Category: Bible studies

Leviticus 23: The Feasts of The Lord

How do the feasts that God commanded Israel to observe relate to me today? Well, the most prominent way has to do with the timeless truths and principles that each feast reveal concerning the nature of our Heavenly Father, and what He cares about. The study available for use is all about how to apply these feasts in principles of life.

The  Principle Approach: “The Feasts of the Lord” What the Feasts of Israel Teach Each Generation About Walking with God (Leviticus 23)

Nearly everyone enjoys the holiday season. It seems that we are creatures geared to occasional breaks from our labor and always look forward to holiday festivities. We make holidays of our own birthday, and of the birthdays of other “famous” men. We even make those birthdays fit into Mondays to have the long holiday weekend accepting no sacredness of accuracy. We make a holiday of the passing of each year into the next, in a calendar system of our own creation. It seems we can always find a reason to cease our labor, and party! Holidays not only give us a chance to have fun, they also express something unique about who we are, about what we treasure. Take for example the Independence Day celebrations of each nation. Depending on which you celebrate, you align yourself uniquely with the history of that country. In addition, there are the “religious” holidays that may express something about your theological affiliation.

 The Hebrew Scriptures specifically instruct the observance of seven holidays and one special weekly observance called the Sabbath. These eight special observances, unlike other holidays, are directly mandated by God. They are, in fact, a part of God’s law, or Torah for observance by Israel. In order to really understand why God instructed that each special observance be held, we must understand the reason God gave the Torah to the children of Israel . The ancient Israelites had lost much of their spiritual heritage in bondage, and this would be restored in the Sinai wilderness. Hot off the desert sands from their trek out of Egypt, the ancient Hebrews had seen God move miraculously and decisively to set them free from their bondage. They had seen God defeat their foe. They watched in wonder as the mighty arm of the Lord worked in power through their once exiled shepherd prince. Moses, now late in years and yet mighty in faith, had begun a vital and thriving relationship with the God of his fathers some years before, after a “burning bush encounter” in the Midianite desert. Now Moses had thousands of refugee Israelites following him and trusting that his relationship with the God of Abraham would yield their freedom and safety.

 To Sinai they went, this rabble of ex-slaves following their shepherd prince. They arrived three months into their rugged journey (Ex. 19:1), to pitch their tent beneath the shadow of the mountain that would change their future forever. They arrived uncertain of their fortune, uncertain of their God’s purpose. Only a handful had any real understanding of the God of Abraham. Even their leader had to ask the name of the God of Abraham on his previous encounter at the burning bush. Much spiritual heritage had been lost in their prolonged bondage. At Sinai they heard the voice of their God. He made clear the standards, values and ethics of this unique nation. He revealed His unique relationship with them. He would share his loving heart and righteous Spirit. The festivals outline the key life principles each person would need to understand to walk in a pleasing way with the God of Abraham. Within this law, the God of the Hebrews gave careful instruction for the children of Israel to observe eight specific holidays. They were not intended to merely be a break from labor, they were to reveal something special and important about the God who gave them. They demonstrated God’s desire for His people. They outlined key life principles that paved the way for all the necessary lessons in living in obedience to Him. When we carefully examine the festivals and observances in Levitical law (Lev. 23), we find that God has outlined the key principles that reveal his plan for His people. This plan includes a relationship with the children of Israel, and a plan for their spiritual redemption. God’s instructions in the Torah were not given to take fulfillment and satisfaction from man. On the contrary, God instructs that each observance be carefully passed from generation to generation (Dt. 6:1-25). In every mundane and ordinary moment of life children were to be exposed to the Words of their God in order that His people may receive the best in life (Dt. 6:24) and live the most rewarding of lives!

Exposing the Principle In The Sabbath

Before introducing the observance of any of the annual cycle of feasts, God revealed once again that His call for the weekly Sabbath is as important as the other “holy days” of the calendar. God had specifically marked one day in seven for man to stop his work, and spend that day in a unique “rest celebration” of his Creator. God was not short on His instruction for the Sabbath (which means rest). Instructions can be found in Exodus 35, Lev. 25, Num. 15 and Dt. 15:32-35. God outlined that both man and work animals would rest from their labor, and that this observance would be a memorial (Hebrew: Zakar, see Exodus 20:8) that would be kept distinct or “holy” from other days. A ten year old boy went into his rabbi one day and asked the question, “Rabbi, if God got tired after all His creation work, why did He make a holy day to celebrate it?” It was not an easy question, but the Hebrew Scriptures are clear about the answer. In short, God did not reveal the Sabbath to celebrate His rest, but to teach us something important about our needs! The Sabbath is specified to be three things: a time of rest from labor (Gen. 2:2,3; Ex. 16:23); a time of obedience (Ex. 20:8-11); and a time of identification (Ex. 31:12-17).

1. A time of rest: God taught His people the need to complete a cycle, to take “time out”. He provided in this time not only a cessation of work, but also a special time to meet with Him, to learn of Him and develop a heart to follow Him (Num. 28:9-10; Ps. 92; Isa. 1:13-15). It was a time to deal with sin, start fresh in the walk of obedience to God, to rethink the way things were done in the preceding week.

2. A time of obedience: God did not simply want compliance to a list of rules. He has always desired a personal relationship with men. The commandments (Ex. 20) were given that men might have a way of expressing their personal faith in fruits of life. They were expressions of behavior, rather than just hollow words of belief.

3. A time of identification: The Sabbath was to signify the covenant God had made with the children of Israel (Ex. 31:12-17). The weekly celebration was to be a memory device so that the children of Israel would not forget the God of their fathers as they had in the bondage of Egypt. God was concerned that the success of the Israelites would take a more significant toll on their memory than slavery had before (Dt. 6). The Sabbath showed obedience, covenant relationship and the need for completing cycles in life. The Sabbatical principle was further underscored by the overall cycle of “sevens” God built within the calendar of the people. Not only was one day in seven dedicated to worship and rest, the seventh month was dedicated to the highest holy days of the year. The seventh year was to be a sabbatical year for the land (Lev. 25:2-7). And the seventh sabbatical year (every 49 years) was to be concluded with a “Year of Jubilee” (Lev. 25:8-25). God made his point clear: time apart from work was necessary. Time to learn and worship was essential. A time of reflection and anticipation was healthy. The Sabbath was truly made for the man! The need for rest precedes the instructions for all of the other holy festivals of Leviticus. Is it significant that this is the weekly observance in which the greatest time will be invested by those who observe it. The order of its appearance on this list significant. The principles of the Sabbath set the tone for the seven annual festival observances. The real message of the Sabbath is that we can rest in the Word of God, and His Word can absolutely be trusted! All of the principles found in the feasts will rest on one important premise: You can trust the Word of the God of Abraham, and can rest in His holy revelation of Himself given in the Torah. That is the lesson of the Sabbath. It is expressed by the ancient Psalmist: “The Law (Torah) of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul: the repeated warnings (Eduth) of the LORD are sure, making wise the simple.” (Ps. 19:7) The Sabbath is listed first and foremost, that the children of Israel might clearly know that the God of Abraham can be believed and held accountable to His holy Word. Without this principle, no other principle will hold together.

Principles from the Cycle of Annual Feasts

The seven feasts are each given specific reference in Leviticus 23, and are listed in the order they will be celebrated in the calendar year. The spring festivals will include the first four mentioned, the last three are autumn festivals:

1. Passover (or Pesach, the first day of Unleavened Bread) Lev. 23: 4,5.
2. Unleavened Bread (the week of) 23:6-8.
3. First Fruits (the second day of unleavened bread) 23:9-14.
4. Weeks (also called Shavuot or Pentecost) 23:15-22.
5. Trumpets (also called Yom T’ruach or Rosh Hashanah) 23:23-35.
6. Day of Atonement (or Yom Kippor) 23:26-32.
7. Tabernacles (or Sukkot) 23:34-44.

The Principle from Passover

It was God’s instruction that the first holy festival be an observance that would clearly mark a believer from the unbelieving world in which he lives. The story behind the passover is familiar to even the most casual Bible reader. It is a story of the great work of God setting the children of Israel free from bondage in Egypt. After generations of serving Egyptian Pharaohs, the cries of the children of Israel went up before the Lord God, and He sent a deliverer to release his captive children. After a series of plagues designed to change the mind of the fickle Pharaoh, God finally pronounced that He would send a plague that would be forever remembered. Exodus 12 records that the power of God would strike down the firstborn of every home in Egypt not protected by the mark of lamb’s blood on the door or tent post. The great story of redemption unfolded as Pharaoh freed the children of Israel amidst the wailing of Egyptian mothers who had lost their firstborn. The God of Abraham proved too powerful for the mighty Pharaoh of Egypt. The purchasing of the freedom of God’s people was forever to be symbolized by the Passover feast. The instruction given by God to Moses was to be continually observed. A close look at God’s instruction yields the clear principle He wanted each generation to understand. God wanted each generation of Israelites to understand that individual belief, and individual use of the blood would be necessary to be saved. Exodus 12:3-5 gave careful instruction about the preparation of the home before the Lord executed judgment on the Egyptian firstborn. Each man was instructed to take “A LAMB” (12:3) for his house. If “THE LAMB” (12:4) was too much for the small household, the man was to share with his neighbor and not waste. The lamb was to be spotless, sacrificed that its blood may be used as a marker. It was to be killed and personally applied as “YOUR LAMB” (12:5). Individuals would have to use the blood. Individuals would then have to wait and trust that God would keep His word. They would have to silently wait and trust that the blood was enough to protect them from the judgment of God. The message for the children of Israel was compelling: they needed to personally believe the message of God, and follow the direction of God to be saved from calamity and set free from bondage.

