Leviticus 23-24 ; Psalm 32 ; Mark 15:33-47 "Still Life With Straw Hat" © by Terri L. Stricker - Oil on Canvas Today’s readings focus on the topic of forgiveness . We see this clearly in Leviticus 23-24 which emphasizes the different kinds of feasts, sacrifices, and offerings that – under the law – were necessary to bring Israel back into a right relationship with God. “These are the LORD’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed time

Leviticus 21-22 ; Psalm 31:19-24 ; Mark 15:1-32 "Boxes, II" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Pencil Sketch on Paper Leviticus 21-22 begins with God’s revelations about His particular rules for the priesthood. These regulations include maintaining ceremonial cleanliness regarding the death of relatives. A priest might become unclean for the death of a close family member (i.e., mother, father, brother, son, or daughter, etc., cf., verses 1-2). They were not to shave their

Leviticus 19-20 ; Proverbs 6:30-35 ; Mark 14:43-72 "Other Side of the Hill" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Felt Tip Marker on Paper Today, in each of our passages, we read practical wisdom to which we should all attend and commit to our everyday practices. For example, in Leviticus 19-20, we recognize that God is now giving the Israelites a series of criminal laws after having already covered ritual laws regarding sacrifices and offerings, religious laws that governe

Leviticus 17-18 ; Psalm 31:9-18 ; Mark 14:17-42 "Girl With Random Thoughts" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Pen & Ink on Notebook Paper Yesterday, we saw how Leviticus reveals that – no matter how hard we try – we just cannot keep God’s requirements for obedience or for holiness. This is why God provided the annual Day of Atonement for the Israelites – a day that contemplates God’s then-future provision for His sacrifice of the Lamb of God Who takes away the sins of the

Leviticus 15-16 ; Psalm 31:1-8 ; Mark 13:32–14:16 "Young Girl, I" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Oil Crayon on Paper Yesterday, in our Leviticus readings, we were reminded of mankind’s two main difficulties – obedience and holiness . Today, our readings in Leviticus 15-16 reveal that, of the two, man’s greater problem is holiness. Obedience means simply to do what we’re told to do. A person can be obedient without being holy, but a person can never be holy without ob

Leviticus 14 ; Psalm 30:8-12 ; Mark 13:1-31 "The Runner" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Pen & Ink on Paper Earlier, we said that one of the most important lessons to be learned from the book of Leviticus is bound up in the question – Will the Israelites simply obey God ? Will they carry out all the tedious laws and complex regulations found in this book? This is the test set forth by this book. Ultimately, this is God’s test for us all – will we obey Him? Often, G

Leviticus 13 ; Proverbs 6:20-29 ; Mark 12:28-44 "Innocence" © by Terri L. Stricker - Original Pencil Sketch on Paper Today we come to Leviticus 13 which is a long chapter that contains the regulations which relate to various infectious skin diseases that might crop up within the camp of the Israelites. These skin diseases included sores, spots, rashes, swellings, raw flesh, burns, blemishes, and other possible skin ailments. Why such a concern about human skin? First of