THE GIFT INSIDE THE GIFT

I've noticed something unusual. In the old testament, God has the temple built with all of it's ornate detail. In fact, I believe one of the reasons for Exodus chapters 25-31 is so we could understand that our God has an eye for detail. He had everything planned down to the last thread. But that's beside the point for the moment. What was the curtain for? The priest was to take the sins of the people through offering and sacrifice and give it unto the Lord through a series of ceremonial acts and such. Now, I'm not breaking this down lest I lose my train of thought.

My mind is on the curtain. What do we know about the curtain or in this particular case, the veil? We know it was there to separate the high priests (The Levites), chosen by God for their service, from the people. They're job, their life was behind that veil. Notice something...in Exodus 26:31 the word is spelled, "vail." Hm. But now, let's skip over to Matthew 27:51 and it's spelled "veil." Hm, x2.

Well, I'm not a scholar but I know how to look up a word or two. The spelling for "vail" means "to lower as to show respect." However, "veil" means "concealing curtain or cover of cloth." I thought at first the people who put the King James version together did the typo thing. But no, it's like that all the way through the old testament and the same through the new.

May be it's nothing or may be someone will enlighten me as to the something it is. Moving on to the point I wanted to make. In the old testament, no one but the priest was allowed behind the veil/vail. This was something that separated us from God, in a sense. Back then, the people had to rely wholly on that "man" to do for them what they needed. Take their sacrifices and offerings to the alter for them to be burned and offered.

Then, Jesus comes as a Savior to the world and what happens at the very moment that Jesus "...yielded up the ghost," in Matthew 27:50? I'll tell you so you don't have to go look (hey, it's my pleasure). Matthew 27:51 says, "And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent (tore) in twain (2) from the top to the bottom;..."  Not from the bottom to the top. If it had been tore from the bottom to the top, then we might mistake the act to be one done by the hands of men. But a veil that is "eight and twenty cubits" Ex. 26:2, from floor to ceiling would have needed a few minutes to reach in order to be tore from the top down. Just how tall was the curtain? I could google it or use my head for something besides a hat rack...

Deviating from scripture for a math lesson...let me see if my college math will pay off here, while I try to calculate what the height of a curtain eight and twenty cubits would equate to in our language. One cubit is the equivalent of the length from the elbow to the tip of our middle finger (old testament style). This is 17.5 inches give or take. Square it off to a clean 12 ins. and I'll add the 7.5 along the way. Eight and twenty cubits...hm...would that mean 28 cubits or 17.5 ins. times 28? Shoot, I gotta figure that out too?...sigh...am I sounding crazy yet? Hmph...crazy like a fox...focus Kelline...if eight and twenty means 28 then 28 cubits x 17.5 ins. = 490/17.5 ins = 28 ft tall. That's about equivalent to a 3 story building if the building has 10ft high ceilings. (please forgive me if it's wrong, don't hang me by my toenails for it.)

That sounds worthy of our God. He's worth a temple having a 3-story curtain in it. A curtain handmade from fine linen lovingly dyed blue, purple, and scarlet (Ex. 26:1). The size of the curtain might have been the point when God had them made in the first place. That way, no man could claim glory for the tearing of the curtain in that brief moment of time, (except for may be Peter Pan with his nifty dagger and a flying leap). So, ya, we're going to assume I'm somewhere in the ball park until someone gives me the right answer. Anyway, on with our research...

Those in the temple watched and bore witness to the fact that upon his death the veil tore from the Heaven-side to the earth-side. Do you realize the implications?

No longer did we need a high priest to go in unto the Lord for us. No longer were we separated from entering the throne room. No longer did someone else go behind the curtain and do the talking for us. No longer were we expected to wait outside. The veil was torn and done away with. We were now able to "come boldly to the throne of grace,..." Hebrews 4:16.

There's so much more to the high priest but I won't go into that right now. Even though there's details about his duties such as his life lived totally and ever in the temple. Or the fact that they tied a rope of bells to the priests ankle and if God wasn't pleased with his abilities, words, sacrifices, or the way he presented them, He would kill the priest (I know, atheists everywhere are saying, "I told you so...He's a mean God). Those "banished" to the outside of the veil would know he was dead by the bells not ringing anymore. Then, they'd tow his body out by the rope and wait for God to appoint a new Priest. Aren't you glad we don't have to do that anymore? No more animals without blemish. No more waiting. No more hoping the priest does it just right so we don't have to travel back next year with a posse of beasts to try again for absolution. Yes, it's a true gift, the gift of coming to the throne of grace! Let's not take it for granted.