The Principle from the Feast of Unleavened Bread

The day after the Passover sacrifice and meal, a week long festival ensues (Lev. 23:6). The focus of this feast was the eating of “unraised” or unleavened bread, and later with the total cleaning out of the tent or home. Instruction on the festival is given in Exodus 12:15-20 (cp. Lev. 2:11 for leaven). Between two Sabbath rests, this week long observance was intended to remind them that “the Lord brought the children of Israel out of Egypt” (Ex. 12:17). Leaven was specifically mentioned by God in connection with offerings and sacrifices. Lev. 2:11 excluded its use in most of the sacrifices because it was a fermenting influence and corruption of the sacrifice. God held a special regard for materials used in sacrifices to honor Him. Leaven was corrupt and unusable in this context. It is from this we can extract the life principle God taught His people: It was not enough for them to come out of Egypt. Egypt, and its corrupting influence needed to come out of the people. The principle behind the cleaning out of the leaven was well illustrated by the teaching of an old fisherman. The fisherman took his small boat out to sea early each morning to catch the fish for the market. He moved along the surface of the water with great ease, for the boat was well designed for fishing. On one occasion, the old fisherman took his son with him to the sea. His son was unaccustomed to the boat and began to tip the small craft as he walked around inside it. The older fisherman raised his voice and exclaimed, “Sit down! The boat is fine in the sea, but we don’t want the sea inside the boat!” The principle of cleansing the house from leaven (chametz cleansing) was an illustration of the need to live a life of separation from corruption and sin. That same “keep the sea out of the boat” principle is the message of the feast of Unleavened Bread, a message of a clean walk. Theologians use the term sanctification, which means “set apart for a specific use, often a holy use.” The usable vessel must be free of leaven. It must be clean. The God of Abraham desired to use men to accomplish His work. These people, however, had to be periodically cleansed and renewed. The children of Israel were taught to walk with a view toward holiness, a view toward separation from sin.

The Principle in the Feast of First Fruits

The Sabbath had given the children of Israel the necessary understanding that a close of cycle and rest was necessary. What the Sabbath did for the end of one’s work, the feast of First Fruits outlined for the beginnings of life. The beginning of the harvest was the setting for this important lesson. The instruction concerning this festival (Lev. 23:9-14) specifies the amount of sacrifice to be offered to the Lord at the coming of the first harvest (normally the barley harvest). The timing of the observance was normally the second day of the unleavened bread observance week. The message of the feast of first fruits was that God is above all, the Sustainer and Owner of all. His people are to be stewards of His property. God wanted the children of Israel to understand what He had provided for them, and how they were to respond to His gracious giving. All they possessed was undeserved blessing (Dt. 6), and all they had belonged to God (even their children, see Ex. 13:2). God’s clear instruction was to take of the first of the harvest and give an offering back to Him. The offering served several functions:

1. IT WAS AN OFFERING OF THANKSGIVING. The unmixed and unsettled wine from the new harvest at the end of the previous summer was poured out on the small offering of grain, as instructed in Exodus 29:40,41. With the pouring out of the wine was a joyful offering of praise, thanking God for providing anew for His people. God’s provision would allow Israel to remain strong and stable for another year. The planting and work had been blessed by God as He brought forth “bread from the earth”.

2. IT WAS AN OFFERING OF ANTICIPATION. Because the offering was the “first fruit” of what was to be gleaned from the barley harvest, much of the field had not yet been readied for harvest. The offering pressed a reminder to all the people that the harvest allowed them to steward what God was giving. He was the owner of the harvest. He was the secret to their success. They could anticipate more harvest, because the God of Abraham is a good God, desiring to bless His people.

3. IT WAS AN OFFERING OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT. By offering of the harvest before the rest of the harvest was brought in, God impacted on the people the lesson of acknowledging their need of Him. Even after the crops had grown, much harm could come to them. Infestation or fire could wipe away all the yield for the year. The people needed a reminder that God was not an “extra” in their lives, He was the sustainer of Israel. His offering came first, because He had preeminence over all in Israel!

The Principle in the Feast of Weeks

In Israel, the summer months are long, hot and dry for most of the land. The spring grass is withered and brown. The flowers that dotted the Galilee landscape give way to the dark rocks and dry weeds that cover every uncultivated field. The time of the long awaited first rains of Autumn usually produce celebration, as children go outside in the rain and dance for joy (even some of us as adults join them)! The rains awaken the land to new life, and the promise of another harvest! The harvest is the life blood of any agricultural people, and the children of Israel awaited the harvest with great anticipation. The principle of Shavuot was that God’s plan and program included another demonstration of undeserved love… in spite of any corruption of the people. Fifty days after the festival of first fruits, the major part of the harvest was completed. The festival of Shavuot or “weeks” began. The Greek word for “fifty days” is Pentecost, and the festival receives this name in ancient Jewish sources from the Second Temple Period. Regardless of which name was used, the timing of the feast, and the peculiar instructions for the observance of the feast give the clearest indications of the meaning and purpose of this holy festival. This feast was truly a celebration of the harvest (it is called the “harvest feast”, see Ex. 23:16). It expressed the grace of God to His people in yet another year of meeting the needs of the people. It was another expression of God’s desire that the children of Israel be preserved and sustained. The people, undeserving of God’s mercy and grace, would receive from the mighty hand of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The celebration illustrates the undeserving people that God was blessing. In contrast to the feast of “unleavened bread” where all leaven was to be purged from the sacrifice and it was to be clean of fermenting corruption, the feast of weeks includes two loaves of meal baked with leaven (Lev. 23:17). The leaven was prescribed as part of the ceremony, and obedient faithful could do nothing less than obey. Why include the leaven in the loaves? What was God’s intention in this shadowy symbol? Why allow a corrupting influence in His holy worship? The symbol helps to illustrate yet another facet of the character of the Lord God. The leaven in the loaves at Shavuot aren’t the only corruption that was found in the festival, there were people there. By nature, the children of Israel were constantly unclean, constantly influenced by the world outside. They were not pure. They had the corrupting influences of leaven always present with them, yet God had mercy on them. God’s lovingkindness (hesed) was undeserved, yet liberally dispensed. Shavuot allowed the people to remember that God’s program and plan included grace, year after year!

The Principle of the Feast of Trumpets

The Jewish cycle of the year includes the combination of an ancient harvest calendar, and the annual cycle of the religious festivals that God prescribed. It is because of the combination of calendars that there are literally several “New Year’s Days” in the calendar. In rabbinic tradition, there is even a new year beginning for trees. The tradition shows great respect for the Creator, and for His handiwork. The “Day of Trumpet Blowing” (Yom T’ruach) was prescribed by God as the beginning of the civil year, or “secular” year. It was prescribed as the beginning date for financial transactions, for market purposes, and for military services. It also introduced the highest holy days of the month Tishri, the sacred seventh month (by religious calendar reckoning) that contained the highest holy days. Of all festivals, the Feast of Trumpets could appear to be the least important. It was simply the ringing in of a new civil calendar year. Why would God include this in His list of sacred observances (Lev. 23:23-25)? What significant life principle did the Lord God desire that the children of Israel understand? Certainly part of the purpose of this holy assembly was to again symbolize that the nation of Israel was a part of the special program of God (Ezek. 37:3). In addition to this symbol, a careful examination of the specific observances during this sabbatical rest showed it was even more significant as a teaching device (cp. Num. 29:1-6). Extensive offerings were prescribed, demonstrating that God’s purpose was to emphasize a spiritual message amidst an otherwise secular event. In this God signaled the real message of this observance. To separate the “sacred” from the “secular” violated the very spirit of the Torah. God showed that the two were to be one in the Feast of Trumpets. God knew that it would forever be a temptation to the children of Israel to compartmentalize their faith into only one part of their lives. To segment between the “sacred” and the “secular” parts of their lives. The teaching of the law was to avoid this practice. God was to be Lord of all parts of the lives of the people under the covenant. He wanted every aspect of their lives to demonstrate that they were a nation with a royal and priestly heritage. Even the wearing of the royal blue ribbon in the prayer shawl (tallith) and tassels (tsit-tsiot) was to help remind them of the special relationship (Num. 15:38ff). If the God of Abraham was to have a people that would walk in relationship to Him out from the Sinai desert, they needed to understand His heart’s desire. He did not simply ask for some small religious segment of their life. Their faith should not be separate from the functions of life. Their faith was to be demonstrated in particular obedience to Divine direction. Sacred and secular were to be one, all under the leadership of the Lord God!

