is so comforting to hear that You confirmed repeatedly Your intention, and desire, to be close to Your people--very personally related to Your people--"I am Your God." I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me that today not only do You want to be personally related to us, but You are in us ( 2 Cor 13...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Obedience--No ifs, ands, or buts... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 17   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord's instructions to the Israelites...) 14  “ For  as for the  life of all flesh, its blood is  identified  with its  life. Therefore I said to the sons of Israel, ‘You are not to eat the blood of any flesh, for the  life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off.’ III. Reflection *  Questions :  How often did the discussions about eating blood appear in this chapter? IV. Application : Dear Lord God, I thank You for making it crystally clear that You prohibit Your people from eating blood of any flesh. You emphasized this restriction by repeating it 6 times within 6 verses. You also gave an explanation as to why You prohibit Your people from eating blood. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Yes, Lord! Please help me sim...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Easier said than done... I.. Click here to READ  Leviticus 16   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (To offer atonement for the whole people of Israel...) 21  Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and  confess over it all the wrongdoings of the sons of Israel and all their unlawful acts regarding all their sins; and he shall place them on the head of the goat and send  it  away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who  stands  ready. III. Reflection *  Questions :  What was easier said than done in the above Bible verse? IV. Application : Dear Lord God: I thank You for showing me the impossible task Aaron had to do--confessing ALL the wrongdoings of Your people and ALL their unlawful acts regarding ALL their sins. I thank You, Lord Jesus, for taking me to this point to remind me that what is impossible for man is possi...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Want to revere God, Tidy up... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 15   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (The Lord said to Moses and Aaron...) 31  “And so you shall keep the sons of Israel separated from their uncleanness, so that they will not die in their uncleanness by their defiling My tabernacle that is among them.”   III. Reflection *  Questions :  Why must the Israelites pay so much attention to the issue of uncleanness? And why did the Lord so insist? IV. Application : Dear Lord God: I thank You for reminding me that it was Your desire to dwell among Your people as they made their journey to the Promised Land ( Exodus 25:8 ). With You being in their midst, I can understand why they needed to tidy up their place and condition--because You are holy. I thank You, Lord, for taking me to this point to remind me that in my own spiritual journey today, Chri...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* The dead must live... I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 14   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches :  (After inspecting the leper and finding that he has been healed...) 4  then the priest shall give orders to take two live clean birds and cedar wood and a scarlet string and hyssop for the one who is to be cleansed.   5  The priest shall also give orders to slay the one bird in an earthenware vessel over running water.   6  As for the live bird, he shall take it together with the cedar wood and the scarlet string and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the live bird in the blood of the bird that was slain over the running water.   7  He shall then sprinkle seven times the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the live bird go free over the open field. III. Reflection *  Questions :  How...

To read this in Vietnamese, please click  here . ******************* Hearing is insufficient... Looking is the instruction.  I. Click here to READ  Leviticus 13   first . II. One thing the Bible teaches : (When there was a reported serious issue of leprosy in the community, the priest must not act on hearing; but...) 3  The priest shall look...    5  The priest shall look...  6  The priest shall look...  8  The priest shall look...  10  The priest shall then look...  13  then the priest shall look...  15  The priest shall look...  17  and the priest shall look...  20  And the priest shall look...  25  the priest shall examine...  27  and the priest shall examine...  30  the priest shall examine...  32 ... the priest shall examine...  34  ... the priest shall examine...  36  then the priest shall examine...  39  the...