Scripture:

Leviticus 11:45

For I am the LORD who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.

"Holiness,"  this word in Hebrew (qadosh) means set apart.  How we handle ourselves, what we eat, how we take care of ourselves, our bodies, our health, physical, emotional, mental, they matter to God, for we are to be "Qadosh" set apart, Holy because God is Holy and we are His people.   Notice that He says that He brought them out of the land of Egypt, "out of slavery" to be their God.   This is the most important thing that God has delivered us from slavery to be with Him, to establish this divine relationship, to be with us, to be our God, our Father, our Lord.

The application here is that we would consider Him in all that we do, how we manage our lives, that we have been called to be "Qadosh" to be Holy, to be "Set Apart,"  His special possession (1 Peter 2:9), we are to be different from the world, not looking like the patterns of the world.    

Lord, it is easy to live without thought, to live aimlessly, but you have called us to be set apart for you. Help us to manage our lives in a way that brings you glory and honor, that we would be Holy, set apart for you. Let us not neglect the little things, and help us in the weightier matters, that we might not miss our call to be "Qadosh."  In Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Leviticus 10:3

And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying:

‘By those who come near Me
I must be regarded as holy;
And before all the people
I must be glorified.’ ”

So Aaron held his peace.

"Reverence" 

Often, you will hear the words "Fear of the Lord," however, this type of fear is not that we would be afraid, but rather that we would fear disappointing Him.   Here, the Lord tells us that those who serve the Lord will be held to a higher standard, but I would say that none of us are excluded from reverence for the Lord, that we would treat Him with respect and holiness, and that we would consider Him above anything in our lives, that we would honor Him with all that is within us.  In fact, this should influence our decisions, it should cause us to pause and think before we act, asking ourselves is this something that would please the Lord?

To revere the Lord, to consider Him in all that we do, is it pleasing, is it honoring, is it bringing Him glory?   Today, our application is to pause before doing anything and ask these questions.

Lord, let us revere you, deem you Holy in our lives, let our hearts be careful, let our decisions be influenced by our reverence for you, let us bring you glory in all that we say and do, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Leviticus 5:1

 “‘If anyone sins because they do not speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have seen or learned about, they will be held responsible.

"Stand for Right"

Thinking about this verse in the context of the world we live in, with television and media, we get a front row seat to evil, to things that should not happen, and even worse, the silence of those who should stand up, who should not tolerate it.   In our verse today, the LORD is saying that our silence is sin; when we witness wrong, we should stand up for what is right.    The sad truth is that we already know we should, but we have become fearful to the point that we allow it to continue when we should raise our voice against it, not tolerate it to continue. 

Today, our application is to examine what we may have become tolerant of; if there is any wrong that we have allowed, we should take a stand, and we should not tolerate it any longer.   This does not mean that we shouldn't be part of the solution to help those doing wrong to go the right direction, it just means that we draw boundaries, and we don't allow wrong to continue, we don't allow ourselves to be idle witnesses. 

Lord, I pray that we would take a stand for what is right, that you will help us be part of the solution, not contribute to the problems, not be tolerant of evil, but be proponents for good, to honor you in all we do, and see, and allow, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Exodus 36:2

2 Then Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whose heart the Lord had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work

"What Has God Put In Your Heart?"

When I read Exodus, I am reminded that every good and perfect gift comes from the Lord (James 1:17), but what blows me away are these words, "everyone whose heart was stirred to come do the work."   Incredible revelation, this means that God gives us amazing gifts, but we must choose, be stirred up, and be willing to use them.    Are there things in your life that you are holding back, things that God has gifted you with, that you are not using for His glory?

The application here is to examine your life, and see if there are giftings that you have been given by God that you are not using to bring Him glory, to do His work, and reevaluate your position.   It is time to stir yourself up, stir your heart to serve God, to do His good work, to use the gifts He has given you to bring Him Glory, to extend His Kingdom.

Lord, I pray that we would not squander the gifts you have given us, that we would be fully stirred to use them for your glory, to expand and enlarge them, to fully put them to the work of the Lord, that others may see them and glorify your name, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

Exodus 33:14-15

14 The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
15 Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.

"With Him"

What a great portion of scripture, Exodus 33, so many treasures.   But this being one of my favorites, see Moses asking the Lord: "Who will go with us?"  The Lord responds with "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."  My presence, let that sink in for a moment, the Lord wants to be with us, to go with us, to be our God, to be our Lord, to be our Strength, to be our Peace, our Assurance...  Notice that Moses quickly shifts with the most important response: "If your presence does not go with us."   Then we do not want to go, don't send us. It should be our desire to never do anything without the Lord, you can see why the Lord was upset with His people in Samuel when they asked for a King, because He was their King... let that simmer.

To desire the presence of the Lord, to always include the Lord in your plans.   In doing so you bring everything the Lord brings into them: strength, power, peace, provision, purpose, wisdom, and direction, and nothing can compare to that.   May you and I decide to never go without the Lord, to plan without Him, to do without Him, may we always decide that His presence is the most important factor in anything we do.

Lord, how we long for your presence, in our day-to-day, in our plans, in our present, in our future, don't send us without you, don't let us make decisions without you, let our hearts be fully given over to you, let your grace, mercy and peace be over us as we sit in your presence, in Jesus' name, Amen!