The Principle of the Day of Atonement

Ten days into the month of Tishri, God commanded the Day of Atonement to be observed by the children of Israel (Lev. 23:26-32). The feast was given as the most solemn of all the occasions of the sacred calendar, for the high price of sin was commemorated in the sacrifice. The command was given with serious tone, that each of the children of Israel would be impressed the seriousness of the day (Lev. 23:29) or they would be cut off from the house of Israel. Shepherds from all throughout the land of Israel understood the significance of the sacrifice to Israel. For months, they cared for and cautiously groomed the livestock that would be used for atonement sacrifices. The price of sin was paid by the animal suited for sacrifice. The solemn Sabbath was observed by the High Priest of the nation, as he adorned the priestly garb and made a sin sacrifice at the Temple (Lev. 16:29-34ff). The sin offerings were prescribed to include a sacrifice for the sin of his family, then an offering for the cleansing of the sanctuary, and finally an offering for the sin of the people of Israel. The sin was to be atoned by the sprinkling of the blood of the spotless sacrifice on the Mercy Seat of the Holy of Holies. The high price of sin, and the requirement of blood sacrifice to restore the relationship of God to His people was the message of Yom Kippor. The price of sin had to be paid in the atoning sacrifice that included blood. God gave the altar as a place of mercy to the children of Israel (Lev. 17:11). The blood that paid for sin was shed at the Temple, as the people of God observed the graphic display of the price of their sin. This memorial was designed to impress on each one who observed, that sin has an incredible price. The separation of the God of Abraham from his people could only be restored in the sacrificial system. Sin broke the sweetness of that special relationship – sacrifice of blood alone could restore it.

The Principle of the Feast of Tabernacles

The feast of Booths, Tabernacles or Sukkot reminded the children of Israel of God’s great work of salvation from the bondage of the Egyptian Pharaohs. The children of Israel were commanded to live in huts (Lev. 23:42) or booths during the week of the festival (see also Neh. 8:14-18), to remind them of the travel through the wilderness. Sacrifices during this time were prescribed to include 189 animals (Num. 29:12-38), and the week was full of reminders of the faithfulness of God in the wilderness journey (Lev. 23:43). The faithfulness of God was taught to each generation of Israel as they sat in their booths, recalling the wilderness journey. The time of Sukkot in Israel was originally the “end of harvest” feast (cp. Ex. 23:17), also called the “ingathering”. The autumn harvest was now nearly completed. After the long and hot summer months in Judea, God had again shown His faithfulness to Israel in bringing in the “miracle crop” of grapes. The olives and grain harvests now all stored, the celebration of God’s faithfulness to the children of Israel completed the calendar of sacred observances. God had shown Himself merciful and faithful to the children of Israel in the desert wilderness. The dividing of the Sea, the manna of the wilderness, the cloud of guidance, and the pillar of fire were all images to be recalled to each new generation of Israelite children from within the sukkah, that they might remember and understand their Father in Heaven. At the end of the journey was their promised home, a land that was theirs by Divine covenant. God had freed the people, lead them, and finally gave them cities “that they did not build” with “wells they did not dig” (Dt.6). Israel was never to forget. Israel was to always teach their generations that the God of Abraham keeps His covenants. He is faithful to bring His people home.

The Principles That Reveal The Character of the God of Israel

God wanted the children of Israel to know more of Him than rules, laws, and Divine standards. The Torah was so much more. It was the expression of God’s heart. It was the expression of Who He is. It was the “spiritual training camp manual” for the wilderness journey. It was the guidebook for the ancient Kingdom of Israel. It was the outline of the key life principles that God desired His people to understand.

GOD’S WORD IS TO BE TRUSTED: God wanted the children of Israel to understand that His character was trustworthy, His Word ever true. He established for them a Sabbath, that they might celebrate a completion of weekly labor, and learn His Word.

INDIVIDUAL BELIEF IS NECESSARY TO BE SAVED FROM JUDGMENT: God gave a Passover feast to remind each generation that sin required the individual belief and appropriation of a sacrifice for payment. Blood must be shed for each individual to be saved.

HIS PEOPLE MUST SEEK A “CLEAN WALK”: God instituted the Feast of Unleavened Bread that his people might understand that holiness in the walk of life was to be actively sought, and lived.

GOD WANTS FIRST PLACE: God showed the people that He was to be preeminent in their lives, and that all that they possessed came from His hand of blessing in the Feast of the First Fruits.

GOD OFFERS GRACE: God showed His marvelous grace and loving acceptance of imperfect men in the leavened loaves of the Feast of Weeks.

GOD IS GOD OF ALL PARTS OF OUR LIVES: In the Feast of Trumpets, God showed His desire that men not “compartmentalize” their faith, but live out their belief in every aspect of their lives.

SIN HAS A HIGH PRICE: At the highest holy day of Yom Kippor, the children of Israel saw the horror of sin paid for in the life blood of the sacrificial animals. The blood of the sacrifice was the only way to atone for sin.

GOD IS FAITHFUL: As the Feast of Sukkoth observance taught of the faithfulness of God in the wilderness, so were His people to ever remember that He gave them a home. He keeps His word.

Is the Bible scientifically credible?

Many of my students come from schools that have bathed them in the idea that the Bible is not scientifically credible. The notion that one can trust the Bible must come from “redneck Bible belt preachers” and now you are in school where you can learn the truth from science. There are various arguments they use. One of the common ones comes from the Levitical law concerning rabbits. It comes up several times a year as I travel and teach, and many students from various universities mention it. Rabbits are not kosher, and are specifically prohibited in the text:

Lev. 11:6 “And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.” (See also Deut. 14:7). The problem is that rabbits DON’T chew cud. Doesn’t that make the Bible wrong scientifically? 

This is a popular objection to the Bible by skeptics: Rabbits are not ruminants (regurgitating food); they practice “refection”. As read, the passage seems scientifically wrong, giving rise to some who want to refute the Bible’s veracity and scientific value.

 Refection: a process in which rabbits pluck out and eat their own dung mixed with undigested material (usually without allowing it to hit the ground).

Rumination: cows and some other animals “chew the cud.” or regurgiate partially digested food in little clumps called cuds, and chew it a little more after while mixing it with saliva.

The Hebrew word for the rabbit’s practice does not include the term for “dung”. Rabbits practice this normally at night because this behavior usually takes place 3-8 hours after eating. The problem appears to be one of definitions after the fact. Partially digested food is a common element here. The issue is linguistic, in that the definitions of both “cud” and that of “chewing” need to be completely examined. The Hebrew term “gerah” is translated the “cud” (as scraping the throat). Yet it bears noting that this word is used nowhere in the Old Testament besides these verses in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. We have only this context to help us decide what it means in terms of the Mosaic law. In addition, refection is a process whereby rabbits pass pellets of partially digested food, not simply “dung” which likely explains why the word for “dung” was not in the Hebrew text. If the Hebrew word simply refers to any partially digested food — the process is not the issue, just the object. Some translations of the text are translated as ‘bring up’ the cud, which sounds like regurgitation – an inaccurate assessment of what the animal is doing. This Hebrew term ‘alah, is a common word for “going up”, but encompasses many other concepts as well. It can be translated: ascend, carry up, cast up, recover, restore, take up, and much more. The transliteration of the Hebrew text states: “ki-ma’allat gerah hu”, and should be rendered: “restores his partially digested material”, and in that way is not dissimilar to the regurgitation process in effect.

(Examples of ‘alah used as a participle demonstrate the term is not limited to regurgitation at all: see Joshua 24:17 “It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt”, or Nahum 3:3 “Charging cavalry, flashing swords (lifted), and glittering spears!”)

Joel 1: When Repentance is Required

Did you ever sit with someone that had a relationship with God, but was clearly not walking with the Lord? Did you ever want to help someone see that it was time to turn back and “come home”? The first chapter of Joel offers principles on how to share their need with them. We are always called to present the truth in love. The problem is, telling someone they are wrong is never easy. Yet, it can be done!

Joel 1: Repentance Required!

I. Cry of Powerful Devastation (1:2-2:11)

A. The Past Invasion of the Locusts (1:1-12)

1. Prompting Principle: When God sent the calamities, He wanted to get the
attention of all. (1:1-4)

2. Self Interest Principle: Self-absorbed and self-indulgent people only get
involved when the supply line is cut (1:5-7)

3. Great fall Principle: Those with the greatest optimism will be the most bitter due to unrealized dreams. (1:8-12).
a. personal disillusionment (8)
b. religious destruction (9)
c. economic (10-12a)

4. Joy Attack Principle: When all fails, the trust of the people in God is reduced to ashes.

B. The Procedure for Repentance (1:13-20)
“Pay attention to these nationally devastating events, and come together before
God, seeking Him!” How?

Ten Principles for Repentance -When God Begins to turn His face away:

1. Those who know God begin the process of taking seriously the sin of the nation
(1:13).

2. Let it grip our hearts before God long before others hear about it – THIS IS NOT SIMPLE INDIGNANCE concerning the culture (1:13b).

3. Be persistent with seeking the Lord (1:14a).

4. Recognize before God how the Lord and His worship has been affected by the sin and judgment of the nation (1:14b).

5. Step out and deliberately instruct the society on God’s direction (1:14a).

6. Bring in help and participation by leaders that are outside of the religious
establishment (i.e. civil leaders, 1:14b).
7. Call on everyone who is willing to heed the call to be a part of the solution – then show them how. It is NOT about repairing the effects of the judgment first, it is about seeking God first! (1:14b).

8. Warn them of later and greater judgments they need to be prepared for (1:15).

9. Point out the reality of God’s work that should be obvious, they may still not understand (1:16-18).

10. Focus them on the real need – a walk with God, not simply the restoration of their stuff! (1:19-20)

Haggai – Outline Study Notes

The final trilogy of Old Testament prophets is known as the “Postexilic Prophets” (Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi) because they address their messages to the returnees in Jerusalem following the Babylonian exile. The people wasted no time beginning to restore their beloved temple – but delays and distraction soon undermined the work, setting the stage for Haggai to appear with a new word from the Lord. In four brief but powerful messages (i.e. 1:1-15 to High Priest and Governor; 2:1-9 to Civil authorities; 2:10-19 to Priests; 2:20-23 to Zerrubabel), Haggai exhorted the people to put first things first. With renewed courage and commitment, the citizens responded by completing the temple and clearing a place for God in their hearts.

