- araratchurch
- Apr 16
- 4 min read
“Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel."”
Exodus 19:5-6 ESV
When I was a little girl I remember that there was a cabinet in which my mother stored many folded aprons. Now, most people are familiar with the type of aprons worn on the cooking shows; but these were “old school” aprons that tied at the waist and were made out of very pretty fabric. I guess you could say they were “Donna Reed” type aprons.
For a period of time, one of my favorite things to do was to tie the waistband of the apron around my head, allowing the rest of the apron to flow down my back, and pretend that I was a nun. Now, my family was never Catholic; but I had seen nuns and I had heard that they were “married to the Lord.” That sounded very special to me and I wanted that.
So, the process of pretending to be a nun was always the same: donning the nun-apron and then staring in the mirror to see if I was “glowing.” From time to time I would conscript a cousin to share the experience with me and we would both stare in the mirror to see if we were glowing. Believe it or not, I think we did “glow” a time or two. At least we thought so.
I think that most people want to be special to somebody; for me, that somebody was the Lord.
I realize now that the desire to be special to the Lord, probably led me to want to attain “perfection,” thinking that was what I needed to be, to be special to Him. I sensed His holiness and so longed to be like Him.
Then, the realities of life made me see that “perfection,” was not in my immediate future.
Sadly, that realization led to fear in my heart and mind, thinking that somehow or another, my imperfect state would separate me from the Lord. How could I be special to Him without being like Him?
Thinking about it, I have always trusted Jesus as my Lord. I’ve always loved Him. To be honest, I’ve never particularly struggled to want do the right thing. Even so, I was far from perfect and was yet to fully access the saving work of the One I so dearly loved.
My perspective began to change when the Lord clearly said to me, “Janet, you have to know you need a Savior, to have one.”
You see, what I now share with you about wanting to be perfect to please Him, was not something I realized, until He said those words to me.
Oh, what a thrill it is to know that our Lord chose us while we were yet in sin and gave Himself that we might be made perfect IN Him. However, that can’t happen as long as we are trying to “earn” God’s approval.
But wait, there’s more!
The Lord wants to make all those who belong to Him, priests, yes, ROYAL PRIESTS!
“you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”
I Peter 2:5 & 9 NKJV
The Lord has chosen us to be His own holy people, His own special people!
Today we find Moses hearing from the mouth of God that He wants to make His people “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”
When Moses took this to the people, they accepted the challenge that came with the offer:
“So Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them all these words which the Lord commanded him. Then all the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” So Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord.”
Exodus 19:7-8 NKJV
However, the people would soon discover that keeping their part of the Covenant would be harder than they thought.
What about us? We are truly special to the Lord. But we can walk in His approval only by accepting Jesus’ sacrifice as the remedy for our sin, and the means—by His Spirit—to walk in newness of life.
Indeed, Christ did for us what we could not do for ourselves. All He asks in return is that we obey His voice, while trusting His Spirit to help us walk in holiness.
Look at this part of Jesus’ description of Himself to John the Revelator:
“and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Revelation 1:5-6 NKJV
Hallelujah
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
The Lord made a way for us to be His special kingly priests.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- Apr 15
- 4 min read
“So Moses heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said. And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people: rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. So they judged the people at all times; the hard cases they brought to Moses, but they judged every small case themselves.”
Exodus 18:24-26 NKJV
Once, in a high school talent show, I sang a duet with my friend, Jewel Jones. The song was, “No Man is an Island.” This song was made famous in the 70’s by Joan Baez, when it served as kind of an antiwar statement (it seems that the sentiment expressed in the title, goes back to John Donne, writing back in the 17th century).
Here are the lyrics to “No Man is an Island:”
No man is an island,
No man stands alone,
Each man's joy is joy to me,
Each man's grief is my own.
We need one another,
So I will defend,
Each man as my brother,
Each man as my friend.
I saw the people gather,
I heard the music start,
The song that they were singing,
Is ringing in my heart.
No man is an island,
Way out in the blue,
We all look to the one above,
For our strength to renew.
When I help my brother,
Then I know that I,
Plant the seed of friendship,
That will never die.
You see, Jewel Jones was black. I am not. Our school was predominantly black in the last three years of the five I attended. I don’t really remember there being much racial tension in my high school; but that may be a function of the fact that my circle of friends was mixed. Whatever the case, Jewel and I wanted to do this song as an inspiration toward understanding our need for one another, even if the “other” is different in some way (here, black people and white people).
Now, whereas our duet didn’t earn us a Nobel Peace Prize, it was our gesture, and we enjoyed doing it.
Today we aren’t discussing race relations per se; but we are discussing our need for one another.
