THE RIGHT CLEANSING RITE dailymanna.dclm.org | Saturday, October 14, 2017 By W. F. Kumuyi
LEVITICUS 14:10-20: KEY VERSE: "And the priest shall offer the burnt offering and the meat offering upon the altar: and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and he shall be clean" (Leviticus 14:20).
Naaman, the captain of the host of the king of Syria was described as a great and honourable man, a military strategist who fought and won series of battles on behalf of his master the king. But he was a leper, a stigma that displayed a blight in his otherwise brilliant career. His life changed when he met Elisha who instructed him to take a dip into the Jordan river seven times. Miraculously his leprosy vanished. He became a man without reproach and confessed that Jehovah God was without parallel.
The leper was to be unclean until he was purified. To complete the purification of the leper on the eighth day, and before he returned to his own home, he was to be presented to the Lord, with his offering. The mercies of God oblige the leper to present himself to Him through the priests, who made acceptable sacrifices for his cleansing and atonement. Beside the usual rites of the trespass offering, some of the blood and oil was to be put upon him that was to be cleansed.
When God has restored us to enjoy public worship again (after sickness, chastisement, or any other challenge), we should show appreciation for the fact that He cleansed us from our sins, admitted us into His Kingdom, separated us for His service, and reserves a place for us in heaven by the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ. No other sacrifice here on earth can secure eternal treasure for us. God’s kind dealings with us ought therefore to reflect in our appreciation to Him and in how we comport ourselves.
Thought for the day: The blood of Jesus bleaches the heart white!
How Long? Our Daily Bread | Saturday, October 7, 2017 By Karen Wolfe
Read: Habakkuk 1:2–11 | Bible in a Year: Isaiah 28–29; Philippians 3
How long, Lord, must I call for help?
When I married, I thought I would have children immediately. That did not happen, and the pain of infertility brought me to my knees. I often cried out to God, “How long?” I knew God could change my circumstance. Why wasn’t He?
Are you waiting on God? Are you asking, How long, Lord, before justice prevails in our world? Before there is a cure for cancer? Before I am no longer in debt?
God hears us and, in His time, will give an answer.
The prophet Habakkuk was well acquainted with that feeling. In the seventh century bc, he cried out to the Lord: “How long, Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ but you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing?” (Hab. 1:2–3). He prayed for a long time, struggling to reconcile how a just and powerful God could allow wickedness, injustice, and corruption to continue in Judah. As far as Habakkuk was concerned, God should have already intervened. Why was God doing nothing?
There are days when we too feel as if God is doing nothing. Like Habakkuk, we have continuously asked God, “How long?”
Yet, we are not alone. As with Habakkuk, God hears our burdens. We must continue to cast them on the Lord because He cares for us. God hears us and, in His time, will give an answer.
Lord, thank You for bearing my burdens. I know that You hear my cries and will answer in accordance to Your perfect plan and purposes.
Don't despair because of evil; God will have the last word.
INSIGHT
Like Habakkuk, the psalmist David understood that life’s challenges get harder the longer they last. David asked “How long?” four times in just two verses, “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?” (Ps. 13:1–2, emphasis added).
When you struggle, can you identify with Habakkuk and David? Does it feel like help is far away? Consider Lamentations 3:22–23, and let it encourage you to trust in God’s faithful care.
(Bill Crowder)