“God’s Sleeping Army”- The Prophecy of Haggai

Introduction: After 15 years of delays, people turned their intense hopes away from the work for God, and settled into lethargy, complaining, apathy and for some – discouragement! Haggai is mentioned as one of two prophetic voices who call the people back to God’s work, after the army had gone to sleep (Ezra 5:1, 6:14,15).

I. God’s Call to the Apathetic Believer (1).

A. The problem related (1:1,2). Principle: God addresses the real problem by uncovering our use of excuses.

B. The prophecy related (3-11). Principle: It is not just how hard you work, it is whether you work in harmony with God’s word that brings the sense of success.

1. Their “treasure” misplaced (cp. Mt .6).
a. They work hard with less result
b. They barely “got by” (6).
c. They sweat, but cannot replenish themselves with drink (6).
d. Their lack is very uncomfortable (6).
e. They thought they could save but that was unrealistic! (6).

2. They need to listen and obey! (7,8). Principle: God offered specific and measurable goals to demonstrate obedience- not only in their heart, but in their sandal leather!

3. Listen, or it will get worse! (9-11). Principle: The time between judgment and the promise of it is GRACE time. Act then and save yourself more pain!
a. I will disperse what you have (9).
b. I will “slim down” your goods! (10,11).
c. The people revitalized (12-15). Principle: Often when we begin to obey God after a period of discouragement, He offers more encouragement to keep us headed in the right direction.

1. The people’s response (12).
2. God’s encouragement (13).
3. The people got started (14,15).

II. God’s Call to the Discouraged Senior Believer (2:1-9).

A. The problem identified (2:1-3). Principle: God realizes the effect of the older believers on the younger, and singles out those who have a greater testimony to call them into account.

B. The people encouraged (2:4-9). Principle: Trusting God’s promises will lift the team through the toughest part of the work!

1. Leaders be strong! (4).
2. People be strong! (4).
3. Why?
a. I promised (5).
b. I am still here (5).
c. I will bless soon (6).
d. People will turn their heads! (7) .
e. My glory will return (7).
f. It’ll be better than ever! (8,9).

III. God’s Call to the Contaminated Believer (2:10-19).

A. The problems of the contamination of groaning and murmuring (10-14):

1. Holiness cannot be obtained by osmosis it is a deliberate act. (11).
2. Contamination (unlike holiness) spreads easily (12).

B. The prophecy of contamination: the people have spread it from the leadership
downward (14).

C. The prescription for the contamination (15-19).
1. Take a good look back in your history and observe how things worked – things
were not as good as you remember them (15-16).
2. Life was tougher than you recall, and you were less responsive than you remember (17).
3. It isn’t over until I say it is over! (18-19).

IV. God’s Call for the Future (2:19b-23).

A. The promise of God’s blessing (19b).

B. The process of God’s blessing (20-23)
1. God will exert power over the natural forces (21)
2. God will intervene in the affairs of powerful world leaders (22a).
3. God will confuse the might of the enemies (22b).
4. God will offer a seal of approval in his leader (23).

Hosea Teaching Notes

Students ask me to send them study notes all the time. Here is all my teaching through the exciting book of Hosea. These notes are designed to help you study with your Bible open, verse by verse. Let me know if anything is unclear!

Understanding God: What Happens When We Keep Willfully Sinning?

The book of Hosea was originally given as a series of prophecies between 755 and 722 BCE (during the waning years of the Northern Kingdom before their deportation to Assyria). The prophecies were given by God to His followers through the ages understand His heart in times of discipline and estrangement from Him – to fully grasp what is GOOD and RIGHT about God in the difficult times of our walk with Him (Hosea 14:9). Hosea walked with God for more than 50 years when that bucked the trend around him! Further, the book offers a graphic picture of four characteristics of God:

Israel’s Sin Illustrated: Ch. 1-3-God is Faithful

Israel’s Sin Intolerable: Ch. 4-7-God is Holy

 Israel’s Sin Punished:Ch. 8-10-God is Just

Israel Restored: Ch. 11-14-God is Loyal

In the first section (chapters 1-3) God instructed Hosea to offer three prophecies (verbal in 1:1- 11; 2:1-23; by example in 3:1-5). These prophecies expose four themes:

1:1-11 Seven Principles of God’s Judgment

2:1-7 The Love in God’s Judgment

2:8-13 Seven Results of Willful Resistance to God

2:14-3:5 The Purpose of Judgment Pain – The “Long View” of Restoration

In our first session, we want to explore the revelation of God concerning the important subject:

“Prone to Wander – Seven Principles of God’s Judgment” (Hosea 1:1-11)

What General Principles govern the ground rules of God’s use of judgment?
– Principle 1: Sin Hurts – Our sin “feels” like a personal betrayal to God (1:1-3).

– Principle 2: Sin Matters – God does keep track of specific acts of sin and refers back to it in judgment of individuals and nations (1:4).

-Principle 3: Judgment is measured – The judgment is often measured commensurate with the sin that caused judgment (1:5). In fact, in trying to stop the rightful line of Israel from ascending to the throne, God obliged Jehu’s attempt by taking it away from all of them!

-Principle 4: God Offers Warning – God offers grace time before judgment, which is the greater purpose to most prophecy (1:6).

-Principle 5: Judgment Levels – The uneven field is often leveled by God’s judgment (1:7,8). God used the judgment against Israel and the abstention of Judah to rebalance their respective power bases.

-Principle 6: Warnings are His Deterrence – God’s warning of impending judgment offers us a unique look at His way of thinking. God wants us to see the horror of losing a specific walk with Him and repent now (1:9)!

-Principle 7: Judgment is carefully controlled – God does not discipline His people RASHLY, but with a view toward pulling them back to His love (1:10-11)!

Hosea 2: 1-13 Understanding God: “The Love of God involved in His Judgment”

In this section we are again we are examining God’s judgment, this time from the perspective of His Love:

1. Initiative: God calls the sinner from a wounded heart to turn to Him (2:1).

2. Realistic: God calls sin what it is, and tries to get the sinner to turn by acknowledging a coming break in the relationship if they will not turn back (2:2). We cannot cling to sin and be close to God, one will drive us from the other! (2:2b).

3. Conditional: Privileges are removed based on the choices of the violator:
a. Circumstances destroyed (3).
b. Fruits of life sifted (4).

4. Specific: God accurately diagnoses will disobedience as exactly that! He does not beat around the bush concerning the cause of the judgment. He also notes how desperately we cling to our sin (5b).

5. Purposeful: God uses judgments (disciplines) to:
a. make further defiling difficult (6)
b. push His children back to Him (7).

As the chapter continues, note how the theme of resistance to God is presented:

Seven Results of Willful Resistance to God (2:8-13)

1. Memory loss (2:8).
2. Material loss (2:9).
3. Exposure (2:10).
4. Joy loss (2:11).
5. Future withered (2:12a).
6. Plunder: others get the benefit of their work (2:12b).
7. Withdrawn relationship with God and the truth (2:13).

Hosea 2: 14-3:5 Understanding God: This passage offers ten steps back to restoration:

A. First, it happens where they are! GOD MEETS US IN THE ASH PILE.

1. The Lure in the Ashes: Though the rebellious believer forgets the Lord in their thinking (2:13), yet God “lures” them back into a walk by taking them to the wilderness (the place of need) and speaking “to their heart” (literal Hebrew translation – 2:14).

2. The Lesson of the Ashes: God gives them back a future provision from the unmistakable place of their own failures. It is a literal rebirth from the midst of the ashes of destruction (2:15a).

B. Second, it happens inside them! GOD PROVIDES EMERGENCY HEART
REPLACEMENT.

3. Replaced Hope: A renewed joy swells up inside the repentant believer as God floods the memories of failure with powerful images of His victory (2:15b).

4. Renewed Thankfulness: The wound of the failure gives way to a renewed sense of humility and overwhelming appreciation that God loves us. The “list” gives way to “love” (2:16).

5. Returned Strength: God pulls the hooks of the old selfish life out of the renewed follower, and crushes the memory and hunger for the old lifestyle. The wicked past seems a distant memory (2:17).

C. Third, it happens around them! GOD ARRANGES REST.

6. The struggle against everyone and everything gives way to rest and peace at God’s hand (2:18).

D. Fourth, it happens between them and God! GOD RENEWS AND STRENGTHENS THE RELATIONSHIP.

7. Security: The security of the relationship with God becomes a strong bond, causing their decisions to reflect the love they have for God (2:19-20).

8. Desire: The desire to talk to God – and for God to answer – becomes the most important and common part of life (2:21).

9. Empowering: The former struggles will now give way to a firm understanding that all things come from my Father’s hand, at His will (2:22).

10. Testimony: God will openly use the testimony of their renewed walk, and publicly proclaim them to be His alone (2:23)!

The picture:
3:1 Go love a current adulterous (example of “where they are” principle above).
3:2 Purchase her from her bondage with the full price of her slavery.
3:3 Put her in a secluded time of cleansing (this will explain what Israel will go through when I
turn and leave them leaderless, until their return 3:4-5)

Hosea 4:1-19 Israel’s Sin is Intolerable – And God is Holy! “Straight Talk From a Holy God”

I. The Indictment: God offered a seven-part indictment of His wayward children that brought judgment on their houses (4:1-2).

