Lifespring! One Year Bible Rewind

S3E217 – 1 Chronicles 1-4: It Would Have Been Enough

Transcript PODCAST INTRODUCTION Today we will complete the book of 1 Chronicles 1-4. I’ll have comments on both chapters after the reading, and I’m calling today’s episode “It Would Have Been Enough.” S12E223Art3000-woman standing next to cross [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/11222028/S12E223Art3000.jpg]Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Jametlene Reskp on Unsplash COMMENTS ON 1 CHRONICLES 1-4 THOUGHTS ON 1 CHRONICLES 1 Chapter 1 begins appropriately with Adam. All of humanity, all our history, begins with him. Adam is the father of all flesh. From Adam we are taken through the generations to Noah. From Noah came all the different nations and races. One of Noah’s sons was Shem, and from Shem’s line came Abraham. Abraham became the father of the faithful; by blood, the Jewish people. By adoption, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ (See Romans 4:11 and 12). It’s important to note that the Old Testament is primarily focused on Abraham’s line, the Jewish people, God’s chosen people. (More about that in a moment.) Some of the names listed in this chapter don’t play a part in the history of this line and are listed only as a matter of record.  Now, a word about God’s chosen people. For what purpose did God choose Israel? He chose them so He could teach them how to truly worship Him, and then show all the nations what true worship was, and how to live lives pleasing to Him.  So it makes sense that the Old Testament would focus its attention on the history of Abraham’s line, doesn’t it? As we continue the genealogies in the coming chapters, we’ll read more of the Abrahamic line, from his son Judah to his grandson Israel, all the way to David and his son Solomon, through all the kings up until Jerusalem was destroyed. There is a lot of history there, and I’ll try to make it as interesting as I can.   THOUGHTS ON 1 CHRONICLES 2  There were some very interesting and important men and women listed in this chapter. Judah, Israel, Boaz, Jesse, David…just to name a few. Some are remembered as the first to settle certain towns and regions.  But two are going to be remembered throughout time for their sins. We read that “the Lord considered Er, Judah’s firstborn, evil, so the Lord killed Er.” And “Carmi’s son was Achar, who caused trouble for Israel by taking goods that were claimed by God.” Do you suppose that these men were one hundred percent evil? We don’t know. All we know from this chapter is that they had evil natures.  How do you suppose that when God someday opens the book on your life, He will summarize you? For what will you be remembered?  In a sermon, my pastor once mentioned a church member who had passed away several years earlier, and to sum him up, the pastor said, “Louis was a sweet man. He always had time for you. When you talked to him, he would look you in the eyes and smile.” How will you be remembered?  THOUGHTS ON 1 CHRONICLES 4  In chapter 4, verses 9 and 10 we read about a fellow named Jabez. Let’s take another look. “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez [Painful], because she said that his birth was painful. 10 Jabez prayed to the God of Israel, “Please bless me and give me more territory. May your power be with me and free me from evil so that I will not be in pain.” God gave him what he prayed for.” All we know about Jabez is contained in these two verses, but the fact that this prayer of his is recorded here in 1 Chronicles tells me something. It tells me that it is okay to ask God for things. I don’t know about you, but I was brought up to put other people before me. I learned very early on that the world does not revolve around me, and it is wrong to be selfish or self-centered. Not that I am never self-centered. I can be as selfish as the next guy, but I do know that it’s wrong to be selfish.  So for much of my life, it was hard for me to ask God to bless me, to give me things. I’m just happy that he’s forgiven my sins. If that was all God ever did for me, that would have been enough. I don’t need to be rich or live in a big fancy house. After all, Jesus didn’t even have a place to lay his head. Who am I to ask for more than He had?  Thats was my approach to prayer for most of my life, and it is the primary way I pray now. I’ll pray for you, that God will bless you, but I never felt right about praying that kind of prayer for myself. And then several years ago a little book called “The Prayer of Jabez” was published. It’s less than 100 pages. The author’s name is Bruce Wilkinson. The book became a best seller and I read it because it came highly recommended by a friend of mine. It really made me consider whether my attitude regarding asking God to bless me was right.  Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think God wants us to ask Him to make us win the lottery, or ask Him to put us on the list of the top three richest people in the world, but that wasn’t Jabez’s prayer either.  Listen, you can read the book for yourself. I’m not going to discuss all the points, because we don’t have the time here. Just know that when you ask God to give you more, and you ask out of a pure heart, and your request is pleasing to Him, that is a good thing.  I began to pray that prayer after reading the book. One of the results of the prayer is that when I asked him to enlarge my territory, God did it. How? Well, the book was published in 2000. I probably read it in about 2002. In 2004 I heard about this crazy thing called podcasting, and all of a sudden this guy who was in love with God, recording from his church in Riverside, CA, is talking to the world. Podcasting is old hat now. But back then, we were still figuring it all out. This was a big deal. Never before was it relatively easy and affordable to speak to the world. And guess what. After my very first episode, I got an email from a guy in Sweden, asking me how he could know that God was real. Long story short, he became a follower of Jesus. And there have been many other emails from people all over the world since then. I asked God to enlarge my territory. Not for me, but for His glory. And He did it. Am I blessed? Of course, but in a much different way than I could have ever imagined. Certainly finances are still sometimes a challenge, but the fact that God would use a guy like me to carry His message to nearly every nation on Earth is a concept I would have never in my wildest dreams imagined. I would encourage you to look closely at Jabez’s prayer here in 1 Chronicles and see if it’s something you would pray. TODAY’S BIBLE TRANSLATION Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 1 CEB; Ch. 2-4 GW TODAY’S MUSIC Michelle Gold [http://michellegold.com] “Dayenu” YouTube player [https://i.ytimg.com/vi/k9uKUns2S7U/maxresdefault.jpg] SUPPORT This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT [/support/]. [/support/] TRANSCRIPT Download .txt file. [https://d1uphahyf7mnoz.cloudfront.net/lsfb/LSFAB_S12-E223_otter_ai.txt] Steve Webb 0:00 God gave him what he prayed for. Unknown Speaker 0:10 This is the Lifespring family Audio Bible coming to you from Riverside, California and podcasting since 2004. I am your OG God cast your Steve Webb, welcome. I’m so glad you’re here today. This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year and today we’re going to begin to book a First Chronicles. We’ll read chapters one through four. I’ll have comments on some of the chapters after the reading and I’m calling today’s episode, it would have been enough. The show notes page for today’s episode is at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 223. My email address is Steve at Lifespring media.com And I think it’s time to get started. Let’s go. Unknown Speaker 0:51 First Chronicles chapter one, Adam Seth Enosh, Kenan Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, les mech, Noah, Unknown Speaker 1:03 Noah’s family Shem, Ham and J. Fef. J FETs. Family. Gomer, Magog may die jayven, Tubal, Meshech and thairis Unknown Speaker 1:16 Gomez family, Ashkan as Rifat and two Garma. Jameson’s family, the Alicia Tarshish get him and Rodon him. hams family, Kush, Egypt, hoot and Canaan pushes them family Seba. Havilah, Sabka, Rama and sab Tikka RAM his family Sheba and D. Dan Cush was the father of Nimrod, the first warrior in the land. Egypt was the father of Ludum anonym Labem NAFTA him path gruesome, Kasler him from whom the Philistines came and CAFTA rim. Canaan was the father of seitan, his oldest son, half the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Gurkha Shi’ites, the Hivites the archivists, the sights, the ARVA dites, the zemer writes, and the hammer fights Shems family, Elam, Ashur, our pack shed Lud and Aram. Aramis family. US whole Gaither at me check. Our Pack shed was Sheila’s father and Sheila was Hebrews father, two sons were born to Eber One was named Peleg because in his days the land was divided. And his brother’s name was Jack 10. Jack 10 was the father of our Mo dad. She left hazer may Beth Jira, a doram usal decla evil Abend al Sheba ofor have Allah and Joe Babb. All these were Jacque 10s family Shem our pack shad Sheila Eber P leg. Ryu Serug ne hor, Tara, and Abram, that is Abraham, Abraham’s family, Isaac and Ishmael. These were their descendants. Ishmael is oldest son was the bay off then keytar abdiel MyB Sam misma Duma Massa. Hey dad, tema, Jeter, nefesh and Kinema. This was Ishmael is family. Unknown Speaker 3:24 Abraham’s secondary wife Couture’s family. She gave birth to Zim ran. Jacque Shan, me dan Midian is back and shuaa Jacque Schanz family Sheba and DT N Midians family. Eva, Eva. Hey knock, a bida and El Dia. These were members of criterias family. Unknown Speaker 3:48 Abraham was Isaac’s father, Isaac’s family he saw and Israel. He saw his family LFS rule geohash Jaylen and Cora LFS his family Tieman Omar z phi gitam key NAS Timnah and emelec rules family may have Zerah Shammah and miza Unknown Speaker 4:14 Sears family lo 10 Schauble, Zyban, Aina di Shan, easer and di Shan Unknown Speaker 4:23 low 10s family Hora and home mam low 10s sister was Timnah show balls family Allien mana half evil she fi and Onam xebialabs family Aya and aina anus family di Shan di Sean’s family hamrun Ash ban ith ran and Kieran Caesar’s family, Bill Han Zaytoven and Jaya can die Shannon’s family, US and Ayran Unknown Speaker 4:55 these were the kings who ruled in the land of Edom before any king ruled over the Israel Unknown Speaker 5:00 Lights. Billa be your son who said he was called den hubba. When Biela died, Joe Bab zero his son from Bosnia succeeded him. When Joe Bab died huge them from the land of the team and it succeeded him. When Hashem died, hey dad be dead son who defeated Midian in the Moabite countryside succeeded him. His city was called a vith. When he dad died Samla from Mazda succeeded him when Samla died shawl from Rehoboth on the river succeeded him. When shawl died, Ben Hainan Akbar son succeeded him. When Baal Hanan died, he dead succeeded him. His city was called PI. His wife’s name was my head Abell matrons daughter in MISA Habs granddaughter. When he dad died itams tribal chiefs were Chief Timnah chief Allia chief g thefe. Chief or holy Bama chief ILA Chief pyin Chief keen as chief Tieman chief MyB czar, Chief Magneto and chief Irem these were itams tribal chiefs. Unknown Speaker 6:14 First Chronicles chapter two. These were Israel sons, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, is a car Zombieland, Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad and Asher Judas sons were Onan and Sheila, these three were born to him by Bathsheba a Canaanite woman. The Lord considered her Judah’s firstborn evil so the Lord killed her. Tamar Judas daughter in law gave birth to Judas sons P res. And Zerah. Judah had five sons and all the rest his sons were husband and haimo. Zero his sons were Zimride Ethan HeMan cow Cole and Dara five and all. Karma his son was a car who caused trouble for Israel by taking goods that were claimed by God. Ethan’s son was as Araya the sons born to hezron were geranyl Ram and Kullu by Ram was the father of a minute dab a minute dad was the father of nosh on leader of Judas people. Now Shawn was the father of Salma, and Salma was the father of Boaz. Boaz was the father of Obed. And Obed was the father of Jesse. Unknown Speaker 7:33 Jesse was the father of Eliab, his firstborn, emitted DAB his second son Shamia his third son, Nathanael, his fourth son, read I his fifth son owsm is sixth son, and David his seventh son. Their sisters were the ruya and Abigail Zuru Yes, three sons were a by Shai Joab. At Sol Abigail was the mother of a mesa whose father was Geeta a descendant of Ishmael has RINs son was Caleb. Caleb and his wife zuba had a son named Jerry off. Her other sons were Jishu show Bab and Ardon. After a zuba died, Caleb married F RAF. She gave birth to her. Her was the father of your eye, and your eye was the father of bezel. afterwards. Ezrin slept with a daughter of maker the man who first settled Gilead. Ezrin had married her when he was 60 years old. She gave birth to see Gob See, gubb was the father of Jair, who had 23 towns in Gilead. Gesher and Aram captured have off chair with ki Nath and its villages 60 cities and all. All of these people were descendants of maker the man who first settled Gilead after Hestrin died in Caleb Africa, husband’s wife, Elijah gave birth to Asher who first settled to Cola, Jeronimo the firstborn of husband fathered RAM, his firstborn, then buna, Oren owsm, and a hijab. Jeremy Oh, had another wife. Her name was Adhara and she was the mother of Onam. Unknown Speaker 9:13 The sons of ram the firstborn son of Jeremy l were may as Jamin and Eaker Onam sons were Shamaya and Jada. Share my sons were named AB and a biker. The name of a biker his wife was Abba Hale. She gave birth to Alban and Molad native sons were C lead and Appian but C lead died without children. Abby and son was Ishai and Ishai son was Shi Shan and Shi Shan son was ally. The sons of Jada Shama his brother, were Jeter and Jonathan G. Third died without children. Jonathan sons were pilaf and Ziza. These were the descendants of Jerome el Shi Shan had no sons but he had Unknown Speaker 10:00 daughters. He had an Egyptian slaved named Jara Shi Shan let Jarrah marry one of his daughters. She gave birth to add I add I was the father of Nathan. Nathan was the father of a bad ze bad was the father of F Lau. F Lau was the father of Obed Obed was the father of G Qg, who was the father of Azariah. As Araya was the father of he less he less was the father of Lea ASA Lea Asa was the father of sis my sis my was the father of Shallum. Shallum was the father of Jeremiah. Jeremiah was the father of Elishama. The descendants of Caleb Jerome ials brother were his firstborn son Misha who first settled Ziff and the sons of Maria who first settled Hebron, he brings sons were Cora Tapiwa, recomb and Shima. Unknown Speaker 10:54 Shima was the father of rayon, who first settled jerky him recomb was the father of Shamai sham eyes son was Mayon who first settled Beth zur ephah Caleb’s concubine was the mother of Heron Moza and gazes Heron was the father of gays is John eyes sons were regum Joe thumb giesen Pilet ephah and che f may occur Caleb’s concubine was the mother of Schieber and her Hanaa. Also, she was the mother of che AFF who first settled Matt mana and of Shiva who first settled to Mack Bina and Gebbia Caleb’s daughter was AXA. These people were the descendants of Caleb. The sons of her the firstborn son of F RAF were show ball who first settled carry f g or M. Salma, who first settled Bethlehem and Harris, who first settled Beth Gator show ball who first settled carry F j. RIM had these descendants heroic half of the man who fights the families of carry F jrM, the birthright, the Pew fights, the Schumer fights and the Mishri heights. From these people came the Zora heights and ash tailights. The descendants of Salma, who first settled Bethlehem were the Nephites at Roff, who first settled Beth Joab, half of the Mannahatta heights, the Tsar heights and the families of scribes who lived at Jay bez. These families were the people of Tyra Shinya and suka. These people are the Kenites who came from hammock they first settled Beth recab. Unknown Speaker 12:33 First Chronicles chapter three. These were David’s sons who were born to him while he was in Hebron. His first son was Amnon born to a him from Israel. The second was Daniel born to Abigail from Carmel. The third was Absalom born to Mecca, the daughter of King Tomei from Gesher. The fourth was at or Nyjah, whose mother was haggis. The fifth was chef at Taya born to Abidal. The sex was Etherium born to David’s wife, Agla. six sons were born to him and Hebron where he ruled for seven years and six months. He ruled for 33 years in Jerusalem. These children were born to David in Jerusalem Shamia show Bab Nathan and Solomon the mother of these four was Samuels daughter Bathsheba, and iPAR Alicia