February 17-21
[M] Leviticus 8-11; Ps 110; Hebrews 4
[T] Lev 12-14; Psalm 111; Heb 5
[W] Lev 15-18; Psalm 31; Heb 6
[T] Lev 19-20; Heb 7
[F] Lev 21-23; Heb 8
Dwell Plan Day 36-40 | CSB | Digital PDF | Printable PDF
Notes from Jon & Chris
Monday
Leviticus 8-10 |There is a drama here that happens across these three chapters. We began Leviticus with details on the offerings. It’s fairly dry stuff at times. It’s hard to keep track of all the differing types of offerings and their purposes. But the story pivots in chapter to 8 to focus on Aaron and his sons. This is extremely important. As you read it, notice how much blood and sacrifice is required just for Aaron and his sons to do their work. It’s a lot, covering them from head to toe, splashed on the altar, sprinkled all over their clothes. This culminates in God responding with fire, dramatically coming from His presence, licking up the offering off the altar. Everyone saw it and had a real worship moment. (Leviticus 9:24)
But then something horrible happens: two of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, decide to do some of the offerings their own way. The Bible calls it “unauthorized fire”, and they pay for it with their lives–right in front of their dad. And then Moses says to him, and to their uncles, that they’re not allowed to grieve until all of their work of consecration is done.
It’s a grim scene. It makes me pray double for my own sons. It’s what the writer of Hebrews has in mind when he writes that our God is a consuming fire. This isn’t a different OT God of wrath either. Remember Ananias and Saphira? One interpretive help is to see the similarities there: In the book of Acts, God is creating His first church, much like in Exodus, God is creating His people in taking them out of Egypt. When the church is just getting started, there are miracles happening with a heightened sense of redemptive drama. Some of those miracles are also judgments, as in Ananias and his wife. We see the same kind of intensity in the book of Exodus, as the first tabernacle and the first priesthood are just being consecrated. Astounding miracles are happening around them, proving this is God’s work, increasing the redemptive arc and also bringing immediate judgments.
In these moments, what the Bible sometimes calls the “fulness of time,” we actually see ultimate reality breaking into our reality. Eternity is “breaking in” to time and space, in both Exodus and Acts. In those dramatic moments of God’s saving work, the eternal realities of blessing or judgment begin to become more and more visible. They reveal God is at work, and what kind of God He is.
Leviticus 9 | In this chapter, Aaron offers blood sacrifices for himself and the people, and when atonement is made, God’s glory appears, consuming the offering with fire. This points us to Jesus, our perfect High Priest, who shed His own blood on the cross as the ultimate sacrifice to fully atone for sin and bring us into God’s presence. Just like in Leviticus, where the shedding of blood was necessary for forgiveness, Christ’s blood secures our eternal redemption—proven by His resurrection, which shows that His sacrifice was accepted once and for all.
Psalm 110:1 | The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.” Out of all the amazing verses in the Old Testament, this verse is the most frequently quoted Old Testament passage by New Testament authors. It reveals Jesus as the exalted Messiah who reigns at God’s right hand (Matthew 22:44; Acts 2:34-35; Hebrews 1:13). Theologically, it affirms Christ’s divine authority, his ongoing reign, and the certainty of His final victory over the enemy. For us believers, this psalm is a reminder that Jesus is not only our Savior but also our King; ruling now, and ensuring that all things will ultimately be brought into submission to him. It’s incredibly comforting to think that right now, from heaven, Jesus is seated on his throne and ruling the world through his sovereign power.
Psalm 110:1 | Jesus loved this verse especially because it bugged the religious hotshots of the day. No one could explain what the heck David was saying back then. It wasn’t until Christ conquered death and revealed clearly he is the Son of God that this little riddle of a verse started to have clarity.
But don’t only focus on the amazing truth revealed. Notice also the wise way that Christ used spiritual truth. He knew what it meant. He also knew they didn’t. So he’s intentionally being enigmatic, playful, and impossible to pin down. Why? I think he’s hoping they’ll try to figure out his little riddle, and later, it might lead them to faith. It did for some! But also importantly, for us in our day, he’s wisely avoiding letting anyone just put him in a box.
