holiness ⁽⁶¹⁾

Psalm 51:1–12; Exodus 30:1–10; Hebrews 4:14–5:4 Even if every single Israelite behaved completely within the bounds of Law, and thus no sin offerings were offered for an entire year…still Aaron would have to perform the ritual of reconciliation. No matter how perfect every Israelite was,…

Psalm 107:1–16; Isaiah 60:15–22; John 8:12–20 In the US, Christians as a whole (versus individually), are disliked (if not hated), forbidden (i.e., closed-minded, intolerant, bigoted, prejudiced, etc.), and culturally abandoned (granted, much of that is based upon Christians running for the “holy” hills and their…

Psalm 84; Ezra 6:1–16; Mark 11:15–19 If you are unaccustomed to the lectionary (again, what is being used this year for the passages), it can seem odd, annoying, and definitely repetitious to see the same Psalm for multiple days. As I, too, am reading it…

Psalm 84; 2 Chronicles 29:1–11, 16–19; Hebrews 9:23–28 A few days ago, we read about Jesus cleansing the Temple. As noted, then, prophets doing “over-the-top” things weren't totally unexpected. Generally, it was uncomfortable, but God’s true prophets weren’t known to bring comfort without discomfort. Sometimes…

Psalm 22:23–31; Genesis 15:1–6, 12–18; Romans 3:21–31 You are loved by God. Yes, you. If you are reading this, and are not a believer in Jesus Christ, you are loved by God. If you are Jewish, and not a believer in Jesus Christ, you are…