Iliff, alette, Noga, me FG, Jeremiah, Alicia, Elia, and Alyssa let nine by other wives. All of these were David’s sons. Besides these, they were the sons of the concubines. Tamar was their sister. Solomon’s son was Rehoboam Rehoboam son was a biojet a Bhaiji. His son was ASA aces son was Jehoshaphat Jehoshaphat son was Joram Joram son was a Uzziah a desire His son was Joash Joash his son was Amaziah Amaziah his son was as Araya as arraez. Son was Jonathan. Jonathan’s son was a has a has his son was Hezekiah Hezekiah his son was Manasseh Manasseh his son was Amman, Emmons son was Josiah. Josiah. his firstborn son was Joe Hainan. The second was Jehovah come, the third was Zedekiah and the fourth was Shallum. Jehovah comes son was Jack Enya, whose son was Zedekiah the descendants of the prisoner Jack and I were his son she LTL then Mel Kiram padega, Shin Azur, jakka, Maya, Hiroshima and Netta baya. Today’s sons were Zerubbabel and shimmy AI. The rubber balls sons were Miss Shulam and Hannah Nyah and shalom with was their sister. There were also five other sons has shuba Unknown Speaker 15:00 Oh hell, Dara, Kaya has a Daya and Zhu Shab he said, and an AI his sons were Pelotonia into Shaya to shake his son was refer refer his son was Arnon Arnold’s son was Obadiah Obadiah his son was check Enya. Check an eyes son was Shania Shimei is six sons were Haddish I gal Berea, NIA Raya, and che fat. The arraez Three sons were Elio Eni, his kya and Astra comme le OE nice seven sons were Hoda via Eliashib Polonia Aqib Joe Hainan delea and an AI Unknown Speaker 15:42 First Chronicles chapter four. Unknown Speaker 15:45 Judas descendants were P res Ezrin. Carmine her and show ba RIA son of show ball was the father of J half. J hath was the father of a humanoid inlay had. These were the families of the Zora knights. These were the first settlers in ITAM, jazz real Ishmael and in bash. Their sister’s name was as allow poan I Penuel was the father of Gweedore and easer was the father of fuchsia. These were the sons of her the firstborn of Africa who first settled Bethlehem. Unknown Speaker 16:19 Asher who first settled to cola had two wives he ILA and naira. Naira gave birth to a Hussam, he for Gemini and hay a hashed array. These were Nayar his sons. He lives sons were Xerath zohore and Ethan, cause was the father of Ayub and Zoeva and he was the ancestor of the families of a harthill son of harem. Jay bez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jay bez painful, because she said that His birth was painful. Jay bez prayed to the God of Israel. Please bless me and give me more territory. May your power be with me and free me from evil so that I will not be in pain. God gave him what he prayed for. Unknown Speaker 17:08 Caleb shoe his brother was the father of me her who was the father of Ashton Ashton was the first just settled Beth RIFA. Unknown Speaker 17:17 He was the father of Persia and to Hannah who first settled the city of NE hash. These were the men from Rica, Kenya as his sons were off Niall and Surya. The sons of Othniel were heighth AF and Miana thigh Miyano thigh was the father of opera. Surya was the father of Joab, who first settled the city of craftsman. It was named this because they were craftsmen, the sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh. Were I rue Isla and name ILAs son was key NAS GIA Hala ll sons were Ziff zifa Tyria. And as well as his sons were Jaipur, me read ephah and Jalen, his wife gave birth to Miriam Shama and ich BA, who first settled ash Samoa. His Judean wife was the mother of G red who first settled Gweedore Heber who first settled SOCO and GQ Theo who first settled Zenoah the sons of Dias wife, the sister of mayhem first settled ki Isla of the gar mites and ash Tomoko of the macrophytes shamans sons were Amnon Rinna, Ben Hanan and teilen is sheis sons were Zoho death and benzo hath. Unknown Speaker 18:35 The descendants of Sheila son of Judah were who first settled Lika lay into who first settled Maria, families of The Guild of linen workers at Beth ash via Jochem Joash saref And the men of CO Zeba. Sarah ruled Moab and Joshua by Liam according to ancient records. They were the potter’s who lived in the TAM and ghedira. They lived there with a king and did his work. simians sons were at manual Jamin Jared Zira and Shaw shawls son was Shalem Shallum son was MyB Sam MyB Sam’s son was Mishima Mishmar. His son was Haneul annual son was Zacher. Zachary’s son was shimmy. Shimmy I had 16 sons and six daughters. But his brothers didn’t have many children, so their entire family didn’t become as large as the people of Judah. Unknown Speaker 19:35 simians descendants lived in Beersheba Melinda hazer, shul Bill ha ism toll add Beth you’ll hormone Ziklag Beth Mark leboff hazer suschem Beth beer I and che Ihram these were their cities until David became king. Their five cities were eaten by in Rehman Tolkien and Asian they also had all Unknown Speaker 20:00 The villages around the cities as far as the city of Baal. These places were where they lived in they had their own genealogical records. Michelle Bab jam lek Josha son of Amaziah Joel G you son of Joshua bya, grandson of Surya and great grandson of Asiel Elio si G Jaya Koba. Jeshua Hanaa Hosea Anteil just lineal, Binya and Zaza son of Shai Fie, grandson of Allah John, great grandson of Judea, a descendant of Shem, right and Shemaiah these who are mentioned by name were leaders in their families, and the number of people in their households increased. They moved to the outskirts of Ghidorah on the east side of the valley to find pasture for their flocks. They found pasture that was rich and good. The land was vast, peaceful and quiet because the Hamlet’s used to live there. In the days of King Hezekiah of Judah. The men listed here knocked down tents and killed the May unites, they claimed them a unites for God and destroyed them. Even today, Noma unites live there. They lived in that place in place of the Unites in order to have pasture for their flocks. Ishai Sions Pelotonia Nia Raya, raffia and used to lead 500 of Simeons male descendants to Mount Seir they killed the Amalekites who were left simians descendants still live there today. Unknown Speaker 21:28 I’ve got comments today on the first, second and fourth chapters. Chapter one begins appropriately with Adam. All of humanity, all of our history begins with him. Adam is the father of all flesh. In chapter one, we’re taken from Adam all the way through the generations to Noah, from Noah came all the different nations and races, and one of Noah’s sons was Shem. And from Shams line came Abraham, Abraham became the father of the faithful by blood, the Jewish people, by adoption, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s important to note that the Old Testament is primarily focused on Abraham’s line, the Jewish people, God’s chosen people. More about that in a moment. Some of the names listed in this chapter don’t play a part in the history of this line and are listed only as a matter of record. Now, a word about God’s chosen people. For what purpose did God choose Israel, he chose them so that he could teach them how to truly worship Him, and then show all the nations what true worship was and how to live lives that are pleasing to Him. So it makes sense that the Old Testament would focus its attention on the history of Abraham’s line, doesn’t it? Well, as we continue through the genealogies in the coming chapters will read more from the Abrahamic line from his son, Judah to his grandson Israel all the way to David in his son Solomon through all the kings up until Jerusalem was destroyed. There’s a lot of history there. And I’ll try to make it as interesting as I can. Now on chapter two, there were some very interesting and important men and women listed in this chapter, Judah, Israel, Boaz, Jesse David, just to name a few. Some are remembered as the first to settle certain towns and regions, but there are two that are going to be remembered throughout time for their sins. We read that quote, The Lord considered or Judah’s firstborn evil, so the Lord killed her. Unquote. And, quote, karma his son was a car who’d cause trouble for Israel by taking goods that were claimed by God, unquote. Well, do you suppose that these men were 100% evil? Well, we don’t know. All we know from this chapter is that they had evil natures. How do you suppose that when God someday opens the book on your life, he’ll summarize you for what will you be remembered? In a sermon? My pastor once mentioned a church member who had passed away several years earlier. And to sum him up, the pastor said, Lewis was a sweet man. He always had time for you. When you talk to him, he would look you in the eyes and smile. So how will you be remembered? In chapter four, verses nine and 10, we read about a fellow named Jabez, here’s what it said about Jabez. Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, which means painful, because she said that His birth was painful. Jabez prayed to the God of Israel. Please bless me and give me more territory. May your power be with me and free me from evil so that I will not be in pain. And then the verse ends with God gave him what he prayed for. Unknown Speaker 24:47 All we know about Jabez is contained in these two verses. But the fact that this prayer of his is recorded here in First Chronicles tells me something. It tells me that it’s okay to ask God for things Unknown Speaker 25:00 All right, well, I don’t know about you, but I was brought up to put other people before me. I learned very early on that the world does not revolve around me and that it is wrong to be selfish or self centered. Not that I’m never self centered, I can be as selfish as the next guy. But I do know that it’s wrong to be selfish. So for much of my life, it was hard for me to ask God to bless me to give me things. I’m just happy that he’s forgiven my sins. If that’s all God ever did for me, that would have been enough. I don’t need to be rich or live in a big fancy house. I mean, after all, Jesus didn’t even have a place to lay his head. Who am I to ask for more than he had? Well, that was my approach to prayer for most of my life. And it is the primary way I pray now, I’ll pray for you that God will bless you. But I never really felt right about praying that kind of prayer for myself. And then several years ago, a little book called The prayer of Jay bez was published. It’s less than 100 pages. The author’s name is Bruce Wilkinson. The book became a best seller. And I read it because it came highly recommended by a friend of mine. And it really made me consider whether my attitude regarding asking God to bless me was right. And don’t get me wrong, I don’t think God wants us to ask him to make us win the lottery or ask him to put us on the list of the top three richest people in the world. But that wasn’t Jay bez his prayer either. So you can read the book for yourself. I’m not going to discuss all the points because we don’t have time here. But just know that when you ask God to give you more, and you ask that have a pure heart, like Jay bez did, and you request is pleasing to God. That’s a good thing. Unknown Speaker 26:44 Well, I began to pray that prayer after reading the book, one of the results of that prayer is that when I asked him to enlarge my territory, God did it. How? Well the book was published in about the year 2000. I probably read it in about the year 2002. And in 2004, I heard about this crazy thing called podcasting. And all of a sudden, this guy here who was in love with God, recording from his church in Riverside, California, was talking to the world. Podcasting is old hat now, but back then we were still figuring it all out. This was a big deal. Never before was it relatively easy and affordable to speak to the world. And guess what? After my very first episode, I got an email from a guy in Sweden, asking me how he could know that God was real. Long story short, he became a follower of Jesus. And there have been many, many other emails from people all over the world since then, I asked God to enlarge my territory, not for me, but for His glory. And he did it. Am I blessed? Yes, of course, but in a much different way than I could have ever imagined. Certainly, finances are still sometimes a challenge. But the fact that God would use a guy like me to carry his message to nearly every nation on the planet, is a concept I would have never in my wildest dreams imagined. Unknown Speaker 28:09 I would encourage you to look closely at Jay bez, his prayer here in First Chronicles and see if it’s something you would pray. And by the way, speaking of it would have been enough, there’s a Hebrew word for that. Dayenu one of the artists that I’ve met through podcasting is named Michelle gold. Michelle is a Jewish singer songwriter who became a follower of Yeshua. That’s the Hebrew name for Jesus when she was a teenager, and she and her husband Joe become friends of mine and one of her songs is called Dayenu. It would have been enough. I’ll play it for you at the end of today’s show. It has a very Hebrew sound and feel and the lyrics really express how good God has been. It always will be. Unknown Speaker 28:51 Love to hear your comments go to Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 223. And let me know what you’re thinking. Our reading tomorrow will be Psalms 96 through 98. Here’s your cue to boost Unknown Speaker 29:09 Well, Paul Erskine came in today with his monthly $5 donation. Paul, thank you so much for your faithful and consistent support. God bless you, brother. And then this morning I got this from Sean of San Pedro. Unknown Speaker 29:23 He said in a row a duck’s 2222 sats from the fountain app. He said a slow row of ducks coming in late. Something tells me that advertisers might have complained about your commentary on Second Thessalonians regarding Islam. Yeah, maybe that was it. Thank you, Sean. God bless you. If you would like to make a weekly, monthly or quarterly donation for any amount, it’s easy to sign up at Lifespring media.com/support. It’s called value for value. If you find value in the Lifespring family Audio Bible then it is a biblical principle to return some of the value to the one who provides it to you Lifespring media dot Unknown Speaker 30:00 com slash support, however you decide to support the show, I thank you and I think God bless you. Unknown Speaker 30:17 On this date in church history April 12 1867, Samuel M Zwemmer was born he was an American missionary to the Arab world. In 1890. He went to Arabia under sponsorship of the Syrian mission of the Presbyterian Church in the USA. He later returned to the United States and taught at Princeton seminary. And on this date in church history, April 12 1882, the evangelical Reformed Church in Northwest Germany was created by royal decree when the King of Prussia ordered the 124 reformed congregations scattered throughout the area, then known as the province of Hanover, to become incorporated as an independent territorial church. Unknown Speaker 31:09 Let’s pray our Heavenly Father Dayenu. If all that you had ever done for us is to give us Jesus, that would have been enough, but you’ve given us so much more. You’ve blessed us so much that it’s impossible to mention everything. Even in the midst of hardship. There’s always something to rejoice in. But if it was only Jesus Dayenu Lord, like Jay bez, I asked you to enlarge our territory. For those of us who are willing, I asked that you would give us more so that we can bring glory to you. We don’t ask with a selfish heart, but with a heart that is thankful for the opportunity to do something, anything for your kingdom. And thank you, Lord for the Lifespring family. Bless them today. I ask in Jesus name, amen. Unknown Speaker 31:55 If you’ve got a prayer request or praise, go to prayer dot Lifespring media.com Fill out the form there. I’ll be notified and I’ll pray for you my private prayer time and we’ll pray together on the show. Unknown Speaker 32:13 Share the show and then come comment on this episode at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 223. Email me at Steve at Lifespring media.com If you’ve got anything to say to me, and support the show at Lifespring media.com/support. Next up is Michelle gold with Dayenu. I’ll have a link to her website and I’ll put a video on the show notes page as well. Until tomorrow, may God bless you richly thank you for being with me today. My name is Steve Webb. Bye Transcribed by https://otter.ai [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/28152340/donate.png]https://lifespringmedia.com/support/ * * [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23123801/NULS_LSFB_RateTheShow.jpg]https://lovethepodcast.com/biblePlease rate or review the show by clicking the heart! The post S3E217 – 1 Chronicles 1-4: It Would Have Been Enough [https://lifespringmedia.com/lifespring-one-year-bible-rewind/s3e217-1-chronicles-1-4-it-would-have-been-enough/] first appeared on Lifespring! Media [https://lifespringmedia.com].