-Charge #1: No firm stand (4:1a) “Hear what God says about you: you take no firm stand for God…”

-Charge #2: No loyalty to defend His ways (4:1b) “…you have no enduring loyalty to His ways, you do not perceive Him in your daily life!”

-Charge #3: No “close connection” in daily walk (4:2a) “Your faithless walk works out in misusing your mouths…”

-Charge #4: Deceitful words (4:2b) “…walking deceitfully…”

-Charge #5: Violence (4:2b) “…killing…”

-Charge #6: Ill-gotten gain (4:2b) “…smuggling…”

-Charge #7: Lustful lifestyles (4:2b) “… and sexual unfaithfulness – sinning constantly and in rapid succession.”

II. Chances Suspended (4:3-5): God offers an explanation to those who He knows will feel cheated when they suffer after trying to do good works.

1. First you will sense a decline in prosperity and position (4:3). “Therefore I will reduce the prosperity of your land and work.”

 2. You will attempt to find another to blame, hoping that changing the others will avert judgment (4:4). “Don’t bother trying to change each other!”

3. Because of the sin, even those who have made attempts to follow will suffer with the brash sinners (4:5). “When judgment comes, even the religious will go down with you as your nation is torn apart.”

III. The Nine Penalties (4:6-19):
-Penalty #1: Your special blessed position is lost for a time because your heart left following Me! 4:6 My people are crushed by their dullness of heart toward Me, so I will remove your special status before Me for you and your children.

-Penalty #2: You will feel the void of loneliness when I back out of the relationship. 4:7
With each generation you longed to live apart from My walk, so I will give you the loneliness you desire!

-Penalty #3: Shame will depart your streets. 4:8 People now hunger to do wrong
shamelessly.

-Penalty #4: The self-justifying religious leaders will lead many by spewing their own rules to a special judgment! 4:9 They have followed the religious nonsense of leaders, and they will bring on themselves the punishment they deserve.

-Penalty #5: Family and physical security will fleet away as the relationship with Me slips away. 4:10 They will be unfulfilled in all they want, supplies and security of children – for they left their walk with Me.

-Penalty #6: They will find no lasting peace, though trying drugs and people relationships. 4:11 They will seek comfort in each other and a bottle, but draw further from true help.

-Penalty #7: Truth will die – they will reinvent righteousness and truth to their own standard, but it won’t produce what a walk with Me does! 4:12-13 Their false
religious practices keep them believing they are “trying” to do good, but nothing
good comes of it.

-Penalty #8: Sin will grow and be unpunished. 4:14 I will allow sin to go unpunished and
unrighteousness to fill the land with loyalty left trampled under foot.

-Penalty #9: I will withdraw My Word and your testimony from those who do not want truth. (4:15-18) Let the people of Israel go after their sinfulness stubbornly, and do not try to intervene from Judah. Do not exchange religious participation with them – let them alone in their sin. (19) The judgment will come, and they will have their day!

Hosea 5:1-15 Israel’s Sin is Intolerable – And God is Holy! “The Vacuum Effect- God’s Wrath Explained”

The Problem (5:1-5): What the people did –
1. As the Leaders go, so goes the nation! (5:1).
2. People will get a hunger for the externals without a solid understanding of the correct path, and they will fail to understand correction (5:2).
3. God has not withheld judgment because He has not seen it! He knows and sees. (5:3).
4. There comes a time when people prefer the “spiritual” externals more than the truth! (5:4). They enjoy the “violating spirit” of their own standards.
5. There is a snowball effect to the sins of a nation, and God looks for a softness and vulnerability in the hearts of men to direct them (5:5).

The Pronouncement (5:6-15): What God will do –
6. God will withdraw from the people no matter if they keep practicing the right things or not! (5:6)
7. In their deception, they have born fruits of falseness, and God will bring their system down (5:7).
8. Judgment is sure (5:8) and will be swift (5:9). Your borders have been breached by your own works, and the fences have now removed protection from you! (5:10).
9. God is about to let you fall in line with His prophesied course (5:11) and decay as promised (5:12).
10. When I sent warnings to you, you dug in further by reaching for contentious ones that only increased your pain (5:13). As a result, I will pull back my protections and cause your calamities! (5:14).
11. I will await only one thing – your repentance before Me (5:15).

Hosea 6:1-7:16 “The Party Is Over and The Place is a Wreck!”

Introduction: God hurts over our sin. He expresses both pain and a parent-like desire for us to learn from life’s temptations. Tonight we will look at how our sin moves His heart, and how He desires us to change. Have you ever walked in coldness toward God? This message will tell you (from God’s perspective) what that time felt like to Him! Now, let’s look at “God the Father’s” perspective on the post-party mess made by His sons:

I. The Call of the Prophet (6:1-3)
1. First Call: Turn Back to the Lord (1) and God Will Heal Our broken
nation (2a). It will take time (2b), but we WILL LIVE IN HIS PRESENCE!
2. Second Call: Focus our Perception on the Lord (3), and God will SURELY return to us (cp. Ps. 78:23).

II. The Works of the People (6:4-11a)
1. Your love evaporates (4), so I have sent HARD words, and REAL troubles
(5)! (cp. “first love” of Ephesian church in Rev. 2).
2. Your outward work has replaced your heart (6)! (cp. Lk. 11:37ff)
3. Your heart has strayed into unfaithfulness (7).
4. You love violence (8).
5. You fleece people out of greed (9).
6. You have raised up idols (10).
7. You force a stored up judgment (11).

III. The Cry of the Father (6:11b-7:3)
1. I feel totally robbed – when I want to reach out to you, you cheat me out of the blessing (11b-7:2).
2. I feel trashed because you flaunt sin in front of Me (7:3).

IV. The Four Examples of Deceit (7:4-16)
1. Example #1: Unstirred Fire – Hot and Ready Sin (7:4-7)
2. Example #2: Unevenly Burned – Blind Victims (7:8-10)
3. Example #3: Lost Homing Pigeons – Directionless and Purposeless (7:11- 15)
4. Example #4: Unreliable Weapon – Useless to Reach Out (7:16)

Hosea 8:1-14 “Selling Myself Short”

Introduction: How do people end up “stuck” in a sin pattern? It begins with a misunderstanding about God and themselves. Tonight we will look at the pattern to help us avoid the “potholes” of life. As we begin a new section, we see God calling out a pattern that many people become stuck inside. Consider the description of the believer that has walked away. They walk in:

-Dread: God has made it clear that disobedience leads to judgment. They know
something is wrong, and see the coming of judgment, but do not change (8:1).

-Distance: They have walked away from their own promise to follow, and feel
guilty – yet do not change (8:1b).

-Defiance: They have rejected truth they know and believe, because they choose a path of their own making (8:1b).

-Double-mindedness: They claim a desire to follow God, but do not DO the things
He desires of them (8:2-3). What have they done?
1. Choose and support leaders that don’t reflect God’s standards (8:4).
2. Put other priorities and things in the place of God (8:4b). Stop this (8:5)! Do you not see that YOU have made the things you worship (8:6; cp. 1 Ki. 12:28- 33) and I will destroy all of it!
3. Choosing to sow evil reaps:
a. a mountain of evil compounded (8:7a).
b. a useless productivity (8:7b).
c. a slavery to greater forces (8:7b).

Four Problems in the Specific Case of Israel:
1. She is becoming a consumed commodity (8:8).
2. She has made a conscious choice (8:9).
3. She faces a conspicuous result (8:10).
4. She keeps a religious appearance, but makes her own rules (8:11-13).
a. She ignores the Biblical prescriptions, and treats them as strangely irrelevant (8:12).
b. She plays out a self-affirming religion without a heart to obey Me (8:13).
Result: God will not forget, even if we do (8:13b-14). Judgment will come as promised.
***************************************************************

The end of Hosea 8 offers an interesting closer look on the subject of the slide into sin. Note the operation of the principle:

Evil repays ten-fold (8:7)
1. I become a consumed & used commodity ( 8:8)
2. I make a conscious choice to follow (8:9)
3. I give a conspicuous result (8:10)
What does the slide look like?: ( Six steps down)
1. I can keep looking religious- but it is a religion of my own rules (8:11)
2. I will view God’s principles as unrealistic & foreign (8:12)
3. I will build a religion of self-benefit (8:13a)
4. I will reduce the message of judgment (8:13b)
5. I will take my joy & success in other ventures (8:14a)
6. I will live to see the vanity of them (8:14b)

Hosea 9:1-17 God’s Great Invitation: Turn Before It’s Too Late!

God offers people at least one opportunity (and often more than one) to turn from sin and get His help. Tonight, we will look at the invitation, and then at the steps that follow the rejection of it. Our passage ends with God view and the prophet’s view of the tragedy of the wasted life.

Section One: “Ten Truths to Grasp for those who are sinking but think they are enjoying it!”

1. Stop mindlessly joining in to the frivolity of the nations, one who understands the seriousness of eternity values cannot simply escape truth (9:1).
2. Recognize the reality of sin and its sad consequences in the strained relationship with God – the most devastating consequence (9:2a).
3. Understand the bondage of the sinful lifestyle – you will act with short term values that lead to destruction (9:2b).
4. Acknowledge that your stubbornness is causing you to lose past blessings of God (9:3a).
5. Grasp the reality that your desire to be like the world will force you into the mold of the world (9:3b).
6. Face the sobering truth that freedom to choose a walk with God will be withdrawn from your next generation (9:4a).
7. Feel the pain of sin left uncared for – the distance from God will grow and grow (9:4b).
8. Note the practices of religion as they become more and more empty and meaningless (9:4b).
9. Remember the great moves of God of yesteryear – with only envy. They are long gone! (9:5).
10. Surrender to the trapped feeling (9:6a) and watch as the victories of the past become buried under dust (9:6b).