For all of that I say, 'Praise Your High and Holy Name, Lord, for seeing our need and making a way by sending your Son...the Propitiation for our sins.' I'll see you in my prayer closet, Father. :-)

..and Jesus saith unto them, "I AM."

I posted yesterday about something I wanted to share. I usually try to hold off posting daily because it makes your readers feel like they have to "keep up" a pace to read all you post. But this is one of those times wherein I feel the need to share and can't really hold it back.

This is something I discovered through sermons and reading. It's a revelation! We'll set the scene by reminding ourselves of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane on the night that Judas Iscariot betrayed our Lord for 30 pieces of silver. I'm taking this from both Mark and John's versions of the events that night. Both men saw things different and the same. Mark saw something that night that John did not. Or, John doesn't recount the same events but may have seen it also.

So, now, the "band of men and officers" (as it states in John 18:3) have come for Him. Here begins this beautiful revelation of who Jesus Christ is. If we had doubts, as the Jehovah's Witnesses do about the Trinity, this answers that question for me. Two things happen when the men confront Jesus. We'll begin with John's version wherein Jesus is confronted by the men and says, ..."Whom seek ye?" John 18:4. The band of men and officers reply, "Jesus of Nazareth..." John 18:5. I'm quoting from the King James Version because it's an early translation and hasn't been quite as changed as some of the later "easier to read" versions. So, Jesus says only two words in reply to men seeking Him. The King James version has added a word (in italics for easy reading) but remove that italicized word, add the events that take place after it, and you have yourself a revelation! Jesus says, " I AM." John 18:5 Remember, remove the added word "he." Here's what happens when He says, "I AM." In verse 6 it states, "As soon then as he had said unto them, I AM, they went backward, and fell to the ground." WOW!! Why did they fall? Because, God has just spoken His mighty name to them and with that comes great glory and power!! So much glory and power that it knocked them to the ground. That's the first thing that happened. Now, we'll go over to Mark to see what he saw.

We're again in the same scene. We're looking through Mark's eyes now. Notice what Mark sees in the middle of the chaos, in Mark 15:50, Mark says, "they all forsook Him and fled." But then, what's this? A man in a linen cloth appears in verse 51, "And there followed Him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him:" vs. 52, "and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked." First thing we have to know is that a linen cloth is another word for grave clothing. Back then, people were buried in their linen cloth. As we know by the story of Jesus' tomb being empty save for His linen cloth folded neatly. This is the second revelation of what happened when Jesus spoke His name, "I AM." A certain young man was raised from the dead. As I studied this, I saw there was no other explanation for the young man's appearance in grave clothing. And why did he run away naked? What would cause a man to run away while shedding the garments that represented his death? I welcome any and all thoughts on that. I've told all I know thus far.

BEWARE OF THE CONVERSION

Well, hm, it's my understanding of other people's interactions with Jehovah's Witnesses that I might have to look forward to Mr. Ben returning frequently. I hear tell that he might try to convert me. Shameful, if true. Why? Because that's like walking into a church and going up to a congregant and saying, "you don't want to worship here, come with me and become a member of our congregation." And using manipulation to lure that person away from their current church or faith, to theirs.

Here's 2 reasons why it will never happen. Number one, I'm not leaving the bonds of religion to join a group of people that love the Lord but operate in their flesh. As I told Ben when he came last time, "Jehovah's Witnesses seem to believe that it's by their might and not by His Spirit that you have to live." He was confused by that statement. I picked up on the vibe. I said in more plain terminology, "you and your colleague seemed to come here the first time in the spirit of doing and not in the spirit of love." I said this with gentle respect, of course. They had an agenda, for sure.

Here's something else I noticed. This was subtle when he said it, but it spoke volumes to me. I asked him if they had any luck making connections on the mountain (where I live) with the other residents. To which he replied, "no, not really. Yours was the best 'door' we had all day." Hm, I thought. He referred to me as "the best door." That says to me that they do indeed see people on their trail as things to be done. I can't really explain my view much better than that.