S3E216 – Leviticus 25-27: Try Me

Transcript PODCAST INTRODUCTION Today we will complete the book of  Leviticus 25-27. I’ll have comments on both chapters after the reading, and I’m calling today’s episode “Try Me.” S12E222Art3000-duck hunters [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/10213549/S12E222Art3000.jpg]Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Rhett Noonan on Unsplash COMMENTS ON LEVITICUS 27 If you’ve been listening very long to the show, you have probably noticed that I’m willing to talk about subjects that might make people uncomfortable. Subjects that others might prefer to avoid. My attitude is that those are the subjects that *need* to be talked about. God put them in His Word because He considers them important. So let’s talk about money. Verses 30-33  about tithes. The translation we used for chapter 27 today used the term “tenth-part gifts.” Verse 34, the closing verse of Leviticus, says, “These are the commands that the LORD gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites.” So giving tithes was a command. It was not optional. The question is, are we as believers in Jesus obligated to tithe? Let’s do a little digging. First, what is a tithe? A tithe is an offering of 10%. And it did not originate with the Mosaic Law. There are references to tithes being given in Genesis 14 and 28, before Moses was born. The New Testament does not give a requirement to tithe, but it does mention the tithe with favor. One example is Hebrews 7:4-10, when Abraham gave a tithe to Melchizedek.  Giving however, is commanded in 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. Paul even said that not only should giving should be done, but that it should be planned for and done regularly. “Now regarding your question about the money being collected for God’s people in Jerusalem. You should follow the same procedure I gave to the churches in Galatia. 2On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once.” NLT And if that wasn’t enough, In 2 Corinthians 8:8, Paul says that giving is a test of our love for God, and those who do His work. And in 2 Corinthians 9:6, Paul compares giving to a farmer. The farmer who plants sparingly will reap sparingly. The one who plants generously will reap generously.  And then he goes on in the very next verse and says that each person must decide in his or her own heart how much to give, and don’t give reluctantly or because of pressure. Why? Paul said, “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” And, he says, God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.  And in 1 Corinthians 9:7-14, Paul says that we should give to those who feed us spiritually. Verses 11-14, “11If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it so much to ask to harvest some material things from you? 12If others have these rights over you, don’t we deserve them all the more? However, we haven’t made use of this right, but we put up with everything so we don’t put any obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get to eat food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share part of what is sacrificed on the altar? 14In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who preach the gospel should get their living from the gospel.” This is Paul speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, beloved. If we accept the Bible as true, then we need to accept these verses as true. Now, let me tell you my experience in giving. First, I was not brought up in a believing home. My parents did not go to church, though my mom did in at least her teen years. I wasn’t even aware of that fact until after she passed away, when I was going through some of her papers and found that she was a leader in her youth group. But since my dad was very much anti-church and anti-God, going to church was a non-starter when I was a boy. I tell you that to say that I did not have any training from home on giving to God’s work. When I got saved as a teenager, I have to admit that I was a stingy giver. I didn’t mind putting a dollar or maybe a five into my offering envelope, but I never gave anything approaching a tithe. I never even considered giving a tithe. It never entered my mind. Once I became an adult and was aware of tithing, I rationalized that Christians are under the New Covenant, and were therefore not obligated to tithe, so I didn’t need to give ten percent. By then I had graduated to regularly dropping a $20 bill into the offering plate. I figured God loves a cheerful giver, and I didn’t feel too badly about putting a twenty in. Much more than that and, I reasoned, it would be more difficult to be cheerful. And then, probably sometime in my 40s, after I had been faithfully serving God in my church for several years, my wife, the Lovely Lady LeeAnn suggested that we start tithing. I told her that we were under the New Covenant, yada yada yada.  Unlike me, however, LeeAnn had literally grown up in church. Her parents were faithful believers, who were at church whenever the doors were open. And that’s not an exaggeration. They were a military family, and wherever they were stationed, the first they would do when they got to a new town was find the Assemblies of God church and immediately get plugged in. So LeeAnn had an excellent example on faithful giving, and specifically, tithing. At a minimum.  So when I gave LeeAnn my reasoning for not tithing, she did what every good Christian wife should do. She argued with me. No. She didn’t. She accepted my answer, but then she began to pray for me. She didn’t tell me that she was praying specifically for this, but I know now that she was.  And then, over time, I began to question myself. I don’t remember if this process took several months or even a year or more, but one day in a time of prayer, I remembered the verse in Malachi, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” And I said, “Ok, God. I’ll try it. I’ll give tithes and see if I can still pay the bills.” Or words to that effect. Of course, LeeAnn was thrilled. I can’t say that I was thrilled, but God had shown me in other ways that He is faithful, so I was willing to make the step of faith. And it was a step of faith. We had a mortgage, three sons, and only my business to pay the bills. LeeAnn was a stay-at-home mom, so all we had was my income.  How did the test turn out? Let me answer this way: I have never, we have never gone back to stingy giving. That doesn’t mean that God has made us financially rich. Over the years we have had some lean years and some fat years. There have been times where we literally had zero in the bank account and we had nothing to give. But as soon as there was something from which to give, we tithed. And sometimes we have given above and beyond the tithe, when we saw someone in need, or for special projects. And it was after we began to tithe that God called me to begin the world’s first Christian podcast. I won’t tell the whole story here, but in a nutshell, I was praying one day, thanking God for all the blessings He had brought into our lives, and I asked Him if there was anything more that *I* could do for Him. And that’s when He spoke to me and said, “Proclaim My Name.” There’s much more to the story, which you can read at steve.lifespringmedia.com.  Financially I am not a wealthy man…far from it. But God has blessed my life and my family so much. Sure, we have struggles like everyone else, but LeeAnn and I have a wonderful marriage and we have a faith in God that is deep and abiding.  God has shown me that trusting Him in all things, even in giving, is something that He does bless. Are we required to tithe? No. But it is my firm conviction that *at least* a tithe is an appropriate amount to return to the God who gave His one and only Son so that I might live in eternity with Him.  I recommend it. As the scripture says in Malachi 3:10, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” TODAY’S BIBLE TRANSLATION Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 25 CEV; Ch. 26 NIV; Ch. 27 CEB SUPPORT This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT [/support/]. [/support/] TRANSCRIPT Download .txt file. [https://d1uphahyf7mnoz.cloudfront.net/lsfb/LSFAB_S12-E222_otter_ai.txt] Steve Webb 0:00 yada yada yada Steve Webb 0:09 Hi there. This is the Lifespring family Audio Bible coming to you from Riverside, California. My name is Steve Webb podcasting since 2004. I’m your OG God caster Steve Webb, welcome. I’m so glad you’re here today. Thanks for showing up. This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year and today we’re going to complete the Book of Leviticus by reading chapters 25 through 27. I’m calling today’s episode, Try me. The shownotes page for today’s episode is at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 222. My email address is Steve at Lifespring media.com. Let’s get started. Steve Webb 0:48 Leviticus chapter 25. When Moses was on Mount Sinai, the Lord told him to say to the community of Israel. After you enter the land that I’m giving you, it must be allowed to rest one year out of every seven, you may raise grain and grapes for six years. But the seven year you must let your fields and vineyards rest in honor of me your Lord. This is to be a time of complete rest for your fields and vineyards. So don’t harvest anything they produce. However, you would your slaves and your hired workers, as well as any domestic or wild animals may eat whatever grows on its own once every 49 years on the 10th day of the seventh month, which is also the great day of forgiveness. trumpets are to be blown everywhere in the land. This 50th year is sacred. It is a time of freedom and of celebration when everyone will receive back their original property, and slaves will return home to their families. This is a year of complete celebration. So don’t plant any seed or harvest what your fields or vineyards produce. In this time of sacred celebration, you may eat only what grows on its own. During this year, all property must go back to its original owner. So when you buy or sell farmland, the price is to be determined by the number of crops it can produce before the next year of celebration. Don’t try to cheat. If it is a long time before the next year of celebration, the price will be higher. Because what is really being sold are the crops that the land can produce. I am the Lord your God, so obey me and don’t cheat anyone. If you obey my laws and teachings, you will live safely in the land and enjoy its abundant crops. Don’t ever worry about what you will eat during the seventh year when you are forbidden to plant or harvest. I will see to it that you harvest enough in the sixth year to last for three years. In the eighth year, you will live on what you harvested in the sixth year. But in the ninth year, you will eat what you plant and harvest in the eighth year. No land may be permanently bought or sold. It all belongs to me it is your land and you only live there for a little while. When property is being sold, the original owner must be given the first chance to buy it. If any of you Israelites become so poor that you’re forced to sell your property, your closest relative must buy it back if that relative has the money. Later if you can afford to buy it, you must pay enough to make up for what the present owner will lose on it before the next year of celebration when the property would become yours again. But if you don’t have the money to pay the present owner a fair price, you will have to wait until the year of celebration when the property will once again become yours. If you sell a house in a walled city, you have only one year in which to buy it back. If you don’t buy it back before that year is up, it becomes the permanent property of the one who bought it and it will not be returned to you in the year of celebration. But a house out in a village may be bought back at any time just like a field and it must be returned to its original owner in the year of celebration. If any Levites own houses inside a walled city, they will always have the right to buy them back. And any houses that they do not buy back will be returned to them in the year of celebration because these homes are their permanent property among the people of Israel. No pasture land owned by the Levi tribe can ever be sold. It is their permanent possession. If any of your people become poor and unable to support themselves, you must help them just as you’re supposed to help foreigners who live among you. Don’t take advantage of them by charging any kind of interest or selling them food for profit. Instead, honor me by letting them stay where they now live. Remember, I am the Lord your God. I rescued you from Egypt and gave you the land of Canaan so that I would be your God. Suppose some of your people become so poor that they have to sell themselves and become your slaves. Then you must treat them as servants rather Steve Webb 5:00 than his slaves in the year of celebration, they’re to be set free, so they and their children may return home to their families and property. I brought them out of Egypt to be my servants not to be sold as slaves. So obey me. And don’t be cruel to the poor. If you want slaves, buy them from other nations, or from the foreigners who live in your own country and make them your property. You can own them and even leave them to your children when you die. But do not make slaves of your own people or be cruel to them. Even if some of you Israelites become so much in debt that you must sell yourselves to foreigners in your country, you still have the right to be set free by a relative such as a brother or uncle or cousin, or some other family member. In fact, if you ever get enough money, you may buy your own freedom. By paying your owner for the number of years you would still be a slave before the next year of celebration. The longer the time until then, the more you’ll have to pay. And even while you’re the slaves of foreigners in your own country, your people must make sure that you are not mistreated. If you cannot gain your freedom in any of these ways. Both you and your children will still be set free in the year of celebration, people of Israel, I am the Lord your God, and I brought you out of Egypt to be my own servants. Steve Webb 6:19 Leviticus 26. Do not make idols or set up an image or a sacred stone for yourselves. Do not place a carved stone in your land to bow down before it. I am the Lord your God. Observe my Sabbath’s and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord. If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you rain in its season and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit. Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting and you will eat all the food you want in live and safety in your land. I will grant peace in the land and you will lie down and no one will make you afraid. I will remove wild beasts from the land and the sword will not pass through your country. You will pursue your enemies and they will fall by the sword before you. Five of you will chase 100 and 100 of you will chase 10,000 and your enemies will fall by the sword before you I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers. And I will keep my covenant with you. You will still be eating last year’s harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new. I will put my dwelling place among you and I will not abhor you. I will walk among you and be your God and you will be my people. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians. I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high. But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands. And if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and failed to carry out all my commands and soul violate my covenant, then I will do this to you. I will bring on you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and sap your strength. You will plant seed in vain because your enemies will eat it. I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you. If after all this you will not listen to me. I will punish you for your sins seven times over. I will break down your stubborn pride and make the sky above you like iron and the ground beneath you like stone. Your strength will be spent in vain because your soil will not yield its crops, nor will the trees of your land yield their fruit. If you remain hostile toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over as your sins deserve. I will send wild animals against you and they will rob you of your children, destroy your cattle and make you so few a number that your roads will be deserted. Steve Webb 9:16 If in spite of these things, you do not accept My correction, but continue to be hostile towards me. I myself will be hostile toward you and will afflict you for your sins seven times over and I will bring the sword on you to avenge the breaking of the covenant. When you withdraw into your cities, I will send a plague among you and you will be given into enemy hands. When I cut off your supply of bread 10 women will be able to bake your bread in one oven and they will dole out the bread by weight you will eat but you will not be satisfied. If in spite of this you still do not listen to me but continue to be hostile toward me. Then in my anger I Steve Webb 10:00 They will be hostile toward you. And I myself will punish you for your sins seven times over. You will eat the flesh of your sons in the flesh of your daughters. I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars, and pile your dead bodies on the lifeless forms of your idols. And I will abhor you. I will turn your cities into ruins and lay waste your sanctuaries. And I will take no delight in the pleasing aroma of your offerings. I myself will lay waste the land so that your enemies who live there will be appalled. I will scatter you among the nations and will dry out my sword and pursue you, your land will be laid waste and your cities will lie in ruins. Then the land will enjoy it Sabbath yours all the time that it lies desolate, and you are in the country of your enemies, then the land will rest and enjoy it Sabbath all the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest it did not have during the Sabbath you lived in it. As for those of you who are left, I will make their hearts so fearful in the lands of their enemies, that the sound of a wind blown leaf will put them to flight. They will run as though fleeing from the sword, and they will fall even though no one is pursuing them. They will stumble over one another as though fleeing from the sword, even though no one is pursuing them. So you will not be able to stand before Your enemies, you will perish among the nations the land of your enemies will devour you. Those of you who are left will waste away in the land of their enemies because of their sins. Also, because of their ancestors sins they will waste away. But if they will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, their unfaithfulness and their hostility toward me, which made me hostile towards them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies. Then when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they pay for their sin, I will remember my covenant with Jacob, and my covenant with Isaac, and my covenant with Abraham. And I will remember the land for the land will be deserted by them that will enjoy its Sabbath while it lies desolate without them. They will pay for their sins because they rejected my laws and aboard my decrees. Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them or a poor them so as to destroy them completely breaking my covenant with them. I am the LORD their God, but for their sake, I will remember the covenant with our ancestors whom I brought out of Egypt in the sight of the nations to be their God, I am the Lord. These are the decrees the laws and the regulations that the Lord established in Mount Sinai between himself and the Israelites through Moses. Steve Webb 12:52 Leviticus chapter 27. The Lord said to Moses, speak to the Israelites and say to them, when a person makes a solemn promise to the Lord involving the value of a person, if it is the value for a male between 20 and 60 years old, his value is 50 Silver shekels according to the sanctuary shekel, if the person is a female, her value is 30 shekels. If the age of the person is between five and 20 years, the value for a male is 20. shackles for a female 10 shekels. If the age of the person is between one month and five years, the value for a male is five silver shekels for a female three silver shackles. If the age of the person is 60 years or more, the value is 15 shekels if the person is male, 10 shekels for a female. But if financial difficulty prevents the promise maker from giving the full value, they must set the person before the priest, the priest will assign the person a value according to what the promise maker can afford. If a solemn promise involves livestock that can be offered to the Lord, any such animal given to the Lord will be considered holy. The promise maker cannot replace or substitute for it either good for bad or bad for good. But if one should substitute one animal for another, both it and the substitute will be holy. If the solemn promise involves any kind of unclean animal that cannot be offered to the Lord, the promise maker must set the animal before the priest, the priest will assign it a value whether high to low, its value will be what the priest says. If the promise maker wishes to buy it back, they must add 1/5 to its value. When someone dedicates their house to the Lord is holy, the priests will assign a value to it, whether high or low, the value is fixed whatever value the priest assigns to it. If the one who dedicates the house wishes to buy it back, they must add 1/5 to its valued price, and it will be there as again. If a person dedicates part of the land from their family property to the Lord, the value will be set according to the seed needed to Planet 50 Silver’s Steve Webb 15:00 shekels per Homer of barley seed. If the person dedicates the piece of land during the Jubilee Year, its value will stay fixed. But if the person dedicates the piece after the Jubilee Year, the priest will calculate the price according to the years that are left until the next Jubilee Year, and the value will be reduced. If the one who dedicates the land wishes to buy it back, they must add 1/5 to its valued price and it will be there as again. But if they do not buy it back, or if it was sold to someone else, it is no longer able to be bought back. With the piece of land is released in the Jubilee year, it will be holy to the Lord like a piece of devoted land, it will be the priests property. If the person dedicates land they purchased to the Lord land that is not part of their family property, the priest will calculate the amount of its value until the Jubilee Year, the person must pay the value on that day is the holy donation to the Lord. In the Jubilee Year, the piece of land will return to the seller to the one who is the original owner of the family property. Every value will be according to the sanctuary shekel, the shackle will be 20 Garis. But note that a person cannot dedicate any oldest offspring from livestock which already belongs to the Lord because it is the oldest, whether ox or sheep, it belongs to the Lord. If it is an unclean animal, it may be bought back at its value plus 20%. If it is not bought back, it will be sold at its set value. Also note that everything someone devotes to the Lord from their possessions whether humans, animals or pieces of land from their family property, cannot be sold or bought back. Every devoted thing is most holy to the Lord. No human beings that have been devoted can be bought back, they must be executed. All 10th part gifts from the land whether of seed from the ground or fruit from the trees belong to the Lord, they are holy to the Lord. If someone wishes to buy back part of their 10th part gift, they must add 1/5 to it all 10th part gifts from a herd or flock, every 10th animal that passes under the shepherd staff will be holy to the Lord. The one bringing the 10th part gift must not pick out the good from the bad and cannot substitute any animal. But if one should substitute an animal, both it and the substitute will be holy and cannot be bought back. These are the commands that the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites. Steve Webb 17:31 Today we’re going to talk about Leviticus 27. If you’ve been listening very long to the show, you’ve probably noticed that I am willing to talk about subjects that might make some people uncomfortable subjects that others might prefer to avoid. Well, my attitude is that those are the subjects that need to be talked about. God put them in his word because he considers them important. So let’s talk about money. Verses 30 through 33 of chapter 27 is about tithes. The translation we use for chapter 27 today use the term 10th part gifts. And verse 34. The closing verse of Leviticus says, These are the commands that the Lord gave Moses on Mount Sinai for the Israelites. So giving tithes was a command, it was an optional. The question is, are we as believers in Jesus obligated to tithe? So let’s do a little digging. First, what is a tithe? A tie there’s an offering of 10% and it did not originate with the Mosaic law. There are references to tithes being given all the way back in Genesis 14 And Genesis 28 before Moses was ever born. The New Testament does not give a requirement to tithe but it does mention the tithe with favor. One example is Hebrews seven four through 10 When Abraham gave a tithe to Melchizedek. Giving, however, is commanded in First Corinthians 16. One and two, Paul even said that not only should giving be done, but that it should be planned for and done regularly. He said, Now regarding your question about the money being collected for God’s people in Jerusalem, you should follow the same procedure I gave to the churches in Galatia. On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you’ve earned. Don’t wait until I get there and then try to collect it all at once. Steve Webb 19:26 And if that wasn’t enough, in Second Corinthians eight eight Paul says that giving is a test of our love for God and those who do his work. And in Second Corinthians nine six Paul compares giving to a farmer, the farmer who plants sparingly will reap sparingly, the one who plants generously will reap generously. And then he goes on in the very next verse and says that each person must decide in his or her own heart, how much