Section Two: “Eight Signs of the End of the Joyride!” Days of punishment are coming! (9:7) How do I know?
1. People of God are increasingly viewed with contempt by the masses (9:7b).
2. People will set traps to rid society of God’s spokesmen (9:8).
3. People will do despicable things to trick the people of God (9:9).
4. Many people who once followed God with great promise will show themselves to be selfindulgent and uncommitted (9:9b-10).
5. The previous marks of blessing will become a burden, and My face will turn away from them (9:11-12).
6. People will search even the unthinkable options in hopes of blessing when the realize their emptiness and trouble (9:13).
7. Nothing they try will seem to really work, and they will blame the sources of blessing with praising the sources of trouble (9:14).
8. Eventually, overt judgment will come, and they will feel its power (9:15-17)

Hosea 10:1-15 Looking for Truth in all the Wrong Places “Ignoring the Guilty Heart”

Introduction: Did you ever spend alot of time trying to fix a problem that you knew in your heart was caused by your own sin? Did you do it while refusing to deal with your sin? Let’s look at what God says about clearing the path of problems like this!

The Description of the Wayward (10:1-2)
1. You had prosperity, but were self-oriented (10:1a)
2. You were religious and showy and used your prosperity to decorate your religious life (10:1b).
3. Key: You didn’t deal with personal sin and have it forgiven (10:2)!

The Penalty to the Wayward (10:3-7).
1. Lost freedom: The Lord will remove your freedom to worship (10:3)
2. Lost values: When your freedom is gone people will know they lost it, but not see the real value of it anyway (10:3).
3. Lost cohesiveness: Without the truth that comes from proper worship, the bond that holds society together will break down into unending legal actions of dishonest people (10:4).
4. Lost sense of truth: The lost love in captivity of your idols, false gods and all that is wrong will bring more tears to your eyes than a loss of truth (10:5).
5. Lost power: Your false gods (all that you trusted so dearly) will be powerless to help you in the disgrace and shame of your captivity (10:6).
6. Lost leaders: The power and influence of those who enticed you into wickedness will evaporate (10:7).

The Move of God and Its Purposes (10:8-11)
1. Removing the Influences: God will help you by destroying THE wickedness of your kingdom – a love prostituted to other gods (10:8a). He will bury your shameful altars and symbols of rebellion (10:8b).
2. Refocusing your eyes: He will make clear your sin to you! You have been motivated by a deep desire to forsake God and hurt those around you to have more for yourself (10:9).
3. Reestablishing the Truth: (YOU ARE ALREADY SPIRITUALLY IN BONDAGE!) God will choose the time of discipline, using any tools He decides to among the nations (10:10). He will enslave you to finally bring you to see the fruits of their sin (10:11).

The Great Invitation to Come Home (10:12)
1. Open to God’s Healing Hand: Deal openly with your heart and invest yourself in a right walk with God, and you will experience the HESED of God (10:12a).
2. Recognize your Individual Power: The secret to national salvation is personal
confrontation of your own sin, personal hunger to seek God until God refreshes you (10:12b).

The Sadness of your choice: (10:13-15)
1. Living in Deception: Yet you sow evil, reap bad fruit and consume it as a lie (10:13).
2. Living in False Hope: You think you have the strength to make it on your own (10:13b), yet you will be proven helpless when the real battle comes (10:14-15).

Hosea 11:1-12 Israel Will Be Restored: “Eight Methods God used to raise His adopted children”

When a couple adopts a child that strays it is intensely painful and heartbreaking to the faithful family. God experienced this pain and describes Himself in this unique portrait view into God’s heart!

1) 11:1 I loved him and called him out of the crowd of despair.
Selection of you: I remember when I walked into the room and chose and adopted you from a home filled with hopeless and hurting children. You came home with me and accepted a place in our family, but then turned. Your rebellion has left me empty and hurt, with a strong feeling of injustice.

2) 11:2 THEY (Not “I” as in NIV) cried louder and louder their allegiance, and yet they moved away from Me, bowing themselves to false gods. Battle for you: I watched you say you wanted to be a part of the family even as you kept pulling
farther away. I watched you lower your standards and you left me tear-filled and empty.

3) 11:3 I taught them to walk and lifted them when they fell, but they didn’t understand that I cared for their pains. Teacher for you: I taught you how to take your fist steps and winced when you took your first tumble. I was there for every scrape and cut, and yet you have no concept of my love!

4)11:4 I bonded them with our family and united them in love. I patiently taught them to have direction and stooped to feed them. Guardian over you: I guarded you through life with a strong loving tie of belonging to all of us, watching out for those influences that would bind and blind you. No place was too far, no job to low to stoop, if it protected you.

5) 11:5-7 Is it not inevitable that you will end up imprisoned because of your relentless pursuit of trouble? 11:6 Violence, trouble and destruction will be their certain future. 11:7 Because you have determined to pull far from me, the time will come when I will be unable to lift you from the pit you have dug, no matter how willing you will be! Warning for you: I will not sugar-coat your future, you are heading for real trouble! You will be hurt and taken advantage of, and at a certain point you will move beyond turning back, as terrible as it pains me!

6) 11:8 No matter what you have done, I simply cannot turn and walk away. I love you too much to be unaffected by your life! Enduring for you: I can’t turn off my love for you, even if I know it will just keep hurting me. My love for you was so long ago ignited, there is no way for me to turn the clock back!

7) 11:9 No matter how hurt I am, I will not unload my pain by putting you through all that you truly deserve. I will feel like truly hurting you, but I will not – for I am God and not like man! Reserving for you: You break my heart and make me want to visit pain on you for what you are doing – but I will not. I will hold back what you deserve, because I can.

8 ) 11:10 They will come back and follow me. They will see their needs, turn and call many back to me. 11 They will flock back into the safety of my house, and they will desire to live again under the rules and protection of my security. Hoping for you: You will eventually turn around, I will wait and watch in earnest expectation that you will learn from you painful mistakes.

Hosea 11:12-12:14 Israel Unmasked: Sinners in the Hands of a God Who Sees

Think you can out wit God? You can’t! He has a message to you:
#1: The heart of your problem is the lie you are telling – making yourself a victim! 11:12 You say I abandoned you, but you lie! YOU rebelled against Me! I have been faithful!

#2: The symptom is compromise in your life that you feel inside! 12:1 You sustain yourself on empty nonsense, lie and intrigue, you fill your lives with fallacies and compromise! The northern tribes pastures (raw-waw) on wind (ruach) and pursues (rawdaf) eastward or east winds (qadeem)

#3 The tricks you pull will come back on you – you have tricked others and I will use them to trick you! I will do this because I want you to remember Me! 12:2 God has an indictment against you: You tricked the people and I will sting the trickster!
12:3 You were born in struggle against others.
12:4 You lived in struggle, and God granted you room to grow in grace. He met you at Bethel and talked.

#4 There is a way out! You must come back and remember Me, you must trust Me!
12:5 Don’t you recall Yahweh Elohim Tsabaw is His Zayker (Memorial)!
12:6 Now you must turn back to God. You must guard your faithfulness and judgment and bind your weakness in His strength.

#5 Listen Carefully! I see past your surface veneer, and I am able to peel you back to a place of vulnerability. I keep warning you!
12:7 The trader cheats on the scales in delight.
12:8 Your nation believes it can use its wealth to hide its guilt in its prosperity.
12:9 I brought you from the wilderness and can make you live like then as I do in Sukkot!
12:10 I have warned you repeatedly in prophetic messages!

#6 Stop acting and start following! I see your religious rites, but they are no help to you!
12:11 Is Gil’ad troubled? It’s people are dangerously empty. They observe religious rites in Gilgal, but the altars are like danger stone piles in the plowed field!

#7 Know my plan! I will take you away again, as I have in the past, to bring you back into blessing. I will lead you out, and I will lead you back in, but not until you have paid your bill!
12:12 Israel had to leave his land to go and tend sheep and earn a wife.
12:13 Israel used a prophet to bring him home again from Egypt.
12:14 Yet, Israel has provoked God such that He will leave their guilt on them until they have paid for their crimes.

Hosea 13 and 14 Israel Will Be Restored: Judgment’s Rain Bears Righteous Fruit

Introduction: The book of Hosea was originally given as a series of prophecies between 755 and 722 BCE (during the waning years of the Northern Kingdom before their deportation to Assyria). The prophecies were given by God to His followers through the ages understand His heart in times of discipline and estrangement from Him – to fully grasp what is GOOD and RIGHT about God in the difficult times of our walk with Him (Hosea 14:9). Hosea walked with God for
more than 50 years when that bucked the trend around him!

