Saturday, December 31, 2016

First Reason of Superiority: It is Heavenly (Heb. 9:11)


                                                     SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-18-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                  Focus:  1st reason of superiority:  It is heavenly

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 9:11

 

            Message of the verse:  “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation;” (NASB) “So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come.  He has entered that great, perfect sanctuary in heaven, not made by human hands and not part of this created world.”  (NLT)

This starts a new section in this chapter that speaks to five reasons why the New Covenant is Superior. The first reason and the one from today’s study is that the New Covenant is superior because it is a heavenly covenant.  The writer before has made this point that is in this verse about Christ being High Priest and also Him serving in a tabernacle that is not made with hands.  I believe that he wants to drive this point across to his readers to show them that what they have now is better than what some of them are thinking of going back to, and that is the bondage of the Old Covenant.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I think of the original readers of this letter wanting to go back into the things of the OT laws I can’t help but think of a couple of things that apply to my life today.  The saying “you don’t know what you got until it is gone” is a saying that could apply to this letter and also it applies to my life at times.  It means that one is not satisfied with his present circumstances and wants a change only to find out that what he had before was better.  These people the writer wrote this to were a part of the old covenant and once they became believers they were a part of the new covenant, which is better than the old covenant, but not wanted to go back to the old covenant not knowing or at least not realizing that the new covenant is far superior.  The second thing I can learn from this section is that it is hard to change, and one of the reasons it is hard to change is that when you become used to something even if what you are moving on to is better you can still want to return to the old because it is more comfortable.  I think of the children of Israel who came out of the bandage of Egypt wanting to return to that bondage, which when you think about it does not make much sense.  The point of all of this is I must trust the Lord to direct me into the change that He wants me to go through and not cling to the old when He is moving me to something new.

 

The Word of God has given me some food for thought to think about as I studied it today.

 

My Steps of Faith today:  To trust the Lord with our financial situation as there is some things that are going on now that could bring about some change, but I must trust Him to work out His perfect plan, and I must continue to pray about this situation so He can work in my heart to prepare me for any change that could take place or to stay the same, which would be an answer that would be fine too if that is what He wants. 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9, 10

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not retrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.

10.  I have not hidden Thy righteousness within my heart; I have spoken of Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation; I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth from the great congregation.   

 

Friday, December 30, 2016

5th Reason OT worship was external, not internal (Heb. 9:9-10)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-17-03

 

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                  Focus:  5th reason OT worship was external, not internal

 

Bible Reading & Meditation             Reference:  Hebrews 9:9-10

 

            Message of the verse:  “9 which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, 10 since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation.”  (NASB)  “This is an illustration pointing to the present time.  For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them.  For that old system deals only with food and drink and ritual washing—external regulations that are in effect only until their limitations can be corrected.”  (NTL)             

You can look at these verses and see that the OT form of worship did not do anything for the internal parts of man, but it only was for the external parts of man.  They were ceremonies, which could not take sin away, but only cover up the sin until the time when Christ would come and give His life as a sacrifice for sin.  The word for symbolic is a word in which we get our word for parable and thus this OT process could be seen as a parable until the time of Christ when He would make things real.  I want to give the definition of the word reformation as Strongs Concordance gives it:  “1) in a physical sense, a making straight, restoring to its natural and normal condition something which in some way protrudes or has got out of line, as broken or misshapen limbs 2) of acts and institutions, reformation.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I can see that there is much more to this verse than what it seem like on the service, and things that I do not understand as well as maybe I should, however I am so very thankful that I am living in the time after Jesus Christ has made His sacrifice for sin.  I am thankful also for the plans that God has made knowing that He has all things in His hands and under His control and that is so very important to me as we go through this time of uncertain economic times.

 

The Word of God was refreshing to me today.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To continue to trust the Lord as far as things of finances and also to trust Him to continue to bless the ministry that Gary and Andy have.  To continue to trust the Lord to give me more of the qualities of compassion and courage that the Lord has as opposed to fear and selfishness that I as a human have, so that I will become more like Jesus Christ.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9, 10

 

9.     I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.

10.  I have not hidden Thy righteousness within my heart; I have spoken of Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation; I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth from the great congregation.

