Posted in LGG Study

Jesus Our Everything: Week 5, Day 4

Question of the Day: How did Abraham obey? What does verse 11 tell us was the secret to his faith?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 11:8-22 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 11:8)

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place he would later receive as an inheritance, and he went out without understanding where he was going. 9 By faith he lived as a foreigner[a] in the promised land as though it were a foreign country, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, who were fellow heirs[b] of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with firm foundations,[c] whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith, even though Sarah herself was barren and he was too old,[d] he received the ability to procreate,[e] because he regarded the one who had given the promise to be trustworthy. 12 So in fact children[f] were fathered by one man—and this one as good as dead—like the number of stars in the sky and like the innumerable grains of sand[g]on the seashore.[h]13 These all died in faith without receiving the things promised,[i] but they saw them in the distance and welcomed them and acknowledged that they were strangers and foreigners[j] on the earth. 14 For those who speak in such a way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 In fact, if they had been thinking of the land that they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is,[k] they aspire to a better land, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac. He had received the promises,[l] yet he was ready to offer up[m] his only son. 18 God had told him, “Through Isaac descendants will carry on your name,”[n]19 and he reasoned[o] that God could even raise him from the dead, and in a sense[p] he received him back from there. 20 By faith also Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning the future. 21 By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshiped as he leaned on his staff.[q]22 By faith Joseph, at the end of his life,[r] mentioned the exodus of the sons of Israel[s] and gave instructions about his burial.[t]

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Jesus Our Everything: Week 5, Day 3

Question of the Day: According to Hebrews 11:1, what is Faith? What do you think this means?

Today’s Scipture: Hebrews 11:1-7 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 11:1-2)

People Commended for Their Faith

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see. 2 For by it the people of old[a] received God’s commendation.[b] 3 By faith we understand that the worlds[c] were set in order at God’s command,[d] so that the visible has its origin in the invisible.[e] 4 By faith Abel offered God a greater sacrifice than Cain, and through his faith[f] he was commended as righteous, because God commended him for his offerings. And through his faith[g] he still speaks, though he is dead. 5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he did not see death, and he was not to be found because God took him up. For before his removal he had been commended as having pleased God. 6 Now without faith it is impossible to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, when he was warned about things not yet seen, with reverent regard[h] constructed an ark for the deliverance of his family. Through faith he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

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Jesus Our Everything

Question of the day: What does it mean to shrink back? What does it look like to not shrink back?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 10:26-39 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 10:36-39)

For if we deliberately keep on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins is left for us,[a] 27 but only a certain fearful expectation of judgment and a fury[b] of fire that will consume God’s enemies.[c] 28 Someone who rejected the law of Moses was put to death[d] without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.[e] 29 How much greater punishment do you think that person deserves who has contempt for[f] the Son of God, and profanes[g] the blood of the covenant that made him holy,[h] and insults the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know the one who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,”[i] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[j] 31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32 But remember the former days when you endured a harsh conflict of suffering after you were enlightened. 33 At times you were publicly exposed to abuse and afflictions, and at other times you came to share with others who were treated in that way. 34 For in fact you shared the sufferings of those in prison,[k] and you accepted the confiscation of your belongings with joy, because you knew that you certainly[l] had a better and lasting possession. 35 So do not throw away your confidence, because it[m] has great reward. 36 For you need endurance in order to do God’s will and so receive what is promised.[n] 37 For just a little longer[o] and He who is coming will arrive and not delay.[p] 38 But my righteous one will live by faith, and if he shrinks back, I[q] take no pleasure in him.[r] 39 But we are not among those who shrink back and thus perish, but are among those who have faith and preserve their souls.[s]

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Jesus Our Everything: Week 5, Day 1

Question of the Day: How can we spur one another on to love and good works?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 10:19-25 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 10:23-25)

Drawing Near to God in Enduring Faith

Therefore, brothers and sisters,[a] since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the fresh and living way that He inaugurated for us[b] through the curtain, that is, through His flesh,[c] 21 and since we have a great priest[d] over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in the assurance that faith brings,[e] because we have had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience[f] and our bodies washed in pure water. 23 And let us hold unwaveringly to the hope that we confess, for the one who made the promise is trustworthy. 24 And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works,[g] 25 not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day[h] drawing near.[i]

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Jesus Our Everything: Week 4, Day 5

Question of the Day: According to Romans 5:20, what happened where sin increased?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 10:1-18; (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 10:1-2; Romans 5:20-21)