(Chapter 13) As we close the book, in this lesson we will see how God viewed the discipline He placed on the people, and what fruit He saw as the outcome. This helps every believer understand WHY GOD DOESN’T REMOVE CONSEQUENCES immediately when we turn to Him:

1. Testimony Principle: The only clear way for the nation to see the need to follow God is for them to live with the results of their sin. Slighter disciplines sometimes don’t work, and the entire reputation needs to be carefully considered. Israel used to be powerful, but idolatry killed her. (13:1) Their sin has only increased in discipline (13:2) They have a fixed reputation as idolators, so they are dissipated in discipline. (13:3)

2. Assertion Principle: God needs to assert His rights to our obedience in graphic ways that help us understand truth. Real love insists on exclusivity! Since I am the Lord, and I redeemed them from Egypt- I took care of them in the wilderness and fed them, I have the right to insist they exclusively stand with Me, but they were filled and proud, and forgot Me. (13:4-6)

3. Measured Severity Principle: God brings discipline on nations in direct proportion to their insistence to walk away. He is tougher in discipline when they are harder in heart, For their pride I will bring judgment – powerfully pounce like a lion, quietly sneak up like a leopard, viciously rip them as a bear protecting cubs, consume them as a lion – tearing them apart. (13:7-8)

4. Effect Principle: When sin is conceived, it bears fruit. You chose to stand against Me, and that choice will destroy you. Kings and rulers cannot protect you – I gave them and took them away! Your sins are recorded and will not be overlooked. Your pains are like a woman in breach labor, unable to deliver. (13:9-13)

5. Remembrance Principle: Even in judgment, God remembers mercy! You will face death, but I will buy you from permanent death – you will live again! (13:14).

6. Justice Principle: There is a just repayment penalty for every transgression, measured by the transgression. You will face judgment without compassion though you have flourished, for Assyria is coming to destroy you and plunder you. You must pay for your rebellion with the lives of your women and children. (13:15-16)

The Expected Outcome of God’s Remembrance Hosea 14:1-9

God’s offer: Return to Me (14:1) and bring true words of offering, asking deliberately for forgiveness (14:2). Commit to finding all your help in Him (14:3).

God’s promise: I will turn back to you (14:3), and renew the land, transplanting you back to your home (14:4). I will make you prosper again with gifts I give (14:5-6). I will offer security, care, abundance, rebirth and a new reputation (14:7). Since you turned to Me, I will refresh your life and vitality – and you will know where it comes from! (14:8)

God’s expectation: Wise men will see the truth in the discipline, and know I am just for doing all of this! (14:9)

Principle Approach Studies in the Book of Jonah

OK, so I am new at blogging! I was trying to put my teaching notes on the web for my students, and finally someone let me know a faster way to do it! I can put the outlines in pdf format and make them instantly available! Who knew? Probably everyone but me.

Anyway, the story of the prophet from the Galilee, Jonah of Gath Hepher (near Nazareth) is the story of a believer who plunged into rebellion and its accompanying behavioral depression. There is hope! Here are the four parts of the study in one easy to read, print or teach format!

The Principle Approach: “THE STORY OF JONAH”

Four Acts of a Drama on one who wants to “cut their own path” and not follow God’s call for their life.

ACT ONE: Song of the Pouting Prophet (Walking Away From God’s Best for You)

God has a desire for your life. He made you with specific gifts, talents and abilities – the way you are. Unfortunately, many of us spend a large amount of time running from right (because we feel doing wrong will somehow empower us with freedom) and following our call (because we have better plans for ourselves than God appears to have).

Quick outline:

  1. Will Disclosed (vv.1.2) — GOD MAKES HIS WILL KNOWN WHEN WE FOLLOW HIM.
  2. Way Declined (3) — GOD’S WILL IS CHOICE NOT COERSION.
  3.  Wind Devloped (4) — DISRUPTION IS TO GET OUR ATTENTION NOT TO “PUNISH”
  4.  Wares Destroyed (5) — GOD’S DEALINGS WITH US MEANT AS A TESTIMONY TO ALL
  5.  Wayword: CHOOSING NOT TO FOLLOW GOD ENDANGERS OTHERS
  • Disturbed (6) — GOD CAN USE A TESTIMONY EVEN WHEN BELIEVER HAS BEEN WRONG
  • Disclosed (7-10) — PEOPLE CIRCUMVENT GOD’S PLAN OUT OF COMPASSION
  • Disposed (11-15a) — CRISES BRING PERSPECTIVE. BEST RESPONSE: OBEDIENCE

6. Watchers Delivered (15-16) ONE SIN DOES NOT A FAILURE MAKE! GOD’S PLAN WILL CONTINUE

7. Wrong-doer Detained (17)

 Application: Are YOU a pouting prophet? …an innocent bystander? …or are you in the mainstream of God’s desire for you??

ACT TWO: The Pickled Prophet: Finding God the “Hard Way”

When I kick against God, He makes life harder. It isn’t because He doesn’t love me, it is because He DOES. Look at some principles from this prophet.

1. The classroom of the prophet’s prayer (1-6).

Principle #1: It doesn’t matter: a) where you are (1); b) how you feel (2); c) why you are calling (2); d) what you’ve done (3) …YOU CAN FIND GOD!

Principle #2: Finding God involves: a) a commitment (4); b) helplessness (5); c) acknowledgement of God’s control (6)

2. The confessions in the prophet’s prayer (7-9).

Principle: Four areas of disobedience: a) “forgot God”; b) neglected prayer c) believed lies -“you can run from God…”; d) lost thankfulness

3. The completion to the prophet’s prayer (9b-10).

Principle: God only delivers a man for the purpose of SERVING HIM. God did not send him back to ship he was running on, but onward to the place of his mission!

Application: What must God do right now in your life to become your highest priority? What has God called you to do; Are you busy about His work?

ACT THREE: The Preaching Prophet: “The best kind of broken heart”

I. The Prophet Preaching Repentance (3:1-4b)

A. The Commission of the Prophet (1,2)

B. The Cooperation of the Prophet (3,4a)

C. The Call of the Prophet (4b)

II. The People Understanding Repentance (3:5-9)

A. The Pattern of Repentance: (5,6)

1. agreeing with God (believe) about sin.

2. changing habits (proclaim fast).

3. changing appearance (sackcloth).

4. eliminating distinctions (greatest).

NOTE THAT THIS PATTERN IS REPEATED

B. The Proclamation to Repent: (7-9)

1. Don’t continue in present lifestyle.

2. Change focus: look UP!

3. Understand HIS control.

III. The Perfect One Accepting Repentance (3:10)

Repentance implies: a change in “works”

Repentance demands: a turning from “evil”

Repentance includes: a change in penalty

Application: Have you “repented” of sin? Are you ready to agree with God about your sin, change habits and lifestyle to conform to HIM?

ACT FOUR: The Praying Prophet: “Fighting the Battle of Depression“

Principle: JONAH TEACHES US THAT DEPRESSION IS A BATTLE EVEN FOR THE Follower of God! God includes in His Word insight in dealing with DEPRESSION:

  1. Jonah had an understanding of the character of God (4:2b) and a developed theology, yet he became depressed.
  2. Even when Jonah did the “right things” (preach in Nineveh, pray, etc.) he still became depressed.

Depression begins when we feel mistreated by someone. (1)
Depression is really an issue against the control of God- we don’t like the way HE is working the plan. (2)
Depression usually leads to the wrong conclusion. (3)
Depression is usually associated with (accompanied by) guilt. (4)

A depressed person fails to see the provisions God has given. (5)

A depressed person spends much of their time occupied with personal comfort and satisfaction. (6-8)

3.  God has a message for the depressed believer:

a. understand that GOD is at work in all things to teach us (9).

b. allow GOD to redirect your feelings for HIS purpose (10).

c. open your eyes to many who are LOST around you! (11)

There’s a job to be done!!!

Jonah 2: I Can Be Restored!

When you have walked away from God’s best for you, there is a way back to total restoration in your walk with God. Jonah offers a model of restoration in four stages:

1. The classroom of repentance (vv. 1-3). Principle: Recognize it doesn’t matter where you are (v. 1); how you feel (v. 2a); when you are calling  (i.e. “at death’s door”, v. 2b); how far you have sunk because of what you’ve done (v. 3)…YOU CAN FIND GOD when you choose to turn back to Him! It is incredibly important to remember. Sin isolates us and drives us to hide from others. In the classroom of repentance, I learn the lesson of my need – restoration. Standing alone in the cold, I can see there are no “God-forsaken” places or people!

 

2. The causeway of repentance (vv. 4-6). Principle: Understand that finding God involves a commitment to face God (v. 4); recognition of our utter helplessness when living in self will (v. 5); an acknowledgement of God’s control and desire (v. 6). The longer I live the more I am convinced that sin can never be satisfied by placating and feeding – it is insatiable. If I want victory, I am going to need to face my hardness and admit it before God so that blessing will again be renewed.

 

3. The confession of a repentant heart (vv. 7-9). Principle: Examine the areas of disobedience that brought you to this place. In Jonah’s case he “forgot God” (7a); neglected prayer (7b); believed lies (“you can run from God…”v.8); lost thankfulness (9a); forgot to obey his vow to give God his life (9b). Sin doesn’t make us HATE GOD, it makes us FORGET GOD. We act like He doesn’t see us where we are!

 

4. The completion of repentance: a renewal (9b-10). Principle: God delivers a man for the purpose of SERVING HIM in obedience. God did not send him back to ship he was running on, but onward to the place of his mission! He has a purpose for us, and He knows what He was buying when He redeemed us. He is not surprised. It is not for myself I have been redeemed, but for my Redeemer. The longer I live, and the better I know Him, the better that truth sounds.

Jonah 1: Finding God's Best For You

God has a divine purpose for struggle in the life of a disobedient believer. We can heed the example of a model, or we can pass through the painful process. The only ways we learn are by experience or example. Jonah modeled for us nine important principles to finding God’s best:

  1. Will Disclosed (1- 2) – Principle: God makes His will known when we follow Him.

  2. Way Declined (3) – Principle: We must understand that God’s will is a choice, not coercion.

  3. Wind Developed (4) – Principle: God often disrupts our lives as a way to get our attention, not to hurt or punish us. We must take heed early!