to give, and don’t give reluctantly or because of pressure, why Paul said Steve Webb 20:00 Time for God loves a person who gives cheerfully and he says God will generously provide all you need, then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. And in First Corinthians nine seven through 14, Paul says that we should give to those who feed us spiritually. Verses 11 through 14 say if we sowed spiritual things in you, is it so much to ask to harvest some material things from you? If others have these rights over you? Don’t we deserve them all, the more. However, we haven’t made use of this right, but we put up with everything. So we don’t put any obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get to eat food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share part of what is sacrificed on the altar. In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who preach the gospel should get their living from the gospel. And remember, this is Paul’s speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Beloved, if we accept the Bible is true, then we need to accept these verses is true. Now, let me tell you my experience in giving. First, I was not brought up in a believing home. My parents didn’t go to church, though my mom did, at least in her teen years. And I wasn’t even aware of that fact, until after she passed away when I was going through some of her papers, and found that she was a leader in our youth group. But since my dad was very much anti church and anti God, going to church was a non starter when I was a boy. I tell you that to say that I did not have any training from home on giving to God’s work. Now when I got saved as a teenager, I’ve got to admit that I was a stingy giver. I didn’t mind putting $1 Or maybe a five into my offering envelope, but I never gave anything approaching a tithe. I never even considered giving a tie that never entered my mind. Man. Once I became an adult and was aware of tithing, I rationalized that Christians are under the new covenant and were therefore not obligated to tithe, so I didn’t need to give 10% By the end, I’d graduated to regularly dropping a $20 bill into the offering plate. I figured that God loves a cheerful giver, and I didn’t feel too badly about putting a 20 in, but much more than that it would be more difficult to be cheerful. Steve Webb 22:18 And then sometime in my 40s, I think it was after I’d been faithfully serving God in my church for many years. My wife, the lovely lady, Leanne suggested that we start typing. I told her that we were under the new covenant and yada yada yada. Well, unlike me, Leanne had literally grown up in church. Her parents were faithful believers who were at church whenever the doors were opened, and that is not an exaggeration. They were a military family and wherever they were stationed, the first thing they do when they got into a new town was to find the local Assemblies of God church, and immediately get plugged in. So Leanne had an excellent example of faithful giving, and specifically tithing at a minimum. So when I gave Leann My reasoning for not tithing, she did what every good Christian wife should do. She threw a fit, she argued with me. She said, we have to, no she didn’t. She accepted my answer. But then she began to pray for me. She didn’t tell me that she was praying specifically for this, but I know now that that’s what she was doing. And then over time, I began to question myself. I don’t remember if this process took several months, or even a year or more, but one day in a time of prayer, I remembered the verse and Malikai, bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, test me in this says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. Steve Webb 23:51 So I said, Okay, God, I’ll try it. I’ll give tithes and I’ll see if I can still pay the bills, or words to that effect. Steve Webb 24:00 Well, of course, Leanne was thrilled. I can’t say that I was thrilled. But God had shown me in other ways that he’s faithful. So I was willing to take the step of faith. And it was a step of faith. We had a mortgage, we had three sons. We only had my business to pay the bills. Leanne was a stay at home mom. So all we had was my income. Well, how did the test turn out? Let me answer it this way. I have never, we have never gone back to stingy giving. That doesn’t mean that God has made us financially rich. Over the years, we’ve had some lean years and some fat years, there have been times where we literally had zero in the bank account, and we had nothing to give. But as soon as there was something from which to give, we typed and sometimes we’ve given above and beyond the tithe when we saw someone in need or for a special project. And it was after we began to tithe that God called me to begin the world’s first Christian podcast. I won’t tell the whole story here Steve Webb 25:00 because most of you have heard it, but for new people, I’ll just say it a nutshell. I was praying one day thanking God for all the blessings he brought into our lives. And I asked him if there was anything more that I could do for him. And that’s when he spoke to me and said, proclaim My name. There’s a lot more to the story, and you can read it it Steve dot Lifespring media.com. If you’re interested, I’ll just say this financially. I am not a wealthy man, far from it. But God has blessed my life and my family so very much. Sure we have struggles like everybody else. But Leanne and I have a wonderful marriage. And we have a faith in God that is deep and abiding. Steve Webb 25:40 God has shown me that trusting Him in all things, even in giving is something that he does bless. Are we required to tithe? No, but it’s my firm conviction that at least a tithe is an appropriate amount to return to the God who gave His one and only Son so that I might live in eternity with Him. I recommend it. As the Scripture says in Malikai 310, bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this says the Lord God Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. So yeah, take him up on his offer. Test him. What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Do you have a story about giving to share? Do so at Lifespring media.com/s 12, e 222. Scroll to the bottom of the page and tell me all about it. In our reading tomorrow, we’ll begin the book of First Chronicles, we’ll read the first four chapters. Boost. Steve Webb 26:48 Well, this must be duck hunting season because no duck showed up, let alone a row of ducks. So let’s move on. But remember, there are still about five months left to season 12 of the Lifespring family Audio Bible. I’m going to continue to need your support if we’re going to make it to the end. I’m willing to put the time in every day to study write, record, edit, create new show art, upload the mp3 right show notes and still attempt to be there for the lovely lady Leanne, but I have to know you’re with me, are you? If you are then I need to hear from you. Lifespring media.com/support You decide how much or how little the show means to you. That’s between you and God. Thank you, and God bless you. Steve Webb 27:41 On this date in church history, April 11 1836, George Mueller, a leader of the Plymouth Brethren opened his famous orphanage on Wilson Street in Bristol, England. By 1875. His ministry provided care for more than 2000 children. Steve Webb 28:07 Let’s pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your word because it’s in the pages of the Bible that we learn about you and we learn what kind of people you want us to be. Help us to know you better, Lord, and help us to follow you better. I thank you for the Lifespring family Lord and ask that you bless each one who’s listening right now in a very special way. I pray this in Jesus name, amen. If you’ve got a prayer request or praise, go to prayer dot Lifespring media.com. Steve Webb 28:42 Comment on the show at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 222. Email me at Steve at Lifespring media.com support the show please at Lifespring media.com/support. Until tomorrow may God bless you richly. Thank you for being here today. My name is Steve Webb. Bye Transcribed by https://otter.ai [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/28152340/donate.png]https://lifespringmedia.com/support/ * * [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23123801/NULS_LSFB_RateTheShow.jpg]https://lovethepodcast.com/biblePlease rate or review the show by clicking the heart! The post S3E216 – Leviticus 25-27: Try Me [https://lifespringmedia.com/lifespring-one-year-bible-rewind/s3e216-leviticus-25-27-try-me/] first appeared on Lifespring! Media [https://lifespringmedia.com].

S3E215 – 2 Thessalonians 1-3: Keep Your Eye On the Ball

Transcript EXECUTIVE PRODUCER Roderick PODCAST INTRODUCTION Today we will complete the book of  2 Thessalonians. I’ll have comments on both chapters after the reading, and I’m calling today’s episode “Keep Your Eye On the Ball.” S12E221Art3000-steve keeping his eye on the ball [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/09161724/S12E221Art3000.jpg]Design: Steve Webb | Photo: The Lovely Lady LeeAnn COMMENTS ON 2 THESSALONIANS Paul was telling the church at Thessalonica that they shouldn’t panic when people come around saying that Jesus had already returned. Yes, Jesus is coming back, to be sure. And it will be a very good thing when He does, but there are some things that must happen before that takes place. And then Paul tells them a few things to look for. We’ll look at them again, but it’s important to know that these are not the only things that must happen before the Lord returns. Some people have made a career trying to decipher all of the prophecies given in the Bible about the “end times”, and while it is interesting to study this subject, it’s more important to live our lives in such a way that we fulfill our part of the Great Commission, the last thing Jesus said before he was taken up to Heaven. In Matthew 28:19-20 He said: “…go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Some people have gotten off the track. They’ve forgotten about those parting instructions of Jesus and focused on watching for His return, and in the process have gotten so off the mark that they have ruined lives…their own and their followers. Don’t do that. Be aware of the signs, but stay focused on doing the business that Jesus gave us to do. And with that, let’s look at the signs Paul pointed out here in 2 Thessalonians. In the second chapter, verses 3 and 4 Paul said: “Don’t let anyone trick you in any way. That day will not come until people rise up against God. It will not come until the man of sin appears. He is a marked man. He is sentenced to be destroyed. 4He will oppose everything that is called God. He will oppose everything that is worshiped. He will give himself power over everything. He will set himself up in God’s temple. He will announce that he himself is God.” From that description, it sounds like this could happen any day, doesn’t it? People are turning against God all around the world. Church attendance has been trending down here in America for some time, and of course the pandemic made it worse.  But this is not just an American phenomenon. Much of Europe has already turned its back on God. The same is true of Asia.  Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world right now. And make no mistake, the god of Islam is not the God of the Bible. I could spend hours comparing and contrasting Allah with the true and loving and holy God of the Bible.  It seems as if the world is ready for the one Paul calls the man of sin. It’s my personal opinion that this man could very well be alive today. Yes, I believe that the time is very short before these things happen.  But… My job is not to stop everything and wait for that day to arrive. Nor is that your job. Our job is to keep our eye on the ball…do what Jesus told us to do. Make disciples. Live in such a manner that others will see a difference, a *good* difference in you. Let them see that even though the world may be falling apart, you have the peace that passes all understanding because you know the One who holds the future. TODAY’S BIBLE TRANSLATION Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 1-3 NIRV SUPPORT This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT [/support/]. [/support/] TRANSCRIPT Download .txt file. [https://d1uphahyf7mnoz.cloudfront.net/lsfb/LSFAB_S12-E221_otter_ai.txt] Steve Webb 0:00 Don’t do that. Steve Webb 0:08 This is the Lifespring family Audio Bible coming to you from Riverside, California and podcasting since 2004. I’m your OG God caster Steve Webb, welcome. I’m glad you’re here. This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year and today we’re going to read the entire book of Second Thessalonians. It’s only three short chapters. I’ll have some comments when we’re done with the reading and I’m calling today’s episode. Keep your eye on the ball. The show notes page for today’s episode is at Lifespring media.com/s 12 v 221. You can email me at Steve at Lifespring media.com. Let’s begin. Steve Webb 0:48 Second Thessalonians chapter one. I Paul and writing this letter, Silas and Timothy, join me in writing. We are sending this letter to you the members of the church in Thessalonica. You belong to God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. May God the father in the LORD Jesus Christ give you grace in peace. Brothers and sisters, we should always thank God for you. That is only right, because your faith is growing more and more. The Love you all have for each other is increasing. So among God’s churches, we brag about the fact that you don’t give up easily. We brag about your faith and all the suffering and testing you’re going through. All of this proves that when God judges he is fair. So you will be considered worthy to enter God’s kingdom. You are suffering for His Kingdom. God is fair, he will pay back trouble to those who give you trouble. He will help you who are troubled and he will also help us. All of those things will happen when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come and blazing fire, he will come with the angels who are given the power to do what God wants. He will punish those who don’t know God, He will punish those who don’t obey the good news about our Lord Jesus. They will be destroyed forever. They will be shut out of heaven. They will never see the glory of the Lord’s power. All of those things will happen when he comes on that day his glory will be seen in his holy temple. Everyone who is believed will be amazed when they see him. That includes you, because you believed the witness we gave you. Keeping this in mind, we never stopped praying for you. Our God has chosen you. We pray that he will consider you worthy of his choice. We pray that by His power, he will make every good thing you have planned come true. We pray that he will make perfect all that you have done by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus will receive glory through what you have done. We also pray that you will receive glory through what he has done. We pray all these things in keeping with the grace of our God in the Lord Jesus Christ. Steve Webb 2:59 Second Thessalonians chapter two. Steve Webb 3:03 Brothers and sisters, we want to ask you something. It has to do with the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. It concerns the time when we will go to be with him. What if you receive a prophecy report or letter that is supposed to have come from us? What if it says that the day of the Lord has already come? If it does, we ask you not to become easily upset or alarmed. Don’t let anyone trick you in any way. That day will not come until people rise up against God. It will not come until the man of sin appears. He is a marked man. He is sentenced to be destroyed. He will oppose everything that is called God. He will oppose everything that is worshipped. He will give himself power over everything. He will set himself up in God’s temple, he will announce that he himself is God. Don’t you remember, when I was with you? I used to tell you those things. Now you know what is holding the man of sin back. He has held back so that he can make his appearance at the right time. The secret power of sin is already at work. But the one who now holds that power back will keep doing it until he is taken out of the way. Then the man of sin will appear. The Lord Jesus will overthrow him with a breath of his mouth. The glorious brightness of Jesus coming will destroy the man of sin. The coming of the man of sin will be Satan’s work. His work will be seen in all kinds of fake miracles, signs and wonders. It will be seen in every kind of evil that fools people who are dying. They are dying because they refuse to love the truth. The truth would save them. So God will fool them completely. Then they will believe the lie. Many will not believe the truth. They will take pleasure and evil. They will be judged. Brothers and sisters, we should always thank God for you. The Lord loves you. God chose you from the beginning. He wanted you to be saved salvation comes through the Holy Spirit’s work. He makes people holy. It also comes through believing the truth. He chose you to be saved by accepting the good news that we preach, and you will share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters stand firm. Hold on to what we taught you. We passed our teachings on to you by what we preached and wrote, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and God our Father loved us. By His grace, God gave us comfort that will last forever. The hope he gave us is good. May our Lord Jesus Christ in God, our Father, comfort your hearts. May they make you strong in every good thing you do and say. Steve Webb 5:44 Second Thessalonians chapter three. Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us. Pray that the Lord’s message will spread quickly. Pray that others will honor it just as you did. And pray that we will be saved from sinful and evil people. Not everyone is a believer. But the Lord is faithful, He will strengthen you, he will guard you from the evil one. We trust in the Lord. So we’re sure that you are doing the things we tell you to do. And we’re sure that you will keep on doing them. May the Lord fill your hearts with God’s love. May Christ give you the strength to go on. Brothers and sisters, here’s a command we give you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Keep away from every believer who doesn’t want to work. Keep away from anyone who doesn’t live up to the teaching you received from us. You know how you should follow our example. We worked when we were with you. We didn’t need anyone’s food without paying for it. In fact, it was just the opposite. We worked night and day, we worked very hard, so that we wouldn’t cause any expense to any of you. We worked even though we have the right to receive help from you. We did it in order to be a model for you to follow. Even when we were with you, we gave you a rule. We said anyone who will not work will not eat. We hear that some people among you don’t want to work. They aren’t really busy. Instead, they are bothering others. We belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. So we strongly command people like that to settle down, they have to earn the food they eat. Brothers and sisters, don’t ever get tired of doing the right thing. Keep an eye on anyone who doesn’t obey the directions in our letter. Watch that person closely. Have nothing to do with him, then he will feel ashamed. But don’t think of him as an enemy. Instead, warn him as the brother or sister. May the Lord who gives peace give you peace at all times. And in every way. May the Lord be with all of you. I Paul write this greeting in my own handwriting. That’s how I prove that I am the author of all my letters, I always do it that way. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Steve Webb 7:57 In chapter two, Paul was telling the church at Thessalonica that they shouldn’t panic when people come around saying that Jesus had already returned. Yes, Jesus is coming back to be sure. And it will be a very good thing when he does. But there are some things that have to happen before His return. And Paul tells them a few things to look out for. We’ll talk about that. But first, it’s important to know that these are not the only things that must happen before the Lord returns. Now, some people have made a career of trying to decipher all the prophecies given in the Bible about the end times. And while it is an interesting thing to study, it’s more important to live our lives in such a way that we fulfill our part of the Great Commission. The last thing Jesus said before he was taken up to heaven was Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I’ve commanded you. Well, some people have gotten off that track. They’ve forgotten about those parting instructions of Jesus, and they focused on watching for His return. And in the process, they’ve gotten so off the mark, that they have ruined lives, their own and their followers. Don’t do that. Be aware of the signs but stay focused on doing the business that Jesus gave us to do. So having said that, let’s look at the signs that Paul pointed out here in Second Thessalonians chapter two. In verses three and four, Paul said, Don’t let anyone trick you in any way, that day will not come until people rise up against God. It will not come until the man of sin appears. He is a marked man. He is sentenced to be destroyed. He will oppose everything that is called God. He will oppose everything that is worshipped. He will give himself power over everything. He will set himself up in God’s temple and He will announce that he himself is God. Well, I have to say that from that description, it says As like this could happen almost any day, doesn’t it? People are turning against God all around the world. Church attendance has been trending down here in America for some time. And of course, the pandemic made it worse. But this is not just an American phenomenon. Much of Europe has already turned its back on God and the same is true of Asia, then make no mistake, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world right now. I’ve made a study of it. And I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the God of Islam is not the God of the Bible. I could spend hours comparing and contrasting Allah with the true and loving and holy God of the Bible. But that’s not what we’re here for. But with the growth of Islam, it is obvious that people are turning away from the one true God. Now it seems as if the world is ready for the one Paul called the man of sin. And it is my personal opinion that this man could very well be alive today. I’ve already said on the show here, I believe that the time is short before these things happen. But my job is not to stop everything and wait for that day to arrive. Nor is that your job. Our job is to keep our eye on the ball to do what Jesus told us to do, to make disciples to live in such a manner that others will see a difference, a good difference in us. Let people see that even though the world may be falling apart. We have the peace that passes all understanding, because we know the One who holds the future. What do you have to say? What do you think? Go to Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 221. Scroll to the bottom of the page and tell me your thoughts are reading tomorrow will be Leviticus 25 through 27 Boost boost boost boost boost boost. Steve Webb 11:57 We have an executive producer today. Roderick came in with his monthly $50 donation Roderick. God bless you, my brother. I appreciate it. Thank you for your support. And remember that tomorrow’s episode will be number 222 the perfect time for a row of ducks donation, make your donation today at Lifespring media.com/support. Or do a special row of ducks booster gram. If you’d like to know how to become an executive producer or an associate producer or a distinguished producer. You can find the details at Lifespring media.com/support. Hey also, I added a way to send sets from the show notes page if you’ve got a Bitcoin or lightning Wallet. So even if you don’t have a podcasting 2.0 podcast app, you can still send Satoshi to support the show. That form will be on every show notes page going forward. Steve Webb 12:59 On this date in church history, April 10 1827, Lewis Wallace was born. He was an American Civil War soldier, lawyer, diplomat and the author of Ben Hur A Tale of the Christ. He wrote that in 1880 Amazingly, that book sold more than 300,000 copies in its first decade. He was the best selling religious author of his day, but he never officially joined a church. Steve Webb 13:35 Let’s pray. Our gracious and loving Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for telling us what to watch for his signs of the last days. But Lord, keep us focused on the important work of sharing the good news with a lost and dying world. Lord, give us opportunities to give the life saving message of the risen Christ to the people in our paths so that they will be ready when Jesus does return. Lord, I asked you that you bless the Lifespring family today. And if there’s anyone listening now who’s hurting, I pray that you would hold them in your arms and comfort them. I pray this in Jesus name. Amen. If you’ve got a prayer request or a praise, please go to prayer dot Lifespring media.com And tell me about it. Their information will be emailed to me and I’ll pray for you and my private prayer time and we’ll pray together here on the show. Steve Webb 14:31 I’d love to hear what you think about today’s show. Go to Lifespring media.com/s 12 e 221. And let me know if you’d rather you can email me at Steve at Lifespring media.com And please do help support the show and send in your row ducks donations at Lifespring media.com/support Until tomorrow may God bless you richly. Thank you for being here. I always love to see your smiling face. My name is Steve Webb. Bye Transcribed by https://otter.ai [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/28152340/donate.png]https://lifespringmedia.com/support/ * * [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23123801/NULS_LSFB_RateTheShow.jpg]https://lovethepodcast.com/biblePlease rate or review the show by clicking the heart! The post S3E215 – 2 Thessalonians 1-3: Keep Your Eye On the Ball [https://lifespringmedia.com/lifespring-one-year-bible-rewind/s3e215-2-thessalonians-1-3-keep-your-eye-on-the-ball/] first appeared on Lifespring! Media [https://lifespringmedia.com].

