Justin Houtz

Exodus 28, John 7, Proverbs 4, Galatians 3

DateVersionReading Plan
@March 17, 2024ESV (2016)M’Cheyne Plan 2024

Exodus 28

Exodus 28:30 (ESV) 30 And in the breastpiece of judgment you shall put the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be on Aaron’s heart, when he goes in before the LORD. Thus Aaron shall bear the judgment of the people of Israel on his heart before the LORD regularly.

The breastpiece that Aaron and his sons were to wear as they served as priests contained the Urim and Thummim. They are referenced a number of times in Scripture (Num. 27:21; Deut. 33:8; Ezra 2:63; etc.) and according to GotQuestions.org, “The Urim (“lights”) and Thummim (“perfections”) were gemstones…used by the high priest to determine God’s will in some situations.”

John 7

John 7:37–38 (ESV) 37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ”

In order to come to Jesus to drink, one must first realize they are thirsty. This entails a deep conviction of sin leading to the desperate need for salvation through Jesus. Without this awareness, there would be no sense of lack and thus no one would come to Him. It is those who, through a work of the Spirit, have been shown their hopelessly parched state that seek eternal refreshment in Christ.

Proverbs 4

Proverbs 4:7–9 (ESV) 7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. 8 Prize her highly, and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. 9 She will place on your head a graceful garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”

The first step in having wisdom is realizing how much you need it and being motivated in its acquisition. As we know from other Scripture, this begins with the fear of the Lord. The reward of highly prizing wisdom is that she will honor you and embrace you, imbuing you with the moral beauty of a graceful garland and beautiful crown.

Galatians 3

Galatians 3:13 (ESV) 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”

Jesus is everything we need Him to be in order to be fully restored in relationship with God. He was fully human, just as we are, that He would be our worthy sacrifice. He became a curse for us in order that our curse would be taken from us. He was sent in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin (pp. Rom. 8:3). He was made to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God (pp. 2 Cor. 5:21).

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