He said, Bring me a new bowl and put salt [the symbol of God's purifying power] in it. And they brought it to him. Then Elisha went to the spring of the waters and cast the salt in it and said, Thus says the Lord: I [not the salt] have healed these waters; there shall not be any more death, miscarriage or barrenness [and bereavement] BECAUSE OF IT. So the waters were healed to this day, as Elisha had said.
The salt taken from the new bowl and cast into the water symbolized the cleansing of the water for new use; it was a purification ceremony.
Lev 2:13 NLT
Season all your grain offerings with salt to remind you of God’s eternal covenant. Never forget to add salt to your grain offerings.
Salt seasons, preserves and brings healing, it purifies!
Mark 9:50
“Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt among yourselves, and be at peace with each other.”
Notice: having peace amongst us comes from having salt....no peace then there is probably no salt! (see Gal 6:11...we are circumcised instead of new)
Add salt to your grain offering....this leads me to ask, what is a grain offering?
Ex 29:38 “This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old. 39 Offer one in the morning and the other at twilight. 40 With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with a quarter of a hin of oil from pressed olives, and a quarter of a hin of wine as a drink offering. 41 Sacrifice the other lamb at twilight with the same grain offering and its drink offering as in the morning—a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the LORD. 42 “For the generations to come this burnt offering is to be made regularly at the entrance to the tent of meeting, before the LORD. There I will meet you and speak to you; 43 there also I will meet with the Israelites, and the place will be consecrated by my glory.
Every morning and evening the grain offering was offered. It was to be made at the tent of meeting (the church). This is where God will meet with us and speak to us....and consecration occurs.
Consecrate means to make or declare sacred; set apart or dedicate to the service of a deity
So I draw the conclusion that we need to pray in the morning and evening (preferably at the church) to be set apart by God for service. (Grain offering)
2 Corinthians 5:17
The second thing I wanted to study was the "new bowl". It was the vessel that carried the salt. A new bowl, is very important.
2 Co 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
A new creation...are you a new person, have you experienced a changed life? This is what God promises! I always thought I was a christian...but I hadn't experienced anything new....I continued i my old ways. Now i have experienced change but I want to take it a step further...am I still experiencing change? God doesn't just bring change once and that's it. It is supposed to be continual. Ask yourself if you are going forward...changing that is. Have you experienced change lately? You wont unless you pursue God. We are to be constantly changing....like the grain offering, we need to be offering our prayers day and night otherwise we wont be new vessels.
Galatians 6:11
[ Not Circumcision but the New Creation ] See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!
Circumcision would be a one time event....new creation is always taking place. Circumcision is physical and new creation is spiritual. Going through the motions of Christianity, having a form of godliness....this would be circumcision.....being renewed daily, actually experiencing God daily will make us new.....Being new, will eventually like a garment or a car, eventually it will become old. We need to be renewed daily. New everyday. IT IS NOT a one time thing.
2 Corinthians 4:16
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
It is a scary thing to see so many people come to know Christ and then fall away. It shakes me up. I was lead to study this because of the continual backsliding I see. I want you to notice that the water was the cause of the death, miscarriage or barrenness. I don't want to be the cause of death, miscarriage or bareness! I want to be healing the waters, I want life not death. I will be doing a study on salt because that is what was thrown in the water, We are the salt of the earth!
We can experience death miscarriage and barrenness in many areas of our lives. Our church, our families, finances, school, grades, friends, work ect...We need to analyze our lives and check ourselves for these things. If they are occurring we need to be sure we are not the cause. If we are we need to ask for forgiveness and repent. We need to start seeking God...not lip service but with our whole hearts. We so often just talk the talk and we don't walk the walk.
Do we really love God? Do our lives testify of it?
Thank you very much!
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