S3E214 – Esther 6-10: Coincidence? I Think Not

Transcript PODCAST INTRODUCTION This is history Tuesday, and we will finish the book of Esther by reading chapters 6-10, which will also complete our reading of the entire Bible for season 12 of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, the last “live” season of the show. I’m calling today’s show, “Coincidence? I Think Not.” S12E363Art1400-Steve and LeeAnn Webb [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/29204135/S12E363Art1400.jpg]Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Tim Webb COMMENTS ON ESTHER 6 Do you believe that God orders events in the lives of people to accomplish His plans? There are some people who believe that once God finished His work of creation, He stepped away and let events on earth happen on their own. Seems like a foolish notion to me. Here in Esther 6, we have an example of how God orchestrates the events of man for His purposes. The king is unable to sleep on the very night that Haman is plotting to kill Mordecai, so he does what many of us do. He decides to read a book, hoping that will make him sleepy. Think of it. Ahasuerus is the king of the most powerful kingdom on earth, so he could have done almost anything for a diversion, but he chooses to read a book. He orders that a book of remembrances be brought to him. He had a kingdom of 127 provinces, so I can imagine that this book of remembrances had several volumes, can’t you? But the person who was tasked with bringing the book brought the volume that included the account of how Mordecai saved the king from assassination. And the servant opened the book to the very page with that record. What are the odds? Well, with God, the odds are 100%. Without God, who knows? There had to have been many remembrances in the book, but on this specific night, this specific page was opened.  Do you believe that God orders events in the lives of people to accomplish His plans? Of course He does. Has God ever intervened in your life like this? Can you remember a time where the course of your life was changed by a seemingly random event? Let me tell you about a time this happened to me. It happened in 2004. It was a Saturday in September, I think. I turned on the radio to listen to a talk show about technology. It was normally a call-in type show where people would ask the host for help with their tech devices. But when I turned on the radio, the host was interviewing a guy, and the guy was telling the host about new thing he had invented where radio-type shows could be automatically downloaded to people’s computers. And better still, every time a new show was created, the new episodes would just show up on their computers. And then, they could transfer the new shows to their portable mp3 player and listened to whenever they wanted. This idea sounded pretty interesting to me, having been in radio in the late 70s and early 80s.  Of course, this new invention was podcasting. The interviewer was Leo Laporte and the interviewee was Adam Curry, whom I am now happy to not only call my friend, but ecstatic to call my brother in the Lord, but that’s a different story. Or is it?  Just a week or so before I heard this interview, I had asked God what more I could do to serve Him. I was already the tech guy at my church and putting a lot of time into that, but I wanted to do more for God since He had been so very good to me and had blessed me with a wonderful wife, great kids, a business that paid the bills and a home. I just wanted to be available to do whatever God had for me. I prayed and asked God what more I could do, and His answer was a very clear, almost audible, “Proclaim my name.” So, was it just a random event when I heard Adam Curry telling Leo Laporte about podcasting? I don’t think so. God prompted me to turn on the radio at just the right time, and on November 13, 2004 I uploaded the world’s first Christian podcast to my church’s website. Within days I received emails from around the world telling me stories of how God was using my podcast to bring them to Jesus. God was using my little podcast in miraculous ways.  But the story doesn’t end there. From the first podcast, that I called “Lifespring!”, I created several other podcasts, one of which was the Lifespring Family Audio Bible. Because of that show, a person asked me to record the entire Douay Rheims Bible, and because of that project, I wrote Webb’s Easy Bible Names Pronunciation Guide, which was published in 2012 and has helped many, many people as they study and teach and preach God’s Word. Also, because of podcasting, I have a career doing voice overs for radio and TV commercials, videos for companies around the world, church videos, and so much more, something I never dreamed could happen. My life was changed when God orchestrated events on that September Saturday in 2004. Do you believe that God orders events in the lives of people to accomplish His plans? I most certainly do. PODCAST EXPO 2006 [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/29215044/257031037_75baa27cb1_z.jpg]Greg (Cohost of the Rosary Army podcast), Steve Webb (Lifespring Family of Podcasts), Fr. Roderick (Catholic Insider, Daily Breakfast), LeeAnn Webb (Lifespring!’s Your Wedding, Your Way), Jennifer (Cohost of the Rosary Army podcast) TODAY’S BIBLE TRANSLATION Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 6-7 ESV; Ch. 8 NLT; Ch. 9 NIV; Ch. 10 NKJV SUPPORT This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT [/support/]. [/support/] TRANSCRIPT Download .txt file. [https://d1uphahyf7mnoz.cloudfront.net/lsfb/LSFAB_S12-E363_otter_ai-correctedV1.txt] STEVE WEBB – 0:00 Do you believe that God orders the events in the lives of people to accomplish his plans? INTRO S12E363 – 0:13 One more time! Coming to you from Riverside, California. This is the Lifespring Family Audio Bible. And podcasting since 2004, I am your OG Godcaster, Steve Webb. This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year. This is History Tuesday, and we’ll finish the book of Esther by reading chapters 6 through 10 which will also complete our reading of the entire Bible for season 12 of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, the last live season of the show. More about that a bit later. I’m calling today’s episode “Coincidence? I Think Not.” As promised on yesterday’s show. I’ll be talking about my plans for the future after my comments on Esther today. I’ll be sharing some of the ideas that came in from the “The Next Step” emails you sent in. And of course, we’ll have a time of prayer. Today’s show notes page is at lifespringmedia.com/s12e363. Let’s begin. ESTHER 6 (ESV) – 1:12 Esther, chapter 6. (1) On that night the king could not sleep. And he gave orders to bring the book of memorable deeds, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. (2) And it was found written how Mordecai had told about Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs, who guarded the threshold, and who had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. (3) And the king said, “What honor or distinction has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” The king’s young men who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” (4) And the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just entered the outer court of the king’s palace to speak to the king about having Mordecai hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for him. (5) And the king’s young men told him, “Haman is there, standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let him come in.” (6) So Haman came in, and the king said to him, “What should be done to the man whom the king delights to honor?” And Haman said to himself, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?” (7) And Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king delights to honor, (8) let royal robes be brought, which the king has worn, and the horse that the king has ridden, and on whose head a royal crown is set. (9) And let the robes and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble officials. Let them dress the man whom the king delights to honor, and let them lead him on the horse through the square of the city, proclaiming before him: ‘Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.’” (10) Then the king said to Haman, “Hurry; take the robes and the horse, as you have said, and do so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits at the king’s gate. Leave out nothing that you have mentioned.” (11) So Haman took the robes and the horse, and he dressed Mordecai and led him through the square of the city, proclaiming before him, “Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor.” (12) Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman hurried to his house, mourning and with his head covered. (13) And Haman told his wife Zeresh and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and his wife Zeresh said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is of the Jewish people, you will not overcome him but will surely fall before him.” (14) While they were yet talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hurried to bring Haman to the feast that Esther had prepared. ESTHER 7 (ESV) – 3:35 Esther, chapter 7. (1) So the king and Haman went in to feast with Queen Esther. (2) And on the second day, as they were drinking wine after the feast, the king again said to Esther, “What is your wish, Queen Esther? It shall be granted you. And what is your request? Even to the half of my kingdom, it shall be fulfilled.” (3) Then Queen Esther answered, “If I have found favor in your sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be granted me for my wish, and my people for my request. (4) For we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. If we had been sold merely as slaves, men and women, I would have been silent, for our affliction is not to be compared with the loss to the king.” (5) Then King Ahasuerus said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who has dared to do this?” (6) And Esther said, “A foe and enemy! This wicked Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and the queen. (7) And the king arose in his wrath from the wine-drinking and went into the palace garden, but Haman stayed to beg for his life from Queen Esther, for he saw that harm was determined against him by the king. (8) And the king returned from the palace garden to the place where they were drinking wine, as Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was. And the king said, “Will he even assault the queen in my presence, in my own house?” As the word left the mouth of the king, they covered Haman’s face. (9) Then Harbona, one of the eunuchs in attendance on the king, said, “Moreover, the gallows that Haman has prepared for Mordecai, whose word saved the king, is standing at Haman’s house, fifty cubits high.” And the king said, “Hang him on that.” (10) So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the wrath of the king abated. ESTHER 8 (NLT) – 5:24 Esther, chapter 8. (1) On that same day King Xerxes gave the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews, to Queen Esther. Then Mordecai was brought before the king, for Esther had told the king how they were related. (2) The king took off his signet ring—which he had taken back from Haman—and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed Mordecai to be in charge of Haman’s property. (3) Then Esther went again before the king, falling down at his feet and begging him with tears to stop the evil plot devised by Haman the Agagite against the Jews. (4) Again the king held out the gold scepter to Esther. So she rose and stood before him. (5) Esther said, “If it please the king, and if I have found favor with him, and if he thinks it is right, and if I am pleasing to him, let there be a decree that reverses the orders of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, who ordered that Jews throughout all the king’s provinces should be destroyed. (6) For how can I endure to see my people and my family slaughtered and destroyed?” (7) Then King Xerxes said to Queen Esther and Mordecai the Jew, “I have given Esther the property of Haman, and he has been impaled on a pole because he tried to destroy the Jews. (8) Now go ahead and send a message to the Jews in the king’s name, telling them whatever you want, and seal it with the king’s signet ring. But remember that whatever has already been written in the king’s name and sealed with his signet ring can never be revoked.” (9) So on June 25 the king’s secretaries were summoned, and a decree was written exactly as Mordecai dictated. It was sent to the Jews and to the highest officers, the governors, and the nobles of all the 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. The decree was written in the scripts and languages of all the peoples of the empire, including that of the Jews. (10) The decree was written in the name of King Xerxes and sealed with the king’s signet ring. Mordecai sent the dispatches by swift messengers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king’s service. (11) The king’s decree gave the Jews in every city authority to unite to defend their lives. They were allowed to kill, slaughter, and annihilate anyone of any nationality or province who might attack them or their children and wives, and to take the property of their enemies. (12) The day chosen for this event throughout all the provinces of King Xerxes was March 7 of the next year. (13) A copy of this decree was to be issued as law in every province and proclaimed to all peoples, so that the Jews would be ready to take revenge on their enemies on the appointed day. (14) So urged on by the king’s command, the messengers rode out swiftly on fast horses bred for the king’s service. The same decree was also proclaimed in the fortress of Susa. (15) Then Mordecai left the king’s presence, wearing the royal robe of blue and white, the great crown of gold, and an outer cloak of fine linen and purple. And the people of Susa celebrated the new decree. (16) The Jews were filled with joy and gladness and were honored everywhere. (17) In every province and city, wherever the king’s decree arrived, the Jews rejoiced and had a great celebration and declared a public festival and holiday. And many of the people of the land became Jews themselves, for they feared what the Jews might do to them. ESTHER 9 (NIV) – 8:46 Esther, chapter 9. (1) On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, the edict commanded by the king was to be carried out. On this day the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, but now the tables were turned and the Jews got the upper hand over those who hated them. (2) The Jews assembled in their cities in all the provinces of King Xerxes to attack those determined to destroy them. No one could stand against them, because the people of all the other nationalities were afraid of them. (3) And all the nobles of the provinces, the satraps, the governors and the king’s administrators helped the Jews, because fear of Mordecai had seized them. (4) Mordecai was prominent in the palace; his reputation spread throughout the provinces, and he became more and more powerful. (5) The Jews struck down all their enemies with the sword, killing and destroying them, and they did what they pleased to those who hated them. (6) In the citadel of Susa, the Jews killed and destroyed five hundred men. (7) They also killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, (8) Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, (9) Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai and Vaizatha, (10) the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not lay their hands on the plunder. (11) The number of those killed in the citadel of Susa was reported to the king that same day. (12) The king said to Queen Esther, “The Jews have killed and destroyed five hundred men and the ten sons of Haman in the citadel of Susa. What have they done in the rest of the king’s provinces? Now what is your petition? It will be given you. What is your request? It will also be granted.” (13) “If it pleases the king,” Esther answered, “give the Jews in Susa permission to carry out this day’s edict tomorrow also, and let Haman’s ten sons be impaled on poles.” (14) So the king commanded that this be done. An edict was issued in Susa, and they impaled the ten sons of Haman. (15) The Jews in Susa came together on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, and they put to death in Susa three hundred men, but they did not lay their hands on the plunder. (16) Meanwhile, the remainder of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also assembled to protect themselves and get relief from their enemies. They killed seventy-five thousand of them but did not lay their hands on the plunder. (17) This happened on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, and on the fourteenth they rested and made it a day of feasting and joy. (18) The Jews in Susa, however, had assembled on the thirteenth and fourteenth, and then on the fifteenth they rested and made it a day of feasting and joy. (19) That is why rural Jews—those living in villages—observe the fourteenth of the month of Adar as a day of joy and feasting, a day for giving presents to each other. (20) Mordecai recorded these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews throughout the provinces of King Xerxes, near and far, (21) to have them celebrate annually the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar (22) as the time when the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month when their sorrow was turned into joy and their mourning into a day of celebration. He wrote them to observe the days as days of feasting and joy and giving presents of food to one another and gifts to the poor. (23) So the Jews agreed to continue the celebration they had begun, doing what Mordecai had written to them. (24) For Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them and had cast the pur (that is, the lot) for their ruin and destruction. (25) But when the plot came to the king’s attention, he issued written orders that the evil scheme Haman had devised against the Jews should come back onto his own head, and that he and his sons should be impaled on poles. (26) (Therefore these days were called Purim, from the word pur.) Because of everything written in this letter and because of what they had seen and what had happened to them, (27) the Jews took it on themselves