When we depend on the Spirit, we will find the same sort of wisdom that Christ had. It is the wisdom of surprising truth, because when we say the really remarkable stuff the Bible says in some places, it’s just not like anything anyone is posting or saying or teaching in this world. Here’s one I like to share with all sorts of people: God’s advice when you’re around really wealthy people and you want their beautiful things is to imagine there’s a razor being pressed right up against your carotid artery. (Proverbs 23:1-4) That’s how dangerous it is to really want other people’s stuff. The Bible is weird. Move toward its weirdness like Jesus did.
Hebrews 4:12 | For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. This is our memory verse for February, but it could also be our theme verse for the whole year. Take a look at each clause one more time slowly and see the depth of the power of God’s word in our lives. Slowly reread each clause to experience the profound power of God's word in our lives.
Tuesday
Hebrews 5 | Do you see how the author of Hebrews connects the work of Christ with all that we are reading in Leviticus?
Psalm 111 | As you read this wonderful little poem, notice the use of the word “works.” In the Hebrew the same word appears in verses 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10. But in verse 8 and 10 the ESV uses the English words “performed” and “practice” to translate the word “works.” But that misses a truth of the New Testament scripture, which may have been based on this poem: Remember that Paul tells us we are God’s “workmanship” created in Christ Jesus for “good works” so we can go and do them? This is the language of Ephesians 2:10, revealing that God is at work as we are at work. In this little poem of praise, the poet exalts and praises all of the many works of God, describing their power, faithfulness, and love. Then he connects us to God’s work, encouraging us in praise and adoration to claim our work as God’s in us.
Leviticus 12 | Remember as you read this chapter that is so odd to our ears, that being unclean or in a state of impurity wasn’t about being in a state of sin.
Leviticus 13-14 | The laws about leprosy in Leviticus cover a wide range of skin diseases, not just what we call “leprosy” today. The key idea behind these laws is that impurity spreads—if you touch someone unclean, you become unclean too. For generations, this was the norm in Israel. But then Jesus comes along, and everything changes.
In Luke 5:13 (also recorded in Matthew 8:3 and Mark 1:41), a leper approaches Jesus, desperate for healing. There’s a small but shocking detail—Jesus touches him. On the surface, it’s a beautiful moment: this man, likely untouched for years, feels human contact again. But something deeper is happening. In the Old Testament, impurity spreads outward, contaminating everything it touches. But when Jesus, the source of life and holiness, touches the leper, the opposite happens—instead of Jesus becoming unclean, the leper becomes clean. Instead of death spreading, life flows from Jesus to the sick man. This moment is a picture of the gospel itself. Jesus doesn’t just heal disease; he takes what is unclean, broken, and sinful, and he makes it whole.
Wednesday
Leviticus 16 | This chapter lays out the Day of Atonement, the one day each year when the high priest would enter the Most Holy Place to make a sacrifice for the sins of the people. Two goats were involved—one was sacrificed, and the other, called the scapegoat, was sent into the wilderness symbolizing sin being taken away. This whole ritual was a preview of what Jesus would do for us. As our perfect High Priest, he didn’t just offer a sacrifice—he became the sacrifice, shedding his blood to fully pay for sin once and for all (Hebrews 9:11-12). And just like the scapegoat, Jesus carried our sins away, suffering outside the city, so that we could be brought near to God (Hebrews 13:12). Now, because of Him, we don’t need yearly sacrifices—our atonement is finished, and our redemption is secure.
Psalm 31 | In his desperation, David writes this poem. The ESV translation captures the staccato rhythms of the Hebrew, creating a sense of tension in four imperatives in the first two verses. He then praises God for rescuing him out of their net, and tells God “into your hand I commit my spirit.” (v. 5)
By the Holy Spirit, these lines become the words of Jesus himself to his Father on the cross as he died. This makes this one of the “messianic psalms,” each of which refers somehow to Christ. As words from Jesus’ mouth, they have a special relevance to us. Notice the verse goes on to say “You have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.” Christ’s committing his spirit was an act of trust in God’s redeeming faithfulness.
