Leviticus 24:1-4

Hey, hey, good morning, good morning. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This is where every day you and I, we get together, we have a little bit of coffee, we get into God's Word, and we grow in our love for the Lord together. And this year, 2023, Lord willing, we're going to make it from Genesis through Leviticus. I'm so glad to be with you today. Why don't we have some coffee?
We'll pray and we'll jump into God's Word. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for this day that you have given us. We pray that as we read this short passage, that your spirit would be with us. Lord, we pray that we would be faithful to you and that we would be emboldened by your spirit, the walk and the love that you have given us. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. All right, so we're at Leviticus chapter 24. We're at a new chapter, Leviticus chapter 24, and we'll begin at verse one and we'll work through verse four.
Then the Lord spoke to Moses saying, command the children of Israel that they bring to you pure olive of pressed olives for the light to make lamps burn continually. Outside the veil of the testimony in the tabernacle of meeting, Aaron shall be in charge of it from evening until morning before Jehovah continually. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. He shall be in charge of the lamps on the pure gold lampstand before the Lord continually. Well, we need to ask ourselves our three questions. A, what's this about? B, what's the best verse to summarize this? And C, what are we called to do in response to these words? So, A, what's this about?
Well, already in Exodus, I think it's chapter 26, let me see my notes here. Yep, Exodus chapter 26, verses 31 through 35, God had given the pattern for the lampstand, and then they made the lampstand. And now he's telling them, now the lamps that are on that lampstand, those candles are going to burn, really candles are oil, but that they're going to burn all the time. They're not to go out all the time. They're to burn. So Aaron, he said, go in there. The lampstand is going to be right by the veil and not in the holy of holies, but just outside that in the holy place. And there he's going to make sure that the lampstands are lit all the time. That constant light in the presence of God, that his light doesn't go out on his people, that he's with them. It's not that God can't see in the holy of holies or he can't see in the holy place and he has to secretly creep out.
No, no, no, that's not what this is about. All of these are types, signs, shadows of what is happening in heaven in the heavenly tabernacle. So what is this really about and what it's called us to do? Well, that's where I'm going to have us flip over to Revelation. In Hebrews, we find out that it's Jesus who's our high priest who's ministering to us in heaven. But here in John's apocalypse in Revelation, we actually get a vision of heaven. So let me just read this to you.
And having seen, or having turned and saw the seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands, one like the son of man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band, his head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes like a flame of fire. His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and his voice was the sound of many waters. He had in his right hand seven stars, out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was like the sun shining in strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead, but he laid his right hand on me.
And he said to me, now, how do we know that this is Jesus? How do we know that this is correct? Well, how do we know that this isn't an angel for that matter? Let's read these next verses. do not be afraid i am the first and the last i am he who lives and was dead and behold i am alive forevermore that is jesus christ speaking Amen.
And I have the keys to Hades and of death. Write these things which you have seen and the things which are and the things which will take place after this. The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand and the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches. So what is this talking about?
This is meant to point us to Jesus Christ, who has the churches in his hand. Right now, at this point, it makes sense there's only one church in Israel, and so there's one lampstand, and it's meant to be there and burn continually, but we are also meant to burn continually for Christ, right? Nobody lights a light on a lamp and hides it under a bushel, no, right? But puts it in the city, puts it on the hilltop so everyone can see it. This is what he's actually going to get at in Ephesus.
Actually, if we go down to chapter 2. Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember, therefore, that where you have fallen, repent and do the first works or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent. But you have, but this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
So the church needs to be warned. A body of the church needs to be warned that we might be all against sexual immorality, but if we don't love Jesus Christ, that was the sin of the Nicolaitans, but if we don't love Jesus Christ, and we don't love our neighbors, if we've forgotten our first love, we've forgotten our love for Jesus Christ, we might be the most doctrinally firm people in the world. And Jesus could eventually extinguish the light of that congregation.
So what are you called to do today? I'm going to encourage you moving from Leviticus chapter 24 to Revelation chapter one and two, Jesus commands us to not forget our first love. He is the first and he is the last that we are to love him with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength.
Go keep hating the deeds of the flesh, right? For they lead to death. we must remember our first love. This whole ceremonial system that we've been going through is about the people of Israel had forgotten their first love at the time that we moved through. They don't, they they're all about their doctrinal peculiarities and even about the feast, but they forgot what they were meant to point them to.
Lord himself, merciful and gracious, abounding and loving kindness. So that was the one that they were supposed to know and love, and that's the one you were called to know and love, the one who sent his own son to die for you, to be a propitiation for your sins. Don't ever forget your love for him. Don't let your light dim or die out.
And may we as churches continue to love Him and to shine the love of Jesus Christ into the world. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much that you have sent us Jesus Christ. We pray that we would love you, that we would share your love with others, and that we would walk in that love. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Well, may God bless you. May you walk in the joy and peace that comes only from walking in the love of Jesus Christ. I'll see you next time. Bye.
Thanks for listening to this week's message from God's Word for You, a ministry of Sharon R.P. Church in rural southeast Iowa. We pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith in your life this week. If you'd like to get more information about us, feel free to go to the website, SharonRPC.org. We'd love to invite you to worship with us. Our worship time is 10 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue. Morning Sun, Iowa, 52640. May God richly bless you this week.