Leviticus 6:12-13 And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out.
If you look to any bible study guide you can find meanings for ashes. According to the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia it is a mark of grief, humiliation, penitence, mourning, and in one case worthlessness, insignificance or evanescence. I can see all that but what does the Word say about ashes.
Job 30:19 He hath cast me into the mire, and I am become like dust and ashes.
Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
The similarity of dust and ashes lead me to believe that it is a reversal of life, that sacrifice being reduced to ash, to our original state, literally being undone. I see scriptural support in that from Isaiah.
Isaiah 6:5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.
This verse gets us back to the alter, coming before the King, the Lord of hosts. That all ties together but what does it mean to be undone. As some put it, justification, just as if you never did it. Undone.
That is significant unto itself but what really is important is that the consuming fire “shall never go out.”
Justification can never be undone. Never.
If you see anything else, please share it.
WOW! What a message this morning! A beautiful message on justification…..always so timely, as Satan is relentless in his attacks on us believers in constantly trying to remind us of the past. I love your summary remark “justification can NEVER be undone”! The Lord touched my soul this morning with this point.
It is so clear in Romans 4:8 NIV….”Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will NEVER count against him”. This is a total defeat to Satan.
I’m reminded of the Red heifer in Numbers 19. Verse 2 “without spot, no blemish, never had a yoke upon her. After the heifer is killed and blood is sprinkled, the whole animal is burnt on the altar. Verse 8….the priest takes cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet and casts it into the midst of the burning heifer. Verse 9, the clean man takes the ashes outside of the camp to a clean place and they are kept for the congregation for a “water of separation”…for purification. When needed, Verse 17, the ashes are taken and running water is put into a vessel with them and this is kept for the journey of the Israelites. I realize that Old Testament types fall short of what we have in our Lord Jesus, but the key to me is the “running water” with the ashes…..this speaks to me that it is perpetual…it never stops….just like justification.
Thank you, dear brother, for this heart warming message this morning.
What a blessing to see your post this morning.
God will be glorified. Praise the Lord.
It all ties together so perfectly, only God could do this.
Thank you Lord.
Thank you Ron.