27 Jul A Word About Words
I’m a wordy. Kinda like a foody… I love words. I love to write words. I love to read words. I love to study words. I love to speak words (maybe too many). But lately, I feel bombarded by words I’ve read and listened to; words that have made me weary, sad, sometimes overwhelmed…and angry.
Over the past two weeks several people forwarded a document and video to me that’s circulating on social media. This viral video contains several Scriptures from Leviticus 8:22–24 and Leviticus 14:28 (link) that pertain to the consecration of Levitical priests in the Old Testament—specifically the placement of sacrificial blood on the right ear, thumb, and big toe of the priests in preparation for their duty in serving God in the Temple. I was asked what I thought about these verses with respect to the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. Interesting.
My simple answer is: These verses have nothing to do with Donald Trump nor the blood on his ear from the assassination attempt on his life.
For the Love of God’s Word
My greatest love of words comes from the treasure of Scripture—God’s Words. I love the Bible because it’s the living and active book of words God wrote about Himself and how great He is, how much He loves us, and how to live our lives following His Truth. I came to know and love Jesus through the words God wrote, and it changed my mind, my heart, and my life. It was something I prayed for—and still pray for—to continually love and hunger for God and His Word.
When you love something, you hold it as precious and sacred. The thought of it being misused or harmed in any way causes you to protect and defend it. And when God’s Word is misused, I want to protect it, defend it, and explain it the right way within its biblical context so that others know and understand what God is saying…and in this case, what He’s not saying.
It is dangerous to repurpose God’s Word to fit our own purposes. This viral message is promoting erroneous teaching of the Scripture (taking verses out of context and repurposing the Word of God to suit personal agendas) and is implying that the blood on Donald Trump’s ear was a sign of God’s anointing on his life. So, let me be clear: This is a gross misrepresentation of the Scriptures.
The Truth of Scripture
- God’s Word must be read and interpreted within context—both in regard to the whole of Scripture as well as the time and culture in which it was written. Therefore, God’s Word means what God means— and we come to rightly understand what He means when we consider the verses together with the Scriptures surrounding it, and that pertain to it in other parts of the Bible.
- These verses from Leviticus (link) are given under the Mosaic Covenant (the covenant God gave to Moses) and apply solely to the anointing and consecration of the Levitical priests—Aaron and his sons— in the Old Testament. God gave very specific instruction as to how this consecration was to take place.
- The “blood on the right ear” is blood from the animal sacrifice on the altar in the temple of God, that was then wiped on the ear of the priest. It is not a bullet wound to the ear. (You could nick your right ear shaving or getting a haircut…need I say more?) The point of animal sacrifice is that something had to die in order to purify and consecrate (set apart) the priest for God’s service. This is called substitutionary atonement and again, this method of consecration was only applicable under the Mosaic Covenant.
- As believers in Jesus Christ—we are under a new covenant—our substitutionary atonement comes by the shed blood of Christ. We are saved and made pure by Jesus, and through Jesus we are “set apart” to live “holy” or consecrated lives (Romans 12:1-2).
- As believers in Jesus Christ—we also are “anointed” with the Holy Spirit upon our profession of faith in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 1:21-22). This applies to all believers who have made Jesus the Lord and Savior of their life.
To put it plainly: The attempt on Trump’s life that injured his right ear and drew blood is not a symbol of an anointing by God.
Scripture Always Supports Scripture
People often incorrectly apply (take out of context) verses from Scripture to support things that are happening in the world or in their life simply because they don’t have a proper working knowledge of the Word. Or they use Scripture to try to validate the lifestyle they choose. But it is the Scripture itself that interprets Scripture, and Scripture always supports Scripture. When we try to lay a verse of Scripture over our own incorrect idea or worldview, Scripture will crush it every time.
2 Timothy 2:15 reminds us that we are to work at and study the Scriptures to understand them in the right way—to be people who rightly handle the Word of Truth, and not just guess at it. So, yes, we’ve got to work at it. Understanding won’t happen by accident. We’ve got to study God’s Word correctly so that we can understand it correctly and live the Truth of what God is saying about everything—about morality, sexuality, marriage, work, money, child rearing, leadership…even politics.
Something to Think About:
It’s crazy town out there, y’all. Christians need to be wise and discerning about what’s going on in the world around us, and we must know God’s Word to have Biblical discernment about the world. We are to build our entire life ON the Truth of God’s Word, IN the Word, and THROUGH the Word (Proverbs 2, Matthew 7:24)—being careful to properly understand and explain what the Scriptures say and what they mean, and to whom they apply—so that we can live them.
Here’s the truth: Just because an idea sounds spiritual doesn’t mean it is Biblical Truth. Be careful who you’re listening to. Be careful who you’re following. Be careful who’s influencing you. If you know God’s Word well enough to measure it against the words of the world, then you already know that you don’t need to be listening to the millions of words out there that merely sound spiritual. We need a solid Biblical worldview—and to have the right view of the world, we must study and interpret the Word in context of the whole of Scripture and take extra care to make sure we are regularly sitting under good, sound, biblicalteaching.
“The only thing that keeps me stable and settled in these days of uncertainty is the absolute dependability of God’s word.”
Elisabeth Elliott
One More Thing:
I love y’all so much and I really want to help you study God’s Word for yourself! First and foremost, open your Bible and PRAY, asking the Holy Spirit—our Teacher—to lead you in Truth and teach you. We can learn nothing apart from Him teaching us and opening our minds to understand the Scriptures! Thank you, Lord!!!
You and I have this beautiful ordinary life to live to the glory of God—and there’s just no better investment of your life than in the things of God: His Word, and people. Here’s a curated list of resources to guide you in studying the Scriptures. And if you have a favorite resource that isn’t listed below, please reply to this email and share it with me!
Resources for Beginners:
New to Reading the Word
- Start with a Bible! I love The Swindoll Study Bible (among others) for daily reading and study.
- Download The Complete Guide to How to Study Your Bible. I created this free resource as an answer to one of the most common questions I get from y’all—asking me how I learned to study God’s Word—especially as someone who didn’t go to seminary.
- Read Psalm 119—the whole thing! It focuses on God and His Word.
- Watch, listen, or read The Bible Recap by Tara Leigh Cobble. This is a daily Bible reading plan followed by a short commentary to help you understand what you’ve just read in the context of the whole of Scripture.
Resources for Beginners:
New to Studying the Word
- You Are a Theologian by Jen Wilkin and J. T. English
- What the Bible is All About (nice, concise overview of each book in the Bible) by Dr. Henrietta Mears
- GotQuestions.org – Trustworthy online source for deep dives on biblical understanding
Resources for Biblical Living
- The Four Priorities by Dr. John Tolson and Larry Kreider
- Knowing God by J. I. Packer
- The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer
Resources for Digging Deeper:
- How to Study the Bible like a Theologian
- Bible Doctrine by Dr. Wayne Grudem
- Searching the Scriptures: Finding the Nourishment Your Soul Needs by Chuck Swindoll
- Living by the Book: The Art and Science of Reading the Bible by Howard G. Hendricks
Remember, the more you fill your mind with God’s Word, the more His Word will flood your life with Truth—and the less room there will be for the enemy to fill it with anxiety, lies, fear, worry, temptation, and deception.
Until next week— don’t forget that you, my friend, are greatly and dearly loved by The King— and let’s live our beautiful, ordinary lives like women who believe it!
I love you!
xo – P❤️