 

 

 

           

 

Thursday, December 29, 2016

4th Answer to Question: "It Was Temporary" (Heb. 9:8)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-16-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                              Focus:  4th answer to question: It was temporary

 

My Worship Time                                                      Reference:  Hebrews 9:8

 

             Meaning of the verse:  “The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed, while the outer tabernacle is still standing.”  (NASB)  “By these regulations the Holy Spirit revealed that the Most Holy Place was not open to the people as long as the first room and the entire system it represents were still in use.”   (NLT)  “The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:” (KJV)

            When Jesus Christ died upon the cross the veil that separated the Holy of Holies with the Holy Place was torn into from the top to the bottom.  Matthew 27:50-51 tell of this:  “And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.  And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook; and the rocks were split.”  Now this shows that God did this, and also that the tabernacle was not needed anymore.  In John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me.”  In the use of the Tabernacle there was no direct access by the people to God, only the high priest could go into the Holy of Holies, and only once a year.  When Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of mankind He then made it possible to have direct access with God through Him, as He stated that He was the way.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life:  I do not think that I ever looked at John 14:6 in the way that I see it this morning.  I do not think that I ever understood what Jesus was saying when He said that He was the way until now.  I think of going someplace on my vacation and I get the map out to find the way to get there so I do not get lost or go to the wrong place on my journey and this reminds me of following God through the Way that He has provided to get to Him, and that is Jesus Christ.  He is my way to have access to God so that I do not need the OT Tabernacle to find my way to God, which was only a picture or a shadow of Jesus Christ the real Way to God.  Jesus Christ is not only the way to God, but He is also the truth, and He is the life, so when someone says to me to get a life, I can say that Jesus Christ is my life.

 

The Word of God was very inspiring to me as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to trust the Lord for His outcome concerning the problems with Haven Equity and also to trust the Lord to give me His victory over EBS, and to trust the Lord to give me more compassion and courage, and less selfishness and fear.

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Update on Computer Problems

Looks like one of our computers is working okay now so I should be able to keep up with my postings.

Computer Problems

I am experiencing computer problems and will not be able to post my Spiritual Diaries until one of our computers are fixed as both are broken with what we believe is a virus.  I am writing this on our Ipad but I cannot do my Spiritual Diaries on it.  It should be fixed by sometime on Friday, Lord willing.

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

The Tabernacle was Inacessible to the People (3rd Reason from Heb. 9:6-7)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-15-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                  Focus:  The Tabernacle was inaccessible to the people


 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Hebrews 9:6-7

 

Message of the verse:  “Now when these things have been thus prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle, performing the divine worship, but into the second only the high priest enters, once a year, not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance.”  (NASB)  “When these things were all in place, the priests went in and out of the first room regularly as they performed their religious duties.  But only the high priest goes into the Most Holy Place, and only once a year, and always with blood, which he offers to God to cover his own sins and the sins the people have committed in ignorance.”  (NLT) 

Some of the things that are in verse seven I discussed in the spiritual diary from 4-13-03.  In verse six the writer speaks of the duties of the priest, (not high priest) concerning the first, or holy place.  He offered sacrifices each day in the holy place.  The main point that the writer makes is that the access of the tabernacle was only for the priests and the people from the tribe of Levi, and not the ordinary people from Israel.  We today do not have to go through this because of Christ’s death and resurrection and the fact that He is our High Priest serving in heaven.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I look at these verses I cannot help but think of what Jesus said to the woman at the well in John chapter four, where He said to her that there will come a day when those of God will worship God from anywhere in Spirit and in truth.  I am so thankful that I do not have to go through the things that pertain to the Law, as to worshiping the Lord.  There are too many times when I complain about things and how God moves in my life, but to have the freedom of worshiping the Lord in Spirit and in truth is so wonderful and fulfilling to me.

 

The Word of God was very refreshing to me as I read and studied it this morning.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To trust the Lord with our investments with Haven Equity and not to lean on my own understanding concerning them.  To plan and seek the Lord’s will for our lives if Haven Equity will not be available to us to invest in at a latter time.  To trust the Lord to give me more compassion and less fear, more encouragement, and less selfishness.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9,10

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD Thou knowest.

10.  I have not hidden Thy righteousness in my heart; I have spoken of Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation; I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth from the great congregation.