  4. Wares Destroyed (5) – Principle: Those around us are affected by our disobedience, for God deals with the believers as a testimony to all. Choosing to walk away from God endangers others.

  5. Wayward Disturbed: (6) – Principle: God may call upon you to be a testimony even when you are walking in disobedience. This is designed to bring you back to Him!

  6. Wayward Disclosed (7-10) – Principle: In the absence of the knowledge of the love of God and relationship with God, people respond only in fear of the power of God. Even in judgment, God reveals our relationship.

  7. Wayward Disposed (11-15a) – Principle: We cannot “rescue” another from their personal responsibility to follow God. When they know what must be done to reconcile the relationship, we should not attempt another path.

  8. Watchers Delivered (15b-16) Principle: God desires to use a believer in obedience, but He can and will use the testimony of disobedience to reach some.

  9. Wrong-doer Detained (17) Principle: Sometimes the best thing that can happen to us is a time of waiting and reconsidering our way. God sometimes prepares detours to help us settle down and recount where we have been.

At the end of the day, we can heed the example and avoid the painful experience of needing to “detour” our lives!

Obadiah: Reasons Why Nations Fail

Edom (from the word for ground or red in Hebrew) was a red-colored mountainous region with rock carved cities (now in the Kingdom of Jordan), where camel caravan traffic brought delicacies from the east to the west. They had a mixed history we should remember to set the scene for Obadiah’s prophecy of destruction on them. First, they were descendants of Esau, and as such they had an ongoing battle with the children of Israel. Moses long ago asked to pass through the territory on his way to the Promised Land, and the Edomites refused them passage and threatened them with arms (Num. 20:14-21). When the children of Israel were established in their land, Israel attacked Edom under King Saul (2 Sam. 8:14) and King David (2 Kings 8:20-22). As Israel grew weaker in the Divided Kingdom, Edom was able to shake free in independence at the time of Jehoram (2 Kings 8:20-22, about 840 BCE).


The Kingdom of Edom was well known as a bastion of security. The cities were nearly impregnable. Their reputation in was battle fierce. They had natural barriers protecting them, as well as world class skilled defense systems for the time. Their thriving capital at Petra was carved out of rock, and eventually housed some of the most luxurious buildings that stood in the ancient Near East (a theatre for 2000, etc.). They were noted for their national pride (Prov. 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”) and they defiantly rejected the God of Israel in favor of their own strength and position economically and militarily, with almost cultic devotion their own victories of the past. Three unique prophecies haunted Edom: First, God promised to completely desolate the land. Their cities still exist, but they are eerie tourist destinations of deserted ruins (Ezekiel 35:3-4)! Second, God promised the caravans would cease and the economy of the people would die off (Ezekiel 35:7). Finally, God revealed that he would completely wipe out their national identity (Ezekiel 35:13; Obadiah 18). Today, there are no nations that identify Edom as their ancestry!

What are the reasons for Edomite failure according to Obadiah and what can we learn from them? First, they had great pride in their defenses (3,4). Next, they combined their pride with an unwise trust in allies (5-7). On top of that, they had misplaced trust in three things: Wisdom (discernment) of experts (8); Knowledge (forecasting) of prognosticators (8); and Might of military strategists (9). What finally caused God to turn from them, however, was the unmerciful treatment of God’s people (10-14). They watched as invaded and offered no help to protect God’s stated agenda (11). They rejoiced in the losses of God’s people (12). They looted God’s people (13) and set up traps (roadblocks) to snare God’s people (14). What was God’s Response to Edom (and other Godless Nations)? He will judge them with their own wickedness (15-17). He will Sap their life as they sponged the life of God’s people. Further, He will give their fortunes back to His own people (move His blessing! V.17) and cut the offenders off completely (18). He will give to their “allies and friends” their fortune (19,20) and restore His message and His people (21). YOU CAN SAVE A NATION!

God always offers nations the opportunity to follow Him. In a pluralistic and democratic nation, we do this by persuasion. We MUST be prepared to graciously and lovingly share Jesus with our neighbor, it will preserve our future as much as missiles and alliances!

Exodus 24 Learning the Value of the Community of Leaders

Following the Amalekite war, Moses went through the painful but profitable experience of correction by Jethro, his father-in-law. Moses placed himself in a position of unrealistic expectation, trying to accomplish more than anyone could expect – a mistake common to driven leaders. The result was an overuse of his abilities, a slow draining of all of the creativity and leadership vision by the wearing grind of daily administration. Jethro told him to delegate administration, and in those words, God used a man that could get Moses’ attention, and get him to change the pattern of his work habits to refresh him and pull him back on track (Ex. 18:24). After the departure of Jethro, Moses brought the people to the edge of the Mountain of the Law, as God instructed. The time came that would later be memorialized in Shavuot (or “the Feast of weeks”), a holy convocation instructed in Levitical law (Lev. 23:15). This feast was an agricultural celebration, but its true importance is underscored in the Biblical instruction that included it as one of three mandatory offering appearances before the Lord annually (Dt. 16:16). God did not want this day forgotten! This was a day He gathered the children of Israel and God blew a shofar (ram’s horn trumpet) before them that shook their camp (Ex. 19:16)! God has seldom made Himself so obvious in the affairs of men – this day was not common! They had already traveled fifty days from the departure from Egypt (Ex.12: 15-20) to the time of the arrival at the mountain (Ex. 19:1). The term “fifty days” was captured in the word “Pentecost”, still a holy memorial each year among observant Jews recalling the encounter with God at the mountain, and the giving of the law. The Sabbath days between Passover and Pentecost were counted according to God’s instruction (Lev. 23:15).

God invited seventy elders and a specific guest list of leaders to the mountain to worship Him (Ex. 24:1). They were not allowed to move up the mountain with Moses, but they were instructed to come together for a corporate time of reverence (the Hebrew verb shakhaw means to bow before, prostrate one’s self, or revere, Ex. 24:1) some distance away from Moses. Moses prepared himself for the meeting. He rose early in the morning, wrote down the words God had given him in the previous encounter, raised up an altar and standing stones for the tribes, and sprinkled the blood of offerings on the altar. He read over the words he had written before the people, and they affirmed their commitment to God’s holy covenant. He took the elders and leaders up to the mountain.

The event that followed was unprecedented in human history. God passed by before the men, and they beheld a brightness that seemed like the sun. The mystery in the event was not simply that they gazed upon the path of God, and stood before a striking brightness. The shocking part of the story was their response! They were called there to worship, and yet the text reveals they “saw God, and did eat and drink.” What a response! God came, and they had a banquet together.

At a certain time in the meal, God instructed Moses, “Come up before Me into the mount, and be there: and I will give thee tablets of stone…” Moses arose, and took Joshua with him (Ex. 24:13). God made it clear that Moses was to appear alone (24:2) and either Joshua stopped some distance away or was considered necessary by God to help Moses in and out of His holy presence. The text does not say clearly, and only Joshua, Moses and God know for sure. One thing is certain: Joshua learned an important lesson in his preparation to the lead the nation that day.

Having grasped that intercession by a leader was essential, it was obviously not the whole training course. Joshua saw something new at the mountain of God’s appearing. He learned a graphic lesson that Moses heard from Jethro weeks before this encounter. Joshua saw a picture of a communal team that honored God. He ate with the others, drank with them, and communed with them. He saw a team leadership formation in corporate worship. There is a time for personal time with God, but there is equally a time for team.

The passage not only stemmed any uprising concerning the veracity of God’s authorship of the commandments (some might have thought Moses was making the commands up on his own), but it also gave the elders the opportunity to commune together and feast and worship. What an important lesson: Leaders need to lock arms with other leaders. We are not called to be “Supermen” that face the forces of darkness alone, depending solely on our “superhuman” ability or even the work of the Spirit within. We need each other, and grow when we can worship corporately, not only individually. We are stronger in communion, not in “Lone Ranger” mode.

Moses learned this in a rebuke by an older priest and relative. Joshua avoided the painful experience of sapping his own strength and “burning out” by observing the incredible benefit of corporate strength. The team can worship together, eat and drink together, and help to strengthen one another! It is significant that we have no Bible record of Joshua hoarding power, nor of him taking on responsibility that God had not ordained. His record of leadership and delegation is impressive. He may well have grasped the lesson at a banquet on a mountain!

The Divine wisdom penned out in the words of King Solomon recall: “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. Again, if two lie together, then they can have heat: but how can one be warm alone? And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.” (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, KJV)

Joshua’s training included the graphic display of the advantages Solomon later cited. The wise king reminds us ‘Together-

We can accomplish more, so the rewards are greater (Eccl. 4:9).

We can assist and rescue one another, so the endurance is greater (Eccl. 4:10).

We can comfort one another, so the encouragement is greater (Eccl. 4:11).

We can defend one another, so the strength is greater (Eccl. 4:12).’

Often leaders fall into the trap of believing their own press, subscribing to the affirmation of the positive view of their followers and not remembering their own weaknesses. It is part of the fabric of our makeup. We lead – they follow. We know – they don’t. It is a dangerous tendency to distance ourselves from the accountability that helps refocus and redirect us. We need other leaders. Joshua could have duplicated Moses’ mistake, but in this awesome display God accomplished another step in his training. It all happened at the buffet table on the mountain!