Concluding Exposition: Old and New Sacrifices Contrasted

For the law possesses a shadow of the good things to come but not the reality itself, and is therefore completely unable, by the same sacrifices offered continually, year after year, to perfect those who come to worship.[a] 2 For otherwise would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers would have been purified once for all and so have[b] no further consciousness of sin? 3 But in those sacrifices[c] there is a reminder of sins year after year. 4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5 So when He came into the world, He said,

“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body you prepared for Me.
6 “Whole burnt offerings and sin-offerings You took no delight in.
7 “Then I said, ‘Here I am:[d] I have come—it is written of Me in the scroll of the book—to do Your will, O God.’”[e]

8 When He says above, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sin-offerings You did not desire nor did You take delight in them”[f] (which are offered according to the law), 9 then He says, “Here I am: I have come to do your will.”[g] He does away with[h] the first to establish the second. 10 By His will[i] we have been made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11 And every priest stands day after day[j] serving and offering the same sacrifices again and again—sacrifices that can never take away sins. 12 But when this Priest[k] had offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, He sat down at the right hand[l] of God, 13 where He is now waiting[m] until His enemies are made a footstool for His feet.[n] 14 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are made holy. 15 And the Holy Spirit also witnesses to us, for after saying,[o] 16 “This is the covenant that I will establish with them after those days, says the Lord. I will put[p] My laws on their hearts and I will inscribe them on their minds,”[q] 17 then he says,[r] “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no longer.”[s] 18 Now where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Romans 5:20-21

20 Now the law came in[a] so that the transgression[b] may increase, but where sin increased, grace multiplied all the more, 21 so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Posted in LGG Study

Jesus Our Everything: Week 4, Day 4

Question of the Day: I love Hebrew’s constant reminders that our “Hope is Secure” in Christ! What’s something you love about this study?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 9:15-28 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 9:27-28)

 And so he is the mediator[a] of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the eternal inheritance he has promised,[b] since he died[c] to set them free from the violations committed under the first covenant. 16 For where there is a will, the death of the one who made it must be proven.[d]17 For a will takes effect only at death, since it carries no force while the one who made it is alive. 18 So even the first covenant was inaugurated with blood.[e]19 For when Moses had spoken every command to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and goats with water and scarlet wool and hyssop and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20 and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that God has commanded you to keep.”[f]21 And both the tabernacle and all the utensils of worship he likewise sprinkled with blood. 22 Indeed according to the law almost everything was purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. 23 So it was necessary for the sketches[g] of the things in heaven to be purified with these sacrifices,[h] but the heavenly things themselves required[i] better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with hands—the representation[j] of the true sanctuary[k]—but into heaven itself, and he appears now in God’s presence for us. 25 And he did not enter to offer[l] himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the sanctuary year after year with blood that is not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the consummation of the ages to put away sin by his sacrifice. 27 And just as people[m] are appointed to die once, and then to face judgment,[n]28 so also, after Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many,[o] to those who eagerly await him he will appear a second time, not to bear sin[p] but to bring salvation.[q]

Posted in God is good, Prayer Starters

A Perfected System

Old Rules about Worship


Now the first covenant, in fact, had regulations for worship and its earthly sanctuary. 2 For a tent was prepared, the outer one, which contained the lampstand, the table, and the presentation of the loaves; this is called the Holy Place. 3 And after the second curtain there was a tent called the holy of holies. 4 It contained the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered entirely with gold. In this ark were the golden urn containing the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. 5 And above the ark were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Now is not the time to speak of these things in detail. 6 So with these things prepared like this, the priests enter continually into the outer tent as they perform their duties. 7 But only the high priest enters once a year into the inner tent, and not without blood that he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance. 8 The Holy Spirit is making clear that the way into the Holy Place had not yet appeared as long as the old tabernacle was standing. 9 This was a symbol for the time then present, when gifts and sacrifices were offered that could not perfect the conscience of the worshiper. 10 They served only for matters of food and drink and various ritual washings; they are external regulations imposed until the new order came.
Hebrews 9:1-10

Christ’s Service in the Heavenly Sanctuary

 But now Christ has come as the high priest of the good things to come. He passed through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, 12 and He entered once for all into the Most Holy Place not by the blood of goats and calves but by His own blood, and so He Himself secured eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled consecrated them and provided ritual purity, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, purify our consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

15 And so He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the eternal inheritance He has promised, since He died to set them free from the violations committed under the first covenant. 16 For where there is a will, the death of the one who made it must be proven. 17 For a will takes effect only at death, since it carries no force while the one who made it is alive.