 

 

 

 

Monday, December 26, 2016

The Furniture of the Holy of Holies (Heb. 9:4-5)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-13-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                              Focus:  The furniture of the Holy of Holies

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 9:4-5

 

            Message of the verse:  “Having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.  And above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat; but of these things we cannot now speak in detail.”  (NASB)  “In that room were a gold incense altar and a wooden chest called the Ark of the Covenant, which was covered with gold on all sides.  Inside the Ark were a gold jar containing some manna, Aaron’s staff that sprouted leaves, and the stone tablets of the covenant with the Ten Commandments written on them.  The glorious cherubim were above the Ark.  Their wings were stretched out over the Ark’s cover, the place of atonement.  But we cannot explain all of these things now.  (NLT)

            The High Priest would take some of the coals from the altar of incense in the Holy Place and bring them into the altar of incense in the Holy of Holies along with blood to be put upon the Ark of the Covenant on the Day of Atonement to cover the sins of Israel for the year.  The OT word for the Ark of the Covenant or mercy seat is propitiation.  The word means that God is satisfied with the sacrifice that was given, and this word refers to Christ’s sacrifice in which God was satisfied with His sacrifice for the sins of the world.  The picture of this in the OT Day of Atonement is that when the blood was placed upon the mercy seat, blood from an innocent sacrifice, God would look down and be angered at the sin but appeased by the blood of the innocent sacrifice.  This only covered the sin, while Christ’s death actually took away the sin. 

            Inside the Ark was a jar of manna, which tells of God’s supplying the needs of the children of Israel, as well as Christ who is the bread of life supplying the needs of His people.  Aaron’s rod that budded leaves, which speaks of doing things God’s way as apposed to doing things man’s way.  The Ark also contained the tablets of stone which had the Ten Commandments written on it.  These laws were written on tablets of stone, while with the New Covenant the laws of God are written upon the believer’s heart.  As stated in yesterday’s SD,  the incense spoke of the prayers of the saints.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am never going to know everything that is taught in the Scriptures, for I only need to know the things that God wants to reveal to me.  I want to do things God’s way and not mans.

 

The Word of God was challenging to my heart as I read it today.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to trust the Lord to take away my fears that will allow Sandy and I to go to Church this morning.   

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9-10

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.

10.  I have not hidden my righteousness in my heart; I have spoken of Thy faithfulness and Thy salvation; I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness and Thy truth from the great congregation.

 

Sunday, December 25, 2016

Merry Christmas


MERRY CHRISTMAS

            I promised yesterday to write a Christmas greeting on my blog on Christmas Day.

            What I have today about Christmas has probably already been said before, well at least some of it, but if that is the case then I will say it again.  Christmas, to me, holds mixed feelings in my mind.  I am not one who likes going all out on buying presents just because it is Christmas, but want to remember what Christmas is suppose to be all about.  Now we know that Jesus Christ was probably not born on the 25th of December, but we do know that He was born, and probably born in the winter months, and I do not know exactly know how the 25th of December came about as the day we celebrate Christmas.  I suppose a little digging on the internet would answer that question, but I probably will not do that.  Like I say the important thing is that Jesus Christ was born into the world and the first prophecy of Him coming into the world goes all the way back to the book of Genesis, and right after Adam and Eve sinned we read “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel."”  God is speaking of Satan in this passage and also He is saying that there will be war between Satan and the offspring of the woman.  “I’m declaring war between you and the Woman, between your offspring and hers. He’ll wound your head, you’ll wound his heel." (Message)” We see in the NASB that God speaks of the “seed of the woman,” and this is the only time we see this in the Word of God.  The seed comes through the man, but there were three differences in the Scriptures when this did not happen that way.  First God created Adam out of the earth, and then God created woman out of Adam’s rib, and then we read that Mary became pregnant through the Holy Spirit and this is where we get the seed of the woman as involved in the birth of Jesus Christ.

            Now as we read through the Old Testament we see how the Lord narrows down the line in which the Messiah would come from.  In the book of Matthew we see the bloodline of Jesus through Joseph, and in Luke’s gospel we see the bloodline of Jesus through Mary.  Both Joseph and Mary were descendants of David, but Mary came through the line of Nathan while Joseph came through Solomon.  Luke’s line of Jesus goes all the way back to God, while Matthew’s line only goes back to Abraham.  One of the kings of Judah, Jeconiah had a curse against him and so his line could not be in the line of the Messiah to be King.  As I said Mary came through the line of Nathan, Luke 3:31 “the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,.”   Joseph also came from the line of David and even though Jeconiah was in his line this did not permit Jesus from being the Messiah for He was not born of Joseph but of the Holy Spirit and Mary.