to establish the custom that they and their descendants and all who join them should without fail observe these two days every year, in the way prescribed and at the time appointed. (28) These days should be remembered and observed in every generation by every family, and in every province and in every city. And these days of Purim should never fail to be celebrated by the Jews—nor should the memory of these days die out among their descendants. (29) So Queen Esther, daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai the Jew, wrote with full authority to confirm this second letter concerning Purim. (30) And Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews in the 127 provinces of Xerxes’ kingdom—words of goodwill and assurance— (31) to establish these days of Purim at their designated times, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had decreed for them, and as they had established for themselves and their descendants in regard to their times of fasting and lamentation. (32) Esther’s decree confirmed these regulations about Purim, and it was written down in the records. ESTHER 10 (NKJV) – 13:44 Esther, chapter 10. (1) And King imposed tribute on the land and on the islands of the sea. (2) Now all the acts of his power and his might, and the account of the greatness of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? (3) For Mordecai the Jew was second to King Ahasuerus, and was great among the Jews and well received by the multitude of his brethren, seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his countrymen. COMMENTS – 14:17 Beloved, I have a question for you. Do you believe that God orders the events in the lives of people to accomplish his plans? There are some people who believe that once God finished His work of creation, he stepped away, took his hands off, and let events on earth happen on their own. To me, that seems sort of foolish, but that’s what some people think. Well, here in Esther, we have an example of how God does orchestrate the events of man for his purposes. The king was unable to sleep on the very night that Haman was plotting to kill Mordecai. So the king does what many of us do, he decided to read a book hoping that that’ll make him sleepy. Think of it. Ahasuerus is the king of the most powerful kingdom on earth, so he could have done almost anything for a diversion, but he chose to read a book. He orders that a book of remembrances be brought to him. Now he had a kingdom of 127 provinces, so I can imagine that this book of remembrances probably had several volumes, can’t you? But the person who was tasked with bringing the book brought the volume that included the account of how Mordecai saved the king from assassination. And the servant opened the book to the very page with that record. What are the odds? Well, with God, the odds are 100%. Without God, who knows? There had been many remembrances in that book. But on this specific night, this specific page was opened. Coincidence? I think not. Do you believe that God orders events in the lives of people to accomplish his plans? Of course he does. Has God ever intervened in your life like this? Can you remember a time where the course of your life was changed by a seemingly random event? Let me tell you about a time this happened to me. And some of you know this story. But it happened in 2004. It was a Saturday in September, I think it was. And I turned on the radio to listen to a talk show about technology. This was normally a call-in type show where people would ask the host for help with their tech devices. But when I turned on the radio, the host was interviewing a guy, and the guy was telling the host about this new thing he invented where radio-type shows would be automatically downloaded to people’s computers. And better still, every time a new show was created. The new episodes would just show up on their computers, and then they could transfer the new shows onto their portable mp3 player, and they could listen to them whenever they wanted. Well, this idea sounded pretty interesting to me having been in radio in the late 1970s and early 1980s. And, of course, this new invention was podcasting. The interviewer was Leo Laporte, and the interviewee was Adam Curry, whom I am now happy to not only call my friend, but ecstatic to call my brother in the Lord. But that’s a different story. Well, just a week before I heard this interview, I had asked God, what more I could do to serve him. I was already the tech guy at my church and putting in a lot of time in that. But I wanted to do more for God since he had been so very good to me and had blessed me with a wonderful wife, great kids, a business that paid the bills and a home. I just wanted to be available to do whatever God had for me. I prayed and I asked God, what more I could do. And his answer was a very clear almost audible, “Proclaim my name.” So was it just a random event when I heard Adam Curry telling Leo Laporte about podcasting? I don’t think so. God prompted me to turn on that radio at just the right time. And on November 13, 2004, I uploaded the world’s first Christian podcast to my church’s website. And within days, I received emails from around the world telling me stories of how God was using my podcast to bring them to Jesus. God was using my little podcast in miraculous ways. But the story doesn’t end there. From that first podcast that I called Lifespring. I created several other podcasts, one of which was the Lifespring Family Audio Bible. And because of that show, a person asked me to record the entire Douay-Rheims Bible. And because of that project, I wrote Webb’s Easy Bible Names Pronunciation Guide, which was published in 2012, and has helped many, many people as they study and teach and preach God’s word. And also because of podcasting, I’ve got a career doing voiceovers for radio and TV commercials and videos for companies around the world and church videos and so much more. Something I never would have dreamed would happen. My life was changed when God orchestrated events on that September Saturday in 2004. Do you believe that God orders events in the lives of people to accomplish his plans? I sure do. You have a comment? Let me know. Go to lifespringmedia.com/s12e363. I’d love to hear from you. Boost. THE NEXT STEP – 19:27 Normally, this is the time where we do the donation segment, but I want to talk to you first about what my plans are. So here we are at the last episode of the final fully live season of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible. I guess there should probably be an asterisk there on “fully live” since by definition a podcast isn’t really live, but now with a brand new lit tag in the Podcasting 2.0 namespace. That’s even no longer true, but let’s not get too geeky here. You know what I mean. I will no longer be producing episodes of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible with new content every day. It isn’t that I’ve lost interest. It isn’t that I don’t want to. It’s just that I have to step back because I have to take care of myself. I have a wonderfully understanding and patient and supportive wife who deserves much, much more of my attention, and for whom I would love to do some projects that have been simmering on the back burner for literally years. And I’ve got grandchildren and sons and daughters-in-law with whom I would love to spend time, and I’ve got hobbies that I’d like to get back to. But at the same time, I am a firm believer that there really is no retirement plan for Christians. As long as God continues to give me breath, he’s got a job for me to do for His kingdom. And I believe that’s true for every believer. Like Paul said, I want to finish the race. I don’t plan on dropping out of the race. I want to finish strong, stretching for the finish line. So what I did, as you know, is I asked you to send me emails for what my next step should be. And many of you did, for which I am grateful. I tried, and I think I succeeded in responding to each email, and if I missed responding to yours, believe me it was not intentional. And I’m sorry, if I did miss you. What I want to do right now is share some of these emails with you. I’m doing this because there are some ideas that came through in here, and some reasons for the decision that I have made going forward. So the first one, I think appropriately is from Brother Paul of Seattle. He says, “Hi, Steve, I think you’re recording the last episode of the Family Audio Bible tomorrow or Monday. So I just wanted to say a huge thank you for putting out the daily Family Audio Bible. It’s interesting to see how God led me to the podcast through TWiT, Leo Laporte saying he was totally opposite politically of No Agenda in some sidebar, and I thought, hey, I should check that out. So from TWiT I went to No Agenda, and then from No Agenda to the Lifespring Family Audio Bible. It only took 16 years. I am very happy as listening to the Family Audio Bible rekindled my relationship with God. And I believe God has brought me back to his path. I still struggle as I know everyone does. But my prayer is for God to continue to work in my life, grow my faith in Him, learn to listen to him, and look for how I can serve God with my life, not just continue doing the job every day. So thank you for listening to God’s calling 17 plus years ago, I don’t know how many lives God has changed through you. But I know that there is at least one. I’m looking forward to seeing what podcasts you’re going to do. And I already subscribe to the all media feed. And by the way, it was for me a little hard to find the all media feed.” I’m gonna stop right there for just a second, if you were searching for the Lifespring all media feed, that might be one of the problems that you had. It’s the Lifespring Media All Shows Feed. I tried this out just a little while ago, and I went to my different podcast apps that I have on my phone, and I did a search for Lifespring Media All Shows Feed, and it shows up every time. So if you look for Lifespring all media feed, that might be why it was difficult. That’s my guess. Continuing the email here. “I know I mentioned this in a previous email, but I’m serious about wanting to help in some way with Lifespring Media. I don’t know what that would be or what I could do. But if you need help with something, let me know. Signed, Paul” Brother Paul, thank you so much for that. I don’t know what your skills are. But keep listening because there’s something that’s going to come up a little bit later that if you have skills in this area, for sure I would want your help. So keep listening. And again, thank you so much for your email and for all the support and encouragement you’ve given me this year. So thank you, Paul. And then here’s another one. “Hi, Steve, Sir Snide here. ITM.” In The Morning to you Sir Snide. He says, “I want to thank you for what you’ve done, and let you know that it has enriched my life and walk with God. Being an engineer, I have had many thoughts about possible next steps a lot over the past several days. From a personally selfish perspective, I would like things to continue as is. But this is neither respectful nor feasible. So the engineer in me kicks in and my mind ran through many possible outcomes. Number one, do nothing and let people access the archives to read the Bible again on their schedule, very manual and high friction for the user, but easiest to accomplish. Number two, automate and rebroadcast the last season with pre-canned intro about it being a rebroadcast and the donor segment is from last year and please support the rebroadcast cost by donating again on the value-for-value model as servers, storage and bandwidth cost. May be simple to accomplish. Has the advantage that podcast apps can pick them up on a published schedule, which makes it easier for the user. Number three, if you still have the raw files and if you recorded things in segments, you could create an evergreen version that has the scripture reading, your best or favorite commentary from the past seasons, this day in history, and a canned value-for-value donation request for the servers, storage and bandwidth as in point two. This has the advantage to be able to be replayed year after year with minimal effort after the evergreen episodes are created. Still benefits users with a scheduled release for their podcast apps to handle, but I fear some of the personality and special extras from time-to-time would disappear. But also at the same time, it would not grow stale due to old prayer requests and other time-anchored elements. Number four, find a successor and mentor them and allow them to become the host for this podcast adding a second personality to your Lifespring Media setup. So turning off my engineering mode, I will support your future choices and treasure the blessings of this podcast that I have received over the past year. I leave it in your capable hands and I’m sure God will make his will clear to you. Best regards, Sir Snide.” Thank you, Sir Snide, for all of those suggestions. They were all good. I agree with you on your evaluation of each option, but they were some very good suggestions there. Thank you, Sir Snide. I appreciate it very much. And now I have a short one from Denise; yes, Denise who helps with the transcriptions. She said some very nice things. And then, she says, “I love history. So I’d vote for a weekly church history podcast, 20 minutes on an historical figure or event in church history. Or do a daily reading from someone’s journal, like John Wesley’s, for instance, and do, like, a year-in-the-life of John Wesley, but I don’t know how that would work with a weekly podcast.” She said, “I liked Susan from Oregon’s idea of doing a weekly podcast on current social issues. And I also liked Jane’s idea of keeping the daily Bible readings going but doing a weekly commentary.” I could make a hybrid of Sir Snide’s suggestion of reassembling the shows. That’s… that would be a possibility. And then she volunteered this last wonderful little bit. She said, “If you need any help with transcripts or research in the next season, if there is a next season, I’d be glad to help with that.” She said, “God bless you and LeeAnn and enjoy your visit with little Penelope this coming week.” Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Denise. Those are great ideas. And yeah, stay tuned. And now from John Taves from Candanavia. He’s been around these parts for many, many years now. He wrote some very nice things as well. And then he said, “Ideas could include reading a smaller part of the Bible, just the New Testament or a few books, or a topical study, like endtimes, living in Christian life or foundations of the faith, etc. Number two, reading from other Christian material: books, studies, topics, etc. Next suggestion is updates and prayer time. Another idea is more HymnStories or other shows with music.” Problem with music shows is the copyright issue, that… it’s getting harder all the time. “Next, repost the Bible, you’ve already recorded with some of the commentary relating to the world at that time trimmed out. Shorter shows rebroadcasted.” This is a theme that came up with a lot of them. “Something shorter, like a devotional and commentary on a less frequent schedule, or something more like the original Lifespring show, sporadic shows discussing a topic or interviewing someone, etc.” And that one came up quite a bit, too, redoing the Lifespring show. New episodes of a Lifespring-type show. So that came up quite a bit. This one is from a brand new listener, Jason Morgan. He said, “I started listening to your show a month ago, and I just wanted to thank you for all your good works. I have needed this, my brother. It helps me understand the message more than reading alone. I’m thankful you share your knowledge in the Holy Spirit daily. God bless you, Steve. PS, I hope to hear more from you. I’m listening.” He put a smiley face. So Jason, thank you very much for that. And I’m so glad you found us even though it is sort of late in the year. And I got quite a few of this type of thing. “I just found your show. And I’m so glad that I did find it.” This email and the others like it are one of the reasons why I have made the decision to, at least, keep going in some manner. Keep listening here on this, this episode. And then Sir Kevin said, “What I’d really like to hear are your insights, your stories. What’s on Steve’s mind? What have you been up to? What have you been thinking about? Is there a particular Bible verse you’ve read that has stuck out to you or that you’ve learned something new from? Is there a story from your life that applies to something happening today? Or that might be just what someone in the family needs to hear? How’s the Lovely Lady LeeAnn? How are the grandkids? How are Del and Kathi holding up? Maybe we could spend some time praying together.” I like that. “Maybe 30 minute episode per week, longer if you’ve got more to say, or more often, if you have the time. I think a lot of what that will be will be up to you. But those are my thoughts. I hope that’s the kind of feedback you’re looking for.” And Sir Kevin that’s exactly what I was looking for. And thank you for those suggestions. So really what Sir Kevin is referring to is something like the old Lifespring show used to be. So put another hash on the scoreboard for that one. And then here’s another one from a longtime listener. This is Matt Bogart. “How about a scaled down weekly version of the current show? Maybe just one or two verses, along with some commentary, then prayer requests. One caveat on prayer…,” And this is why I’m reading this particular email. “One caveat on prayer requests is that they work best whenever they’re closer to real time. So not sure a once per week prayer show would work well.” You know, Matt, I’ve thought a lot about that. And here’s my thinking – and this just me. You might very well be right about it being important to be near real time. But here’s my thought. God is outside of time. Think of it a little bit like we live in a fishbowl. We are inside of time. Fish… the fishbowl is time and we live in there. And God is outside of that, as if he’s looking into the fishbowl. He’s not in time. So when we have a prayer request, and when we pray, for God, it’s not really real time. In other words, being outside of time, he knows about the, the need. He knows about the prayer request, even before we pray it. So, if we had a show that was just once a week, as an