Hebrews 9:11-17

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Father, You are good! In Your goodness, You bought me with a high price and made a WAY where there was, or seemed to be, no way. Because of Your goodness, we no longer need the Tabernacle of long ago because You have made us Your Temple. The Tabernacle was good and beautiful in its purpose and design and it pointed Your people to the better WAY, the Messiah, yet to come. However, as they knew then and we see clearly now – the gifts and sacrifices they made could not perfect the conscience of the worshiper. So, You, in Your goodness, took away the need for the regulations, rituals, and animal sacrifices that were a part of the Tabernacle ‘system’ – by sending the promised and long-awaited Redeemer, Jesus Christ. The sinless Redeemer, Your only begotten Son, was a PERFECT Sacrifice whose death, burial, and resurrection made a WAY! He conquered sin and death and made THE ONLY WAY for us to enter into Your Presence and be the dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. So that, now through His eternal sacrifice and Your gift of His Spirit in me, I AM ABLE, with a clear conscience, to WORSHIP You in Spirit and in TRUTH, to walk in FREEDOM from sin and to live for You as His WITNESS! Yes, Father, You are good.

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

Posted in LGG Study

Jesus Our Everything: Week 4, Day 3

Question of the Day: According to today’s LGG Devotional, how can Christ cleanse us from sin eternally?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 9:11-14 (S.O.A.P. Hebrews 9:13-14)

Christ’s Service in the Heavenly Sanctuary

But now Christ has come[a] as the high priest of the good things to come. He passed through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, 12 and he entered once for all into the Most Holy Place not by the blood of goats and calves but by his own blood, and so he himself secured[b] eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled consecrated them and provided ritual purity,[c]14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our[d] consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

Posted in LGG Study

Jesus Our Everything: Week 4, Day 2

Question of the Day: According to 1 Corinthians 6:19 and 20, why should we glorify God with our bodies?

Today’s Scripture: Hebrews 9:1-10 and 1 Cor. 6:19-20 (S.O.A.P. 9:8-9; 6:19-20)

The Arrangement and Ritual of the Earthly Sanctuary

Now the first covenant,[a] in fact, had regulations for worship and its earthly sanctuary. 2 For a tent was prepared, the outer one,[b] which contained[c] the lampstand, the table, and the presentation of the loaves; this[d] is called the Holy Place. 3 And after the second curtain there was a tent called the holy of holies. 4 It contained the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered entirely with gold. In this ark[e] were the golden urn containing the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. 5 And above the ark[f] were the cherubim[g] of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Now is not the time to speak of these things in detail. 6 So with these things prepared like this, the priests enter continually into the outer tent[h] as they perform their duties. 7 But only the high priest enters once a year into the inner tent,[i] and not without blood that he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance.[j] 8 The Holy Spirit is making clear that the way into the Holy Place had not yet appeared as long as the old tabernacle[k] was standing. 9 This was a symbol for the time then present, when gifts and sacrifices were offered that could not perfect the conscience of the worshiper. 10 They served only for matters of food and drink[l] and various ritual washings; they are external regulations[m] imposed until the new order came.[n]

 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you,[a] whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.

Posted in God is good, Prayer Starters

The Better Covenant

For the law made nothing perfect. On the other hand a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. 20 And since this was not done without a sworn affirmation—for the others have become priests without a sworn affirmation, 21 but Jesus did so with a sworn affirmation by the one who said to him, “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever’”— 22 accordingly Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant. 23 And the others who became priests were numerous, because death prevented them from continuing in office,24 but he holds his priesthood permanently since he lives forever. 25 So he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. 26 For it is indeed fitting for us to have such a high priest: holy, innocent, undefiled, separate from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Hebrews 7:19-26

Father, You are good! And what greater way to see Your goodness than through Jesus Christ, our Guarantee of a better covenant. The covenant of GRACE rather than law! I see Your goodness in Him who saves completely (perfectly) those who come to You through Him. Because He lives forever – interceding for us who have through FAITH believed. I see Your goodness in providing a better Priest — One who, Himself, is HOLY, and separate from sinners. The One who is exalted above the heavens and who offered Himself as a sacrifice on my behalf!

Yes Father, I see Your goodness – the depth of it – through JESUS CHRIST – my Lord!