As the poem goes on, we discover just how desperate David has gotten and how vicious his enemies are. Then in verse 20 there seems to be a deepening understanding. He’s become aware that God is his deepest need. His true shelter and safety is in God’s presence–literally the “hiding place of Your Face.” What the Holy Spirit revealed to David and through David, may he also reveal to us.
Thursday
Hebrews 7 | In this section of Hebrews, the author is making the case that Jesus is greater than the Levitical priesthood. There is a lot in here that I’d love to parse out in 20 sermons someday, but for now, I’d like you to notice what he says in verses 25-27. There are two ideas that, when properly understood, should bring us all into a posture of worship and adoration:
When you went to the temple, a priest would sacrifice an animal on your behalf and maybe say a blessing over you. But this wasn’t a one-time thing; it had to be repeated over and over, year after year. Honestly, that must have been exhausting.
But then Jesus comes along (Hebrews 7:27), and his sacrifice is different—it’s once and done. No need to repeat it, no way to add to it, no way to make it better. It never fades, never wears off, and never needs to be reapplied.
That alone is incredible, but the author of Hebrews gives us one more reason why Jesus is greater than the priests: in the temple, a priest might pray for you, but then you’d move on, and he’d move on, probably never thinking about you again. Jesus, however, never stops interceding for you (Hebrews 7:25). He not only died to save you—he lives to pray for you. Imagine a first-century Jewish person hearing this after a lifetime in the temple system—what an amazing Savior!
Leviticus 19:18 | This little verse is just tucked away in here, but it becomes core to Jesus’ whole teaching. Love your neighbor as yourself. As you read the law, this is what’s at the core of it, the principle that’s being worked out time and time again.
This is what love looks like: we don’t do these awful things to people. But you might have noticed that the morals of the law are squished in with the laws about being clean and unclean and having nasty bodily “discharges.” It just sounds gross–and it is–but remember, nothing in the Bible is sacred except for God. Our stuff, our moral perversity and general slobbiness as humans, is all discussed in the Bible. And it all matters to God. Lots of these specific rules would make so much sense if you knew the original context. These original hearers did. They knew the point that God kept making: you are not like these other people around you. Don’t do the stuff they do; it’s awful. I want you to be different in tons of detailed ways, just to show how different you really are.
Leviticus 20:1-7 | Child Sacrifice. I don’t want to make this long because I can hardly read this chapter without thinking about why these laws were necessary. All I want to say here is this: remember this chapter for when we get to the later Old Testament books. Verse 23 makes it clear that God wants them to be different from the people around them, but the people of Israel eventually follow their evil neighbors and turn to child sacrifice.
Friday
Leviticus 23 | In his book The Knowledge of the Holy, AW Tozer said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” Many people envision God as a stern, distant figure—one who saves, yet watches with expectation for failure, ready to judge. This perception paints Him as grumpy, perhaps even unkind.
However, the God revealed in Scripture is entirely different. He is undeniably holy, yet also a God of profound joy and unfailing love. Rather than waiting for our failure, he calls us into his grace, inviting us to know him as he truly is. Look at what we see in this chapter: a God who tells his people, “Here, I have a command for you. Don’t forget to party and celebrate. In fact, build the whole rhythm of your life around these celebrations. And as you do this, remember all that I have done for you and be filled with joy!” Now that’s a God I want to know!
Hebrews 8:5 | Copies and shadows. There’s something so bright and beautiful about heaven, something so shiny and glorious, that all we can really see here are shadows. Shadows are all we can handle. But don’t you just want to peek at what’s behind the curtain? All of those details from Exodus about the tent and all the stuff in it are all pure, eternal, and glorious realities in heaven. Imagination is the servant girl of faith for us here, and the writer of Hebrews is setting us up for a flight of praiseful imagination!
At the same time we’re also being invited to consider the reality of the spiritual. The copies remind us that all of this “spiritual furniture” of heaven is even more real and durable than the couch in your living room. There is another reality, another spiritual dimension, that’s all around us. In some parts of the Bible that’s a warning about spiritual warfare, but here it’s an invitation to every child of God. God’s “home,” which is his Presence, is a place we’re always welcomed to find shelter and fellowship with him. And it’s as close as closed eyes in prayer, crying out to Him in faith. And voila! You’re actually there, before his majesty. That’s what makes Jesus’ promises so much better.