example, and I took prayer requests, we could pray for something, and it could be as far as a week out before you hear the prayer or before we pray the prayer. But to God, it doesn’t matter. I know that can be kind of a weird concept. But the fact that we pray isn’t really to cause God to change His mind. It’s more to change our heart to conform to God’s will. It’s like when I pray for Kathi Brixey, I don’t really expect that I’m going to change God’s will for Kathi’s life. It would be wonderful if because of my prayers, God says, “Okay, Steve talked me into it. I’m going to heal her.” I don’t expect that to happen. God’s plan for Kathi is God’s plan for Kathi. As I pray, I try to align my heart to God’s will. I think it’s okay. I think God wants us to submit our petitions to him. But as we do that, as we live our lives, the Holy Spirit does His work in us to conform us to him. Now, all that being said, what you say might very well be true. I don’t know how receptive people would be to having prayer requests that aren’t, like, you know, the next day… they are going to show up on the next day. I could explain this idea of God being outside of time. And I think some people would say, “That makes sense”. But other people might say, “I don’t know.” So I don’t know. Something to think about. If you, Beloved, as you’re listening to this have any comments on what I just said, feel free to send them to me, st***@*************ia.com. And then here in the email, Matt had some other suggestions for Lifespring-type shows, for interview-type things. Oh, here’s one that kind of grabbed my, my attention. Matt said, “Lastly, if you recall from our conversation over lunch a few years back, I also mentioned I thought a podcast interview that covers a show guests’ conversion story or testimony would be super interesting.” So yeah, I like that idea. That might have legs. So put that on the scorecard here. He closed by saying, “However it shakes out, you definitely should take a break to clear your mind and rest those vocal cords before you do the next thing. You’ve earned it.” Thank you, Matt. And then this one from York Campbell, who, who does the Poetic Earthlings podcast. And if you like storytelling podcasts, look up Poetic Earthlings. York said, “I’m a faithful listener to your show. God has used you in profound ways to speak to my heart. You have strengthened my understanding of the love of God and His Word. Thank you. What about if you do a weekly show and you tackle the difficult parts in the Bible?” First off, York, thank you so much for those very kind words. I appreciate it. And I do like that idea about doing a weekly show that tackles the difficult parts of the Bible. That’s definitely something that’s in the mix. And then Roderick sent an email – and by the way, for those of you who’ve been around podcasting since the early days, no, this is not Father Roderick, the Dutch Catholic priest that had a very successful podcast, back in the day. And, you know what, I’ve even got a picture of myself and LeeAnn and Father Roderick together along with Greg and Jennifer, co-hosts of the Rosary Army Podcast, back in the day. I’ll put that picture up on the show notes page if you’d like to see who we all look like back in 2006. But, our Roderick said, New believers need to hear every single word you read. Old Believers, like me, need to hear every single word you read.” And he’s talking about, obviously, the Bible, not my own comments. But he says, “I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with my family after listening to you reading the Word of God. So for me, I wouldn’t want you to change a thing. I find enormous value in your teaching. And…” Well, thank you. “And hope to hear you continue reading every word of the Bible, until I get to be with you and yours in heaven.” Well, Roderick, thank you so very much for that. And your comment there about the importance of getting the Word out, along with the comments from new believers about how this show has really helped them in their walk with God has had a really big influence on my decision to keep the Lifespring Family Audio Bible alive in one way or another. I’ve got just two more emails to share with you. One of the emails is from Ann whom we’ve heard from before in donation segments, and Ann is the wife of Howie who we prayed for. Howie is the father-in-law of Sean of San Pedro. So Ann is Sean of San Pedro’s mother-in-law. She said, “Another podcast topic could be about family and being Christian grandparents and the impact grandparents have in the lives of their grandchildren, or the knowledge they can share with the third generation. I know as grandparents Howie and I see things differently, now. However, as a Christian scholar…” She’s talking about me. Are you talking about me? Who me? “…as a Christian scholar, you have an abundant knowledge and insights to share and teach young families. I keep ‘hearing’…” – and she puts that in quotes – “I keep ‘hearing’ that your next ministry needs to bring joy to your heart. And it needs to make you smile every time you think about it. This is very important. I’m also ‘hearing’, quote, “Teach them about me, and what a wonderful Father I am,” unquote. Share stories from your experiences as a grandfather and connected to Scripture. The joy you felt in your heart the first time you held your grandchild, and how that’s how God feels about us.” Ann, thank you for that. I very, very much appreciate your thoughts. And yes, I do want whatever I do to bring joy to my heart. I think that when we are working for God, when we’re doing what he calls us to do, that’s one of the benefits. God puts joy in our hearts. Not that it’s always easy. God does not always call us to things that are easy. But in following him, it does bring joy. And then the last email this one is from Howie. He wrote, “One idea we thought of is a Q & A podcast where listeners can send in biblical questions they may have wanted to ask their pastor, but never had the opportunity since pastors are so busy these days. That’s why we really enjoy your summaries at the end of the Bible readings.” Thank you for that, Howie. And then, lastly, there are a couple of people who suggested I do a weekly, bi-weekly or monthly show with another well-known podcaster, who will remain unnamed right now. Well, to those of you who suggested this idea, I want you to know that I did mention it to this person. But they have not, as yet, responded, probably because they’ve been out of town. But if this show is to happen, I want it to be of God. So I’m not going to push it with this other person. If the Lord wants it to happen, I want him to lay it on this other person’s heart. So I want you to know that I did not just put that suggestion off to the side. So there you go. These are just a few of the emails that y’all sent me. There’s some great ideas there, I think you’ll agree and each has got merit. What I’m gonna do is rest and recharge, and I’m going to continue to seek God’s will. And I think after I’ve had time to rest and just really make this a matter of prayer. I’ll know what to do. One thing I will say is that it is clear that the Lifespring Family Audio Bible has to continue in some form or fashion. I’ve learned never to say never, but I don’t anticipate the show coming back in its present form. But I’m going to take the ideas that you sent in and I’ll bring it back in some way. Now to do some of the automated things that were suggested. I would need some fairly sophisticated help. I am in no way a coder. I know just enough PHP and CSS to get me into trouble. But I don’t know anything beyond that, certainly nowhere near enough to do the things that were suggested in some of these emails, like especially from Sir Snide. But I would love it if someone would be willing to donate their time, talent or treasure toward that end, if they would step forward. I need someone who could write some code to add a pre-roll and/or a post-roll value-for-value message to the nearly 3000 episodes that are already at lifespringmedia.com. Or a pre-roll that talks about what’s new with Lifespring Media, and somebody who could write something to automate the scheduling of posting new episodes, stuff like that. If that’s you, or if you know somebody who could do this stuff, let me know. Write to me at st***@*************ia.com. And before we go to the next segment, please know how very, very thankful I am for each one of you. You have made this the best year I have ever had in podcasting. The interaction we’ve had this year has been leaps and bounds ahead of any other of my nearly 18 years in podcasting. You’ve been generous with your time, with your talent, with your treasure in the form of emails, your prayers, figuring out the new Podcasting 2.0 toys, and your donations. Listen, podcasting can sometimes be a very lonely thing. You speak into a microphone. You edit the show. You post it. And most of the time you wonder if what you’re doing matters to anybody. But this year has been different. You’ve been with me and you’ve let me know that I’m not here by myself. And it’s because of that interaction that I’m coming back. Do me a favor, if you have other podcasts that matter to you. Be sure to let those podcasters know. Give them some love, too, because, unless it’s a really huge show, they wonder if what they’re doing is worthwhile, too. Now you’ve heard me call you “Beloved” many times on the show. And each time I use that word, it was intentional. I love you. And I’ll be back, Lord willing. But give me at least two weeks, perhaps a month. But do know that the Lifespring Family Audio Bible will be back in its new form. soon. Stay subscribed, and subscribe to the Lifespring Media All Shows Feed in your chosen podcast app, or you can subscribe right there at lifespringmedia.com. And one last thing all the episodes at Lifespring Media are value-for-value enabled so you can boost and stream even on the old episodes. DISTINGUISHED PRODUCER SHOUT-OUTS – 42:21 And now today we have three Distinguished Producers. These three people have distinguished themselves by their generous and selfless value-for-value gifts of time, talent and treasure. Kirsty has been creating the Lifespring Media newsletter for much of this season. And she’s done it with only occasional input from Yours Truly. And without Sean of San Pedro, the chapters for the show would not exist. For those of you that have been brave enough to switch to a modern Podcasting 2.0 podcast app and have enjoyed the chapters function, you have Sean to thank. He even wrote a custom web-based chapter-generating app to speed the process up. And one of the first things I’m going to do with my newly found free time is show this app to Adam Curry and Dave Jones. And Denise has been correcting the artificial-intelligence- (or I should say not-so-intelligence)generated transcripts for several months now, which is certainly not a glamorous task, but is highly appreciated by me as one who can be a bit of a stickler for spelling and punctuation. And if you want confirmation on that, just ask the Lovely Lady LeeAnn. It drives me crazy to see bad punctuation and spelling…, and so thank you Denise. So because of their sacrifice of their time, talent and treasure, I hereby name Kirsty, Sean of San Pedro and Denise Distinguished Producers of this, the final episode of season 12 of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, episode s12e363. LIFESPRING FAMILY BEREANS – 43:52 And I furthermore bestow the title of Lifespring Family Berean on the henceforth to be known as Sister Kirsty, Brother Sean of San Pedro and Sister Denise, with my heartfelt gratitude. Your service to the Lifespring family will forever be remembered. ASSOCIATE PRODUCER SHOUT-OUT – 44:08 And I want to thank Kevin Schneider in Candanavia who sent in $123.45, 1-2-3-4-5, via Pay Pal and just said, “For the Daily Audio Bible,” making him our Associate Producer today. Kevin, thank you so very much. You’ve been a Lifespring family member for quite some time, and I appreciate you. God bless you, Brother. And speaking of Brother Sean of San Pedro, he sent in a $50 donation via Zelle with this note: “For the last episode of the year. What a year!” Yes, Sean, it has been quite a year. Thank you. MORE SUPPORTER SHOUT-OUTS – 44:42 And Matthew Thomas sent in a row-o-ducks, $22.22 and he did that over at lifespringmedia.com/support. He said, “First time making it through the Bible in a year. Thank you for your courage and passion. ITM.” Well, he obviously came over from No Agenda. I should have one of those jingles like Adam has for Joe Rogan when one of the Joe Rogan listeners comes over to No Agenda. Well Matthew, thank you for your gift. Thank you for your courage and may God bless you richly. Thank you. Boostagram. And there’s a boostagram. Sean of San Pedro sent an another 1-2-3-4-5 sat boost, 12,345 sats. Thank you. And last, but not least, Wayne Henderson sent in yet another Stryper boostagram of 777 sats using the Fountain app. [Stryper sings.] And by the way, if you’re a Green Bay Packers fan, you really need to check out Wayne’s show, the Packers Fan Podcast at, strangely enough, packersfanpodcast.com. He’s been doing this show since June of 2011. Congrats on that Wayne and thank you for the boostagram, buddy. God bless you. And while I’m on the subject of boostagrams, which is a subset of streaming sats, which is something that every podcaster who is participating in this Podcasting 2.0 technology is thrilled to receive. I want to acknowledge and thank each and every one of you who have streamed sats while listening to the show over this year. I can’t thank you by name because I don’t get that information. I only get your name if and when you send a boostagram and you choose to share your name in the boostagram. But there are some of you who have been extremely generous in your streaming. Don’t think that I haven’t noticed, I have and I’m thankful. God bless all of you who have taken this admittedly geeky and not always easy step. So I very much appreciate each of you. ON THIS DATE IN CHURCH HISTORY – 46:51 On this date in church history, August 30, 1856, the Methodist Episcopal Church established Wilberforce University in Xenia, Ohio, and ownership of the school was transferred to the African Methodist Episcopal Church or AME Church in 1863. PRAYER REQUESTS – 47:17 Prayer requests. Del said that Kathi had a rough night. She kept waking up. Overall, she’s feeling about the same. She’s probably going to start her oral nausea medications today, since the ones given to the IV are losing their effectiveness and the pain in her mouth and throat, much like a sunburn, you’ll remember, is still there. Del says he asked her to message her doctor to see how to relieve that pain, but she’s always iffy about contacting the doctor. I told Del to slap her upside the head and say, “That’s what the doctor is there for!” No, I didn’t say that, but I said, “That’s what the doctor is for.” And then this came in from Sean this morning. He said, “Thank you and the Lifespring family for all of the prayers for Brittaney, for me and our extended family.” That would be Howie, of course, and his friend that was anonymous on the show. Sean wanted me to pass that along to you the Lifespring family. CLOSING PRAYER – 48:08 So let’s pray. Our heavenly Father, Lord, I thank you for calling me to this microphone, despite my many faults. Who am I, Lord, that you would allow me to have a part in your work? Oh, Lord, You are so merciful. I worship you. And I offer myself to you once more to do with me as you see fit. Lord, I ask you to be with Kathi. Help her through this time. Bring healing to her body. Ease the pain. Ease the nausea and the vertigo. And I know, Lord, that Dell is afraid. He’s afraid. And I pray God that you would be with him and comfort his heart. I thank you, Lord, for each person that you brought to the show over the years and right up to today. Thank you for touching their hearts and for the work you’ve done and continue to do in their lives through the hearing of your Word. We know, Lord, that your word never returns void. And it is a joy to be involved in anything having to do with your word. I thank You, Lord. I pray, Lord, that you’ll bless these brothers and sisters, these Lifespring family members according to your mercy, and your grace and your love. I pray this in Jesus’ name, amen. This is the place where I always say: “If you have a prayer request or a praise that you’d like to share with the family, go to prayer.lifespringmedia.com and let me know about it.” Well, obviously there’s not going to be another one of these shows for a while. But that doesn’t mean I don’t care about what’s happening in your life. If you have a prayer request or if God is doing something marvelous in your life, I do want to hear about it. And prayer.lifespringmedia.com is an easy way for you to make that happen. Or, like I said before, you can always email me at st***@*************ia.com OUTRO S12E363 – 49:55 If you have a comment on this show, please do leave it at lifespringmedia.com/s12e363. As I’ve said many times, scroll all the way to the bottom of that page where you’ll find a box where you can put your comments. There won’t be another show necessarily to share your comments with, but I’ll see the comments and I’ll respond. Thank you to Sister Kirsty, Brother Sean of San Pedro and Sister Denise. I love each of you. Thank you to Kevin. Thank you to Brother Sean. And thank you to Matthew for your gifts today. And thanks to Sean of San Pedro and Wayne for the boostagrams. And thank you for allowing me to be in your life yet once more today. Please stick around. Stay subscribed. And if you haven’t yet, subscribe now to the Lifespring Media All Shows Feed. I love you and until next time, may God bless you richly. My name as always is Steve Webb. See you soon. Fun for the whole family. You won’t want to miss it. Transcribed by https://otter.ai Corrected by Denise [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/28152340/donate.png]https://lifespringmedia.com/support/ * * [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23123801/NULS_LSFB_RateTheShow.jpg]https://lovethepodcast.com/biblePlease rate or review the show by clicking the heart! The post S3E214 – Esther 6-10: Coincidence? I Think Not [https://lifespringmedia.com/lifespring-one-year-bible-rewind/s3e214-esther-6-10-coincidence-i-think-not/] first appeared on Lifespring! Media [https://lifespringmedia.com].