            Now as far as the place where Jesus was born and who was there when He was born, it is not like the nativity scenes we see in people’s yards or in their houses.  I read a historic novel a few years ago and the author incorporated into the birth of Jesus a place called Midgal Eder and this place is mentioned in the book of Micah 4:8 where we read “8 "As for you, tower of the flock, Hill of the daughter of Zion, To you it will come-Even the former dominion will come, The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”  The words “tower of the flock” in the Hebrew is Midgal Eder, and this place was near Bethlehem on the way to Jerusalem and is where the lambs were born who would go to the temple and used for sacrifices.  There was a cave there and many believe that Jesus was born in that cave where these sacrificial lambs were born.  When you think about this it all makes perfect sense.  Now as far as who was there we know that Joseph, Mary, Jesus and later on the shepherds came, but as far as the wise men they did not come and see Jesus until he was near two years old.  They probably came from what was once Babylon and they probably got their information from Daniel who prophesied in his book of the time when the Messiah would die and so they would know when it would be near time for Him to be born and looked for Him following a star.  They first came to see Herod and asked him where the Messiah would be born and then went to find Him, giving gifts to Him and were then told in a dream not to go back to tell Herod.  Herod then had all male boys from the age of two years old and younger killed as was prophesied by Jeremiah. 

            Okay so the story of Jesus’ birth is probably much different than what we use to celebrate it in our world today as I tried to bring out, but the point of all of this is that God was in control of all the things which would bring His Son into the world to fulfill what His plans were for Him to accomplish, and He accomplished all of them, and we can praise the Lord on this Christmas Day that He did accomplish all of them.  Jesus told His mother while in the temple that He came to do His Father’s will and at the end of His life, while hanging on a cross He said “It is finished.”  What was finished was His becoming sin for us so that we could receive His righteousness and have it credited to our account so that when the Father looks at those who have received this free gift of salvation He will see Jesus Christ and not our sinfulness.

            The all time very best gift a person can receive on Christmas Day or any other day is to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, to confess that they are a sinner in need of a Savior and find out that Jesus paid it all, and receive Him as Savior and Lord.

            Merry Christmas to all!

 

Saturday, December 24, 2016

PT-1 "Type of Something Better" (Heb. 9:2-3)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-12-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  PT-1Type of Something Better

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 9:2-3

 

            Message of the verse:  “For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this is called the holy place.  And behind the second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies.”  (NASB)  “There were two rooms in this tent.  In the first room were a lampstand, a table, and loaves of holy bread on the table.  This was called the Holy Place.  Then there was a curtain, and behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place.”  (NLT)

            In this first section of Hebrews nine, which goes from verse one to ten, the theme is the inferior of the Old Testament tabernacle.   These two verses are in a subsection showing that one of the reasons it is inferior is because it was a type of something greater.

            The people of Israel built the tabernacle just after coming out of Egypt, and God gave the directions to Moses.  When He gave these directions He told Moses that this was a type of the one in heaven.  Now the OT tabernacle was divided up into two sections and in the first section, or the Holy Place there were the table of showbread, the candlestick (or lampstand), and the incense altar.  There was then a curtain, which divided this from the Holy of Holies, which I will talk about when the verses describe it.  Jesus Christ is seen in these articles of furniture for He said that He was the light of the world, and also that He was the bread of life.  The altar of incense is a picture of prayers going up to heaven before God which is described in Psalm 141:2 “May my prayer be counted as incense before Thee; The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.”  It is also described in different places in the book of Revelations:  “Revelation 5:8 And when He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Revelation 8:3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.  Revelation 8:4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel's hand.”  This also pictures the Lord Jesus Christ interceding for us in heaven.  This is written about in Romans 8:33-34.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Paul writes in one of his letters that the things that happened in the OT were written for us as believers to see, and thus we can grow by them.  I think that he may have been talking about some of the mistakes that were made by the children of Israel, but I do believe that I can learn from the verses that the author of Hebrews is referring to when writing about the OT tabernacle.  I can see the patience of God as He planned for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ by having different types of Christ in the OT.  These pictures of Him in the OT are wonderful for me to look at and to better understand, but I must caution myself that I will probably not know all of the significance of them, so I need to continue to apply myself to learning.