Here's the 2nd reason I wouldn't become a Jehovah's Witness. They don't believe in the Trinity. It's in their book. They're argument is quite weak really. And I quote:

"Matthew 28:19 is usually cited to prove the doctrine. The text from the King James Version quotes Jesus: 'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.' True, the Father, the Son, and the holy ghost (or spirit) are all mentioned in this text. However, nothing is said about their being one."

Are you serious? There's a lot of things about the world that's not written in scripture. This is one thing that is. The quoted scripture, "...in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost...," (and we capitalize it, Mr. Jehovah's Witness) is self-explanatory as it clearly states, "...in the name..," and then it includes the 3 persons that are included in "...the name."

Well, that's all I'll say for now, but stay tuned. My next post is going to reveal something that few have paid any attention to or noticed. It has revealed a mighty nugget of blessed reality as to who our Jesus is. I have school tonight. Gotta go get ready so I'll leave off here.

GUESS WHO KNOCKED...AGAIN?

Guess who knocked on my door this afternoon....again? Yep, Jehovah's Witnesses. Only this time it was the same young man that came the first time. The one who was so serious and stoic. His name is Benjamin. Or, Ben Ben Ya (as I lovingly teased him due to his way of saying, "it's Ben, Ben, ya.") I was so happy to see him! He brought a lovely young lady with him. I wasn't surprised to see them but I was surprised to see them.

I was on the phone with my son when they knocked. I said, "Gage, let me call you back. I have a special guest." Gage said, "oh sure mom, you gotta go talk to someone else." I said, "I'll call you back as soon as they leave." He sighed as if it was frustrating for him because he had things yet to say. So, I said, "I'm going to go talk about Jesus." As soon as the words came out of my mouth he said with cheer, "OK!" and off I went.

They didn't stay long and to be honest, I don't know what brought them. We didn't talk about anything particular. We didn't focus on any one subject. I asked him why, during his prior visit, he had continued to want me to hear the schpeel. Yes, I used that word. He gave me a couple of confused blinks, a momentary stare as he searched up a response, and then said, "we just thought we'd share what we learned about the Bible." At that moment I was the one with the confused blinks and a momentary stare.

No matter what the reason, the young man felt compelled to return. That's encouraging to me on so many levels. For one thing, he knew I meant it when I invited him and his friend back. For another, the light and love that flowed out of me that day, drew him to me a second time. As I stated before, I don't know why they came today because nothing was accomplished as far as conversation goes. We didn't have much time. I wonder if they were simply here to do a follow up type of thing. What do you think? Wouldn't that be sad to know that the only reason for his return is because his religion dictates that if you make a positive contact, you go back and make a second contact to give the impression that Witnesses are devout and disciplined? Just a theory but not necessarily my belief.

He was definitely more relaxed. We came in and sat down this time. He even smiled a lot more. I guess the whys and whats of it don't really matter. God brought new people of the faith into my life and I welcomed them. If God needs me to do or say something, then so be it. If He's using them, then so be it. May we each be obedient and filled with love for one another. That's all I care to achieve in the situation. Obedience, light, and love. 

HAVE A GIGGLE

I thought I would deviate from my usual topic of interest to something a tad funny. I enjoyed this thoroughly and I thought it might give you a wee giggle as well.

Remember the song, "The Hokey Pokey?" Let's sing it together just to refresh our minds:

Ya put yer left foot in
Ya put yer left foot out
Ya put yer left foot in
and ya shake it all about
ya do the Hokey Pokey
and ya turn yerself around
that's what it's all about!

Now, let's sing it in Shakespearean style:

O proud left foot, that ventures quick within
Then soon upon a backward journey lithe,
Anon, once more the gesture, then begin;
Command the pedestal to writhe.
Commence thou then the fervent Hokey-Poke
A mad gyration, hips in wanton swirl.
To spin! A wild release from heaven's yoke;
Blessed durvish! Surely canst go, girl.
The Hoke, the Poke--banish now thy doubt.
Verily, I say, 'tis what it's all about.

Here's hoping someone was needing a giggle at just about the time they read this!