Dt. 19:15 and Lev. 15:16-18 indicate that a seminal emission marks a man as unclean for ceremonial worship. In the ceremonial law bodily fluids such as blood and seminal fluid were symbols of life. They are holy inside the body. For that fluid to be outside of the body, i.e. spilled on the ground, was unnatural and therefore caused one to be ceremonially unclean. The life of the flesh is in the blood, so the one bleeding is a picture of death-unnatural. Seminal fluid is part of the propagation of life, so for it to be outside the body, i.e. spilled on the ground, is to be unnatural, unclean. It was important to the priests that the men had kept themselves from ceremonially clean.
God is all about life. He is the Living God. His laws given through Moses were meant to teach the holiness of life. Pagan religions viewed the gods as lusting after each other and after humans. In some cultic religions, it was believed that the lust of the gods made the fields fertile to bring forth crops and the livestock to produce young. Thus it became part of their ceremonial practices to incite the gods to lust. Thus the idea of temple prostitutes was easily introduced. But with Yahweh, He would have nothing to do with those demeaning practices. The propagation of life has nothing to do with exciting Him to lust and therefore bring forth the fertility of field and livestock. He is the author of life and we do not need to excite Him to reproduce. Therefore in the worship of Him, He ordained that men should remain pure in their ceremonial worship of Him by temporarily abstaining from sexual relations lest they pervert His image as the pagans. Yahweh has designed the sexual relationship of a married couple to be a reflection of the intense love found in the Trinity and in the relationship between Christ and His bride, the Church.
The bread of the presence is so rich in symbolism of life and of the fellowship and love between God and His people. To enforce this holy image the bread was to only be eaten by priests. Why then did the Priest allow David and his men to eat of the bread? Radmacher says, “The Talmud explains this apparent breach of the law on the basis that the preservation of life takes precedent over nearly all other commandments in the Law (see Lev. 24:9).” Jesus is always about the Spirit of the Law, not about its letter. So why does the priest insist that the men have not had intimate relations with a woman? He is reinforcing the holiness of God’s design for our sexuality! It is not to be reduced to a mere hormonal drive, but rather it is to be the rich expression of committed love between a married couple. Even as each person of the Trinity is committed to each other in love, so the couple is to be committed to each other in all aspects of their lives. Paganism reduces it to a dirty hormonal drive. Yahweh designed it to be the celebration of committed love and respect.
So here even in a seeming innocuous conversation between a fleeing David and the high priest, we find the incredible glory of the committed love of the Godhead being portrayed. What does Saul do with it? He does what Satan always does with committed love, he kills it. When he learns of the event, he kills all the priests that he thinks may have had anything to do with it. The true followers of the Yahweh seek life and loyalty. The followers of Satan seek death. David had sought protection from Samuel the prophet. The prophet could not help him. David had sought help from Jonathan, the king’s son. The prince could not help him. David has sought help from the priest. The priest could not help him. And so begins a ten-year period of David’s life where he is constantly fleeing from Saul, living as a hunted man. Only God can truly serve as David’s rock and fortress. The Lord is the one who is our rock, our stronghold, our refuge. He is also the one who is in committed love with us. Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
Look for pictures of David’s stronghold at: http://genesistochroniclespictures.blogspot.com/ “The Stronghold.”
PSALM 59
We saw him come around the corner. We were in the fourth grade and he was in the fifth. His name was Charles. He was big for a fifth grader. We were small for fourth graders. Additionally, he was known as a bully, and he had threatened us in the past. He had the cut out lid of one-gallon-tin can in hand. We turned and ran the other direction. He let the lid fly like a Frisbee. I heard it whiz past my ear, and saw it land in front of me. “Whew! That was close!” My feet were churning as fast as they could go!
“I’ll get you yet, Chaffin!” He did not bother to pursue us. To this day I really don’t know why he had it in for me. He probably enjoyed the power of making kids smaller than him fear. My friend told everybody in school the next day of our experience. Not much later we were playing on a rope swing. My hands inexplicably could not hang on to the rope. I face planted in the gravel road—scraped a lot of skin off of my face. The next day when I walked into class, several people simultaneously asked, “What happened, Chaffin; did Charles get you?”
I guess that is the closest I have ever been to someone pursuing me to take my life. So, I really can’t relate to David. I have had people who have hated me without a cause and tried to take my job, but never my life. It seems to me that to hate one so much so as to try to kill him would be the ultimate threat. If I know how to respond in that situation, then I know how to respond in any situation. What did David do in that situation? He focused on the glory of the Lord. He focused on the strength, defense and mercy that the Lord brings to those who trust in Him. When one focuses on such glory for very long, it usually can only result in breaking out in song. His glory is too wonderful! It must be sung! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
EZEKIEL 28
Am I a god? The prince of Tyre unconsciously came to that conclusion. Tyre was a magnificent city at the time of Ezekiel. Sitting on the eastern end of the Mediterranean it had become wealthy through its merchant trade that spanned from Spain in the west to its location in the east. Centrally located, it could receive goods from a thousand miles inland to the east and distribute it throughout the Mediterranean world. The merchants of Tyre did great business. Ithbaal II, the prince of Tyre in Ezekiel’s day, attained great wealth through his portion of the trade and through taxes levied on commerce flowing through his port city. Exalted and wealthy and possessing a great business mind, he became quite proud without probably even realizing his pride. After all, he was able to gain this wealth and power through his great business skills. He came to feel that he was the author of his wealth and wisdom. He needed to submit to no one. Only God is the author of true wealth and wisdom. Are you a god?
Two thousand seven hundred years later we fall into the same trap. Here in the USA, we live in a culture that makes it possible for individual wealth and power to be gained for the individual who knows how to manipulate the wisdom of this world. A decade ago it prompted a famous secular author to state that if anyone in the USA made less than $250,000.00 per year, then he was not pulling his own weight. We might quibble on where he set the bar, but I suspect that most Americans would agree. The question is, “Where do we set the bar--$25,000, $50,000, $100,000, $250,000?” Most of us would say that we are rich, have become wealthy and have need of nothing. We have become gods, or so we think.
The problem is that there is only room for One God. He destroys all others; that is part of His glory. He takes all who seek to be gods and throws them into the pit. Those princes who seek to be gods end up like their father, the king of Tyre. He is the one who started it all. The last half of Ezekiel 28 has baffled theologians for years. Many aspects of it make it seem to be directed toward someone who is more than a man, but then he is addressed as a man. He is called the anointed cherub. From Exodus 25:18-22, we can deduce that the role of cherubim was to protect and proclaim the holiness of God. Satan, the king of Tyre once did that, but he corrupted his wisdom for the sake of his own splendor. We do the same. God allows no room for it. There is after all only One God. There is no room for another. That is His glory. Indeed, we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor john
1 Corinthians 10:19-33
“The earth is the Lord’s and all its fullness.” Paul quotes Psalm 24:1. He quotes it twice. It must be a significant thought, if he repeats it. The earth is full of beauty. He created it. The earth is also full of pain and suffering. Does that belong to Him as well? Well, yes. Does that mean He is the author of pain and suffering? He is the righteous judge. Pain and suffering are a result of His curse upon the earth because of the sin of Adam and Eve. We agreed with that sin and joined them when we became old enough to sin. So no, He is not the author of pain and suffering, He is the judge of it.
So where is the glory of Christ in this? As I walk through life, I am to be looking for His glory. My job is to reflect His glory. Anything that diminishes His glory, I should avoid. Anything that exalts His glory I should embrace. Whatever I do, do it to His glory. Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!
--Pastor John
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