 

The Word of God has been a learning experience for me today as I studied it.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  Continue to ask the Lord work the qualities of courage and compassion into the fabric of my being, and to continue to make me less selfish and less fearful over the things of life.

 

Memory verse for the week:  Psalm 40:9

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.

 

 

 

   

  

 

Friday, December 23, 2016

The Old Sanctuary is Earthly (Heb. 9:1)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-11-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                                                      Focus:  The Old Sanctuary is Earthly

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Hebrews 9:1

 

            Message of the verse:  “Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary.”  (NASB)  “Now the first agreement had its rules of worship, and a holy order.”  (BBE) 

            In this section of Hebrews, chapter 9:1-10, there are described five answers to the question, “What was it that made the OT Tabernacle inferior to?”  The first answer is found in verse one and that is that it was earthly.  Human hands made the tabernacle even though God did give special abilities to those who made it.  It would grow old, it would be in need of repair, and it could be only in one place at a time, it was only for the nation of Israel and not the entire world.  These are some of the reasons why the earthly tabernacle was inferior to the one in heaven where Jesus Christ as our eternal High Priest ministers.  The old one was not made to last forever; it was a type of the One that would come.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  To live in light that there is a heavenly tabernacle takes faith to believe it because I cannot see it.  I think that in some ways that it would be easier to live in the time when I could see the OT Tabernacle, knowing that it was there would not take the faith to know that the one in heaven is there.  The Bible teaches that I, as a believer, am a citizen of two worlds, one here on earth where I can see things and one in heaven where it involves faith, as the Scriptures say, “The just shall live by faith.”  This is the only way for a believer to live, by faith.

 

The Word of God brought challenges to my heart today as I read and studied it.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to live by faith today, live without fear, having courage, and live without being selfish, by having compassion.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD Thou knowest.

 

 

 

Thursday, December 22, 2016

The Old Covenant Disappears (Heb. 8:13)


SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 04-10-03

 

                                                                                                           

My Worship Time                                          Focus:  The Old Covenant Disappears

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  Hebrews 8:13

 

  “When He said, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear.”  (NASB)  “When God speaks of a new covenant, it means he made the first one obsolete.  It is now out of date and ready to be put aside.”  (NLT)

            As stated before, the New Covenant is of grace, and it comes through or by the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross.  The Old Covenant was given to the people of Israel on Mt. Sinai and it was all of the laws given in the OT, which is covered in the books of Exodus through Deuteronomy.  These laws were given to Israel to show them how to live and how to live before God.  They covered things from what to eat, the laws concerning their governing of the people, and in them also were laws about sacrifices and of course the Ten Commandments.  These Law were a type of Jesus Christ and when He came to earth He fulfilled all of the Law so that when God looks at believers He can say that because they are in Christ they too have kept the Law perfectly.  These Laws also showed the holiness of God so that when man looked at the Law he could see that it would be impossible for him to keep the Law and then turn to God for mercy and grace in order to have a right relationship with God.  It must be said that people in the OT that were believers in God were saved in the same way as those who are believers in the New Covenant age.  Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness. 

            The writer says that the Old Covenant has become obsolete, and it is not in use any more because Titus and his Roman legions tore down the Temple in AD 70.  There have been no more sacrifices given since then because there is no more Temple to offer them in.  When Jesus was crucified the curtain between the holy place and the Holy of Holies was torn down from the top to the bottom which means that God did this to say that the Old Covenant was obsolete.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I know that I have struggled with the use of the Law and what it means to me now that I have become a believer, but it seems to me that God has been giving me more insight on this subject as I have been studying the book of Hebrews and also from the teachings that Pastor Jacobs has been giving from the book of Romans.  I know now that Jesus Christ has kept the Law for me and that now God has put His Laws in my heart so that I can live my life in obedience to the Lord.  The Law cannot save me and I can only keep it through the power of the Holy Spirit living in me.  I know that I have more to learn about this and by God’s grace He will teach me more about this. 

 

The Word of God was a challenge to my heart today.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  To trust the Lord to get me to bed on time tonight and to give me courage and compassion in my heart today.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Psalm 40:9

 

9.      I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.