Most of us have heard the term “synergy.” Simply put, this means that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.” Or, the combination of two (or more) things has an effect greater than the effect coming from the total of the individual effects acting separately. It’s not the product of addition, rather, the product of multiplication.
Are you glazed over yet? Before you are, let’s look at what the Bible has to say about this phenomenon:
“Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 NKJV
Yes, we do need each other; and the effects of trying to go it alone, can be debilitating.
Today we find Moses—having tried to go it alone—becoming very worn out. His father-in-law, Jethro, has come for a visit and has seen firsthand the strain under which Moses is operating.
It is within this context that Jethro offers Moses some very good advice: He needs to train leaders and let them help bear the load of dealing with the multitude’s issues.
Moses needed help, as do we ALL. Bear in mind, if any person had the wherewithal to go it alone, it would have been our Lord. But note, He chose twelve disciples, who, along with many others, followed Him wherever He went, helping in whatever way was needed.
Additionally, when Jesus sent out the disciples, He did not send them out alone.
“And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.”
Mark 6:7 NKJV
“After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.”
Luke 10:1 NKJV
Indeed, think about what Jesus said, concerning the power of agreement:
““Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.””
Matthew 18:19-20 NKJV
I know that it’s tempting sometimes to want to operate as an island. There’s certainly less risk of hurt that way; and you definitely don’t have to worry about rejection. But, even if you find it tempting to be a “Lone Ranger,” remember, even the Lone Ranger had Tonto.
For today let us discover what Moses discovered:
The Lord didn’t mean for us to go it alone.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!
- araratchurch
- Apr 14
- 3 min read
40 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-Lord-Is-My-Banner; for he said, “Because the Lord has sworn: the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.””
Exodus 17:14-16 NKJV
I remember my family gathering around the TV set on a hot July day in 1969 to watch the first ever landing of a man on the moon. We watched in amazement as grainy images showed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepping out onto the lunar surface and plant a United States flag. It was very exciting to us, hardly imaginable, in that day and time, that such a feat had been accomplished. (The flag, of course, was on a frame to hold it out, as there is no wind on the moon.) It was a proud day for the United States of America. Our flag was on the moon!
Flags and banners have been used since ancient times to designate the authority and property of countries. Indeed, ancient armies fought under banners and flags. These flags would clearly indicate who was fighting who and under what authority you were fighting.
Most people of my generation are familiar with the iconic photo of the six United States Marines raising the flag on Mount Suribachi in the World War II battle of Iwo Jima. Indeed, the victory is yours when the flag of your nation is raised!
Personally, I can’t think of flags or banners without one of my favorite scriptures coming to mind:
“He brought me to the banqueting house, And his banner over me was love. His left hand is under my head, And his right hand embraces me.”
Song of Solomon 2:4, 6 NKJV
Here we see the Shulamite expressing the experience of being under her Beloved’s banner of love. That banner was basically an expression of the fact that this one was not to be messed with; this one belongs to the Beloved.
Whereas we see a very beautiful human love story expressed in the Song of Solomon, it is made even more wonderful by knowing that it illustrates our Lord’s protecting love over His own.
Another of my favorite scriptures says this:
“Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His … .””
II Timothy 2:19a NKJV
Yes, the Lord knows those who are His; and He wants the world to know it as well!
The Psalmist says this about the banner of the Lord over those who are His:
“You have set up a banner for those who fear You [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder—a banner to shield them from attack], A banner that may be displayed because of the truth. Selah.”
Psalms 60:4 AMP
Today we find Moses building a memorial altar to the Lord for the victory of the Israelites over the Amalekites. Moses names the altar, Jehovah-Nissi, “THE LORD IS MY BANNER.”
Additionally, we see in our opening scripture that Moses named the altar this, not only because of the victory with Amalekites, but also because of the fact that the Lord would continue to maintain that victory. In other words, the Amalekites would never be able to circle back to do harm to the Israelites again.
See, that’s the way the Lord works. When you put your trust in Him, He not only deals with your enemies, but He makes sure that there is no opportunity for them to regroup .
Now, when you are representing a country in any way, including fighting battles for a country, if you are part of a strong country like the United States of America, that flag means something to your enemies. But even with that, the flag does not assure victory.
The good news for us: When we live and move and have our being under the banner, the flag of our Lord, whether we will be victorious or not is never in question. Those under His banner ALWAYS win.
Make no mistake, as was the case with so many heroes of the Bible, even though it may seem that the enemy’s plans have succeeded, as the Apostle Paul so clearly puts it:
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Romans 8:31 NKJV
Today let us discover what Moses discovered:
It’s good to be under His banner.
Peace to you.
Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!