S3E213 – Ezekiel 43-48: The Lord Is There

Transcript PODCAST INTRODUCTION Today we will complete the book of Ezekiel 43-48.  And I’m going to have to beg your indulgence for just one more day. Tomorrow I will have comments after the reading, but today will be just the reading.  Title: “The Lord Is There.” S12E212Art3000-man by waterfall [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/31185508/S12E212Art3000.jpg]Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Jared Erondu on Unsplash TODAY’S BIBLE TRANSLATION Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 43-48 NKJV SUPPORT This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT [/support/]. [/support/] TRANSCRIPT Download .txt file. [https://d1uphahyf7mnoz.cloudfront.net/lsfb/LSFAB_S12-E212_otter_ai.txt] Steve Webb 0:08 This is the Lifespring family Audio Bible coming to you from Riverside, California, podcasting since 2004. I’m your OG God caster Steve Webb, welcome. How are you today? This is the daily show where we’re reading through the entire Bible in a year. And today we’ll complete the book of Ezekiel by reading chapters 43 through 48. And I’m afraid I’m going to have to beg your indulgence just one more day tomorrow, I will have comments after the reading, but today will just be the reading. The title of today’s show is the Lord is there and tomorrow we’ll begin the book of John with chapters one and two. The shownotes page for today’s episode is at Lifespring media.com/s 12 e to 12. And my email address is Steve at Lifespring media.com. I do appreciate your patience, and I will be back with a normal show tomorrow. Steve Webb 1:00 Ezekiel chapter 43. Afterward, he brought me to the gate, the gate that faces toward the east, and behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the East. His voice was like the sound of many waters in the earth shown with his glory. It was like the appearance of the vision which I saw, like the vision which I saw when I came to destroy the city. The visions were like the vision which I saw by the river key bar, and I fell on my face, and the glory of the Lord came into the temple by the way of the gate, which faces toward the east. The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Then I heard him speaking to me from the temple, while a man stood beside me. And he said to me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne in the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. No more shall the house of Israel defiled My Holy Name, they nor their kings, by their harlotry, or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places. When they set their threshold by my threshold, and their doorposts, by my door post, with a wall between them and me, they defiled My Holy Name by the abominations which they committed, therefore, I have consumed them in my anger. Now, let them put their harlotry in the carcasses of their kings far away from me, and I will dwell in their midst forever, Son of man, describe the temple to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities, and let them measure the pattern. And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple and its arrangement, its exits and its entrances, its entire design in all its ordinances, all its forms and all its laws, write it down in their site, so that they may keep its whole design and all its ordinances and perform them. This is the law of the temple, the whole area surrounding the mountaintop is most holy, behold, this is the law of the temple. These are the measurements of the altar in cubits, the qubit is one qubit and a handbreadth. The base one qubit high and one qubit wide with a rim all around its edge of one span. This is the height of the altar. From the base on the ground to the lower ledge two qubits, the width of the ledge, one qubit, from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits and the width of the ledge one qubit. The altar hearth is for qubit tie with four horns extending upward from the hearth. The altar hearth is 12 qubits long, 12 wide square at its four corners, the ledge, 14 cubits long in 14 wide on its four sides, with a ram of half a qubit around it. Its base one qubit all around, and it steps face toward the east. And he said to me, Son of man, Thus says the Lord God, these are the ordinances for the altar on the day when it is made for sacrificing burnt offerings on it, and for sprinkling blood on it. You shall give a young bowl for a sin offering to the priests, the Levites, who are of the seed of say, Doc who approached me to minister to me, says the Lord God, You shall take some of its blind and put it on the four horns of the altar, on the four corners of the ledge and on the rim around it. Thus you shall cleanse it and make atonement for it. Then you shall also take the bull of the sin offering and burn it in the appointed place at the temple outside the sanctuary. On the second day, you shall offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering, and they shall cleanse the altar as they cleansed it with the bowl. When you have finished cleansing it you shall offer a young bowl without blemish and a ram from the flock without blemish. When you offer them before the Lord, the priests shall throw salt on them, and they will offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. Every day for seven days you shall prepare a goat for a sin offering. They shall also prepare a young boy And around from the flock, both without blemish. Seven days they shall make atonement for the altar in purified and so consecrated. When these days are over, it shall be on the eighth day and thereafter that the priests shall offer your burnt offerings and your peace offerings on the altar. And I will accept you says the Lord God. Steve Webb 5:20 Ezekiel chapter 44. Then he brought me back to the aggregate of the sanctuary, which faces toward the east, but it was shut. And the Lord said to me, this gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the Lord God of Israel has entered by it, therefore it shall be shot. As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the Lord, he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway and go out the same way. Steve Webb 5:51 Also, he brought me by way of the North Gate to the front of the temple. So I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord, and I fell on my face. And the Lord said to me, Son of man, Mark, well see with your eyes and hear with your ears, all that I say to you concerning all the ordinances of the house of the Lord, and all its laws. Mark Well, who may enter the house and all who go out from the sanctuary. Now say to the rebellious to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God, oh, House of Israel, let us have no more of your abominations. When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary to defile it, my house, and when you offered my food, the fat and the blood, then they broke my covenant because of all your abominations, and you have not kept charge of my holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of my sanctuary for you. Thus says the Lord God, no foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh shall enter my sanctuary, including any foreigner who was among the children of Israel, and the Levites, who went far from me when Israel went astray, who strayed away from me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity, yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house, they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them, because they ministered to them before their idols and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity. Therefore I have raised my hand in an oath against them, says the Lord God, that they shall bear their iniquity, And they shall not come near me to minister to me as priest, nor come near any of my holy things, nor into the most holy place, but they shall bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed. Nevertheless, I will make them keep charge of the temple for all its work, and for all that has to be done in it. But the priests, the Levites, the sons of say, Doc, who kept charge of my sanctuary, when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near me to minister to me, and they shall stand before me to offer to me the fat in the blood, says the Lord God, they shall enter my sanctuary, and they shall come near my table to minister to me, and they shall keep my charge. And it shall be whenever they enter the gates of the inner court, that they shall put on linen garments, no wolf shall come upon them while they minister within the gates of the inner court, or within the house. They shall have linen turbans on their heads and linen trousers on their bodies. They shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat. When they go out to the outer court, to the outer court, to the people, they shall take off their garments in which they have ministered, leave them in the holy chambers, and put on other garments, and in their holy garments, they shall not sanctify the people, they shall neither shave their heads nor let their hair grow long, but they shall keep their hair well trimmed. No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court. They shall not take his wife, a widow or a divorced woman, but take versions of the descendants of the house of Israel, or widows of priests, and they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. In controversy, they shall stand as judges and judges according to my judgments. They shall keep my laws and my statutes and all my appointed meetings, and they show Hello my Sabbath. They shall not defile themselves by coming near a dead person, only for father or mother for son or daughter, for brother or unmarried sister may they defile themselves after he is cleansed, they shall count seven days for him. And on the day that he goes into the sanctuary to minister in the sanctuary, he must offer his sin offering in the inner court, says the Lord God, it shall be in regard to their inheritance that I am their inheritance. You shall give them no possession in Israel for I am their possession. They shall eat the grain offering the sin offering and the trespass offering, every dedicated thing in Israel shall be there’s the best of all first fruits of any kind, and every sacrifice of any kind from all your sacrifices shall be the priests. Also you shall give to the priest the first of your ground meal to cause the blessing to rest on your house. The priest shall not eat anything bird or beast that died naturally or was torn by wild beasts. Steve Webb 10:27 Ezekiel chapter 45. Steve Webb 10:30 Moreover, when you divide the land by lot into inheritance, you shall set apart a district for the Lord, a holy section of the land, its length shall be 25,000 cubits in the width 10,000 It shall be holy throughout its territory all around. Of this there shall be a square plot for the sanctuary 500 by 500 rods, with 50 cubits around it for an open space. So this is the district you shall measure 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 wide in it shall be my sanctuary, the most holy place. It shall be a holy section of the land belonging to the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, who come near to minister to the Lord, it shall be a place for their houses and a holy place for the sanctuary, an area 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 wide shall belong to the Levites the ministers of the temple, they shall have 20 Chambers as a possession, you shall appoint is the property of the city and area 5000 cubits wide and 25,000 long, adjacent to the district of the holy section. It shall belong to the whole house of Israel. The prince shall have a section on one side and the other of the holy district and the city’s property, and bordering on the holy district and the city’s property extending westward on the west side, and eastward on the east side, the length shall be side by side with one of the tribal portions from the west border to the east border. The land shall be his possession in Israel, and my princes shall no more oppress my people, but they shall give the rest of the land to the house of Israel, according to their tribes. Thus says the Lord God, enough, oh princes of Israel, remove violence and plundering execute justice and righteousness, and stop dispossessing my people says the Lord God, You shall have honest scales, and honest etha and an honest bath, the ether and the bath shall be of the same measure, so that the bath contains 1/10 of a homer and the etha 1/10 of a homer. There measures shall be according to the Homer, the shekel shall be 20 girIs 20 shekels 25 shekels and 15 shekels shall be your minor. This is the offering which you shall offer, you shall give 1/6 of an etha from a homer of wheat, and 1/6 of an EVA from a homer of barley. The ordinance concerning oil the bath of oil is 1/10 of a bath from a core. A core is a homer or 10 baths for 10 baths are a homer and one lamb shall be given from a flock of 200 from the rich pastures of Israel. These shall be for grain offerings, burnt offerings and peace offerings to make atonement for them, says the Lord God, all the people of the land shall give this offering for the prince in Israel, then it shall be the princes part to give burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings at the feasts, the new moons, the Sabbath, and at all the appointed seasons of the house of Israel, He shall prepare the sin offering the grain offering the burnt offering and the peace offerings to make atonement for the house of Israel. Thus says the Lord God, in the first month, on the first day of the month, you shall take a young bull without blemish and cleanse the sanctuary. The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering and put it on the doorposts of the temple, on the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and on the gateposts of the gate of the inner court. And so you shall do on the seventh day of the month for everyone who has sinned unintentionally or in ignorance. Thus you shall make atonement for the temple. In the first month on the 14th day of the month, you shall observe the Passover, a feast of seven days, unleavened bread shall be eaten. On that day the prince shall prepare for himself and for all the people of the land, a bowl for a sin offering. On the seven days of the feast, he shall prepare a burnt offering to the Lord, seven bowls and seven rams without blemish daily for seven days, and a kid of the goats daily for a sin offering, and he shall prepare a grain offering of one etha for each bull and one Eva for each RAM, together with a hint of oil for each etha in the seventh month, on the 15th day of the month,at the feast he shall do likewise for seven days according to the sin offering the burnt offering the grain offering and the oil. Steve Webb 15:02 Ezekiel chapter 46 Thus says the Lord God, the gateway of the inner court that faces toward the east shall be shut the six working days, but on the Sabbath it shall be opened and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. The prince shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway from the outside in stand by the gate post, the priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings, he shall worship at the threshold of the gate, then he shall go out but the gate shall not be shot until evening. Likewise, the people of the land shall worship at the entrance to this gateway before the Lord on the Sabbath and the new moons. The burnt offering that the prince offers to the Lord on the Sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish and to ram without blemish. And the grain offering shall be one Eva for a ram and the grain offering for the lambs as much as he wants to give, as well as a hint of oil with every etha. On the day of the new moon, it shall be a young bull without blemish, six lambs and a ram, they shall be without blemish. He shall prepare a grain offering of an EVA for a bull and Eva for a ram, as much as he wants to give for the lambs and a hint of oil with every etha. When the prince enters, he shall go in by way of the vestibule of the gateway and go out the same way. But when the people of the land come before the Lord on the appointed feast days, whoever enters by way of the North Gate to worship shall go out by way of the South Gate. And whoever enters by way of the South Gate shall go out by way of the North Gate, he shall not return by way of the gate through which he came, but shall go out through the opposite gate. The prince shall then be in their midst, when they go in, he shall go in and when they go out, he shall go out at the festivals and the appointed feast days, the grain offering shall be and etha for a bull and etha for a ram, as much as he wants to give for the lambs and a hint of oil with every etha. Now, when the prince makes a voluntary bird offering or voluntary peace offering to the Lord, the gate that faces toward the east shall be opened for him, and he shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings as he did on the Sabbath day. Then he shall go out and after he goes out, the gate shall be shut. You shall daily make a burnt offering to the Lord have a lamb of the first year without blemish. You shall prepare it every morning, and you shall prepare a grain offering with it every morning, a six, seven etha and a third of a hint of oil to moisten the fine flour. This grain offering is a perpetual ordinance to be made regularly to the Lord. Thus they shall prepare the lamb, the grain offering and the oil as a regular burnt offering every morning. Steve Webb 17:47 Thus says the Lord God, if the prince gives a gift of some of his inheritance to any of his sons, it shall belong to his sons, it is their possession by inheritance. But if he gives a gift of some of his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall be his until the year of liberty, after which it shall return to the prince, but his inheritance shall belong to his sons, it shall become theirs. Moreover, the prince shall not take any of the people’s inheritance by evicting them from their property, he shall provide an inheritance for his sons from his own property, so that none of my people may be scattered from his property. Now he brought me through the entrance, which was at the side gate into the holy chambers of the priests, which face toward the north, and their place was situated at their extreme western end. And he said to me, this is the place where the priests shall boil the trespass offering and the sin offering and where they shall bake the grain offering so that they do not bring them out into the outer court to sanctify the people. Then he brought me out to the outer court and caused me to pass by the four corners of the court. And in fact, in every corner of the court, there was another quart. In the four corners of the court were enclosed courts 40 cubits long and 30 wide. All four corners were the same size. There was a row of building stones all around in them all around the four of them, and cooking hearts were made under the rows of stones all around. And he said to me, these are the kitchens where the ministers of the temple shall boil the sacrifices of the people. Steve Webb 19:21 Ezekiel chapter 47. Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and there was water flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east for the front of the temple faced east. The water was flowing from under the right side of the temple south of the altar. He brought me out by way of the North Gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gateway that faces east and there was water running out on the right side. And when the man went out to the east with a lion in his hand, he measured 1000 cubits and he brought me through the waters, the water came up to my ankles. Again, he measured 1000 And then brought me through the waters, the water came up to my knees. Again he measured 1000 and brought me through the water came up to my waist. Again he measured 1000. And it was a river that I could not cross, for the water was too deep water in which one must swim a river that could not be crossed. He said to me, Son of man, have you seen this? Then he brought me and returned me to the bank of the river. When I returned there along the bank of the river were very many trees on one side and the other. The end he said to me, this water flows toward the eastern region, goes down into the valley and enters the sea. When it reaches the sea, its waters are healed. And it shall be that every living thing that moves wherever the rivers go, will live. There will be a very great multitude of fish because these waters go there for they will be healed, and everything will live wherever the river goes, it shall be that fishermen will stand by it from in getting to an egg lamb, they will be places for spreading their nets, their fish will be the same kinds as the fish of the great sea exceedingly many, but it swamps and marshes will not be healed, they will be given over to salt along the bank of the river on this side, and that will grow all kinds of trees used for food, their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves for medicine. Thus says the Lord God. These are the borders by which you shall divide the land is an inheritance among the 12 tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions, you shall inherited equally with one another, for I raised my hand in an oath to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance. This shall be the border of the land on the north, from the great sea by the road to half lawn as one goes to the dad. Hey Math, Bertha cyprium, which is between the border of Damascus and the border of Kamath to haze our hat icon which is on the border of Horan. Thus the boundary shall be from the sea to hazer Enon, the border of Damascus and as for the North northward, it is the border of Emeth. This is the north side. On the east side, you shall mark out the border from between Horan in Damascus and between Gilead in the land of Israel along the Jordan and along the eastern side of the sea. This is the east side. The south side toward the south shall be from Tamar to the waters of merubah by Kadish along the brook to the great sea. This is the south side toward the south. Steve Webb 22:46 The west side shall be the great sea from the southern boundary until one comes to a point opposite Emeth This is the west side. Thus you shall divide this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel, it shall be that you will divided by lot is an inheritance for yourselves and for the strangers who dwell among you and who bear children among you. They shall be to you as native born among the children of Israel, they shall have an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. And it shall be that in whatever tribe the stranger dwells there you shall give him his inheritance, says the Lord God. Steve Webb 23:22 Ezekiel chapter 48. Now these are the names of the tribes from the northern border along the road to heathland at the entrance of Emeth to hazer Enon the border of Damascus northward in the direction of Emeth. There shall be one section for Dan from its east to its west side, by the border of Dan from the east side to the west, one section for Asher by the border of Asher from the east side to the west, one section for NAFTA lie by the border of NAFTA lie from the east side to the west, one section for Manasseh by the border of Manasseh. From the east side to the west, one section for Ephram by the border of efirium. From the east side to the west, one section for Reuben, by the border of Reuben from the east side to the west, one section for Judah, by the border of Judah, from the east side to the west, shall be the district which you shall set apart 25,000 cubits in width, and in length, the same as one of the other portions from the east side to the west with a sanctuary in the center. The district that you shall set apart for the Lord shall be 25,000 cubits in length, and 10,000 in width. To these two, the priests, the holy district shall belong on the north, 25,000 cubits in length, on the west, 10,000 in width, on the east, 10,000 in width, and on the South 25,000 in length, the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in the center. It shall be for the priests of the sons of Zadar who were sanctified who have kept my charge who did not go with pray when the children of Israel went astray as the Levites went astray, and this destructive land that is set apart shall be to them, I think most holy by the border of the Levites opposite the border of the priests, the Levites shall have an area 25,000 cubits in length, and 10,000 in width, its entire length shall be 25,000 and its width 10,000. And they shall not sell or exchange any of it, they may not alienate the best part of the land, for it is holy to the Lord. Steve Webb 25:34 The 5000 cubits in width that remain along the edge of the 25,000 shall be for general used by the city for dwellings and common land, and the city shall be in the center, these shall be its measurements, the north side, 4500 cubits, the south side, 4500, the East Side 4500 and the West side 4500 The common land of the city shall be to the north 250 cubits to the south 250 to the east, 250 and to the west 250. The rest of the length alongside the district of the holy section, shall be 10,000 cubits to the east, and 10,000 to the west, it shall be adjacent to the district of the holy section, and its produce shall be food for the workers of the city, the workers of the city from all the tribes of Israel shall cultivated the entire district shall be 25,000 cubits by 25,000 cubits, for square, you shall set apart the holy district with the property of the city. The rest shall belong to the prince on one side and on the other of the holy district, and of the city’s property, next to the 25,000 cubits of the holy district, as far as the eastern border, and westward next to the 25,000 as far as the western border, adjacent to the tribal portions, it shall belong to the prince, it shall be the holy district, and the sanctuary of the temple shall be in the center. Moreover, apart from the possession of the Levites, in the possession of the city, which are in the midst of what belongs to the prince, the area between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin shall belong to the prince. As for the rest of the tribes, from the east side to the west, Benjamin shall have one section by the border of Benjamin from the east side to the west, Simeon shall have one section, by the border of Simeon from the east side to the west, is the car shall have one section, by the border of his car from the east to the west Zeppelin shall have one section, by the border of Zeppelin from the east side to the west, Gad shall have one section, by the border of Gad on the south side toward the south, the border shall be from Tamar to the waters of merubah by Kadish along the brook to the great sea. This is the land which you shall divide by lot as an inheritance among the tribes of Israel. And these are their portions, says the Lord God. These are the exits of the city. On the north side measuring 4500 cubits the gates of the city shall be named after the tribes of Israel, the three gates northward, one gate for Reuben, one gate for Judah, and one gate for Levi, on the east side, 4500 cubits three gates, one gate for Joseph, one gate for Benjamin, and one gate for Dan. On the south side, measuring 4500 qubits, three gates, one gate for Simeon, one gate for a car, and one gate for Zeppelin. On the west side, 4500 qubits with their three gates, one gate for Gad, one gate for Asher, and one gate for NAFTA lie. All the way around shall be 18,000 cubits and the name of the city from that day shall be the Lord is there. Steve Webb 29:04 Thanks for hanging in there with me, beloved. I will be back tomorrow with a normal show when we begin the book of John. Until then, may God bless you richly. I’m Steve Webb Transcribed by https://otter.ai [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/28152340/donate.png]https://lifespringmedia.com/support/ [https://dzzggm57pi1og.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23123801/NULS_LSFB_RateTheShow.jpg]https://lovethepodcast.com/biblePlease rate or review the show by clicking the heart! The post S3E213 – Ezekiel 43-48: The Lord Is There [https://lifespringmedia.com/lifespring-one-year-bible-rewind/s3e213-ezekiel-43-48-the-lord-is-there/] first appeared on Lifespring! Media [https://lifespringmedia.com].