R³ Devotional - Day 40

We find ourselves here wrapping up God’s instructions on the Tabernacle (Tent of the Meeting) and its components. In  Chapter 30 we see some serious emphasis on what is to be built, the size of what materials, and the intended use with a focus on the Altar of Incense and the Bronze Basin. The Lord then turns to very specific anointing oil and incense recipes with some very strict warnings on their making and their use, even to the point of being “cut off” from God’s people if anyone not mentioned for their use was to use them! I imagine a father in a home laying down the rules to his kids here. I can recall vividly the things  my parents told me were no-no and the things they reserved for “if you do this, you will not have a place to live anymore.”  Let me tell you blatantly…those are the ones that got my attention. I would take discipline all day long, but the thought of being kicked out by my parents’ home was not something I wanted to face. My guess on this passage is that God is planning on  dwelling with the people, and he was emphasizing just what it took to come anywhere near Him, and who could even approach  Him after ritual cleansing and anointing!  

The Lord then moves to something I find quite interesting in Chapter 31 when He specifies two specific people to conduct the work on what is being made, Oholiab and Bezalel. These two people were directly commissioned by God and given their gifts of knowledge, talents, and other attributes. Yet we also see God mention that all able men with the ability to complete what He had directed to Moses to make would be given. It is also interesting to me here that God moves from finishing all the directives for the work and rolling right into the command of keeping the Sabbath holy. God even reminds us of why He tells us to honor the Sabbath…for six days He created and on the seventh day He rested!  
We end this dive into Exodus with Chapter 32 with the people nearly spelling their immediate doom as they convince Aaron to make them a golden calf (god) to worship because they were not sure if Moses was returning. I find this so fascinating (and it probably explains God’s frustration) that these people have recently witnessed such spectacular events of God’s power in securing their freedom, yet it does not take but what appears to be a few days to sway them to other gods. We even see Moses’  frustration as he returns and breaks the tablets that were written by the hand of God. Something we see prior to this is Moses standing up for his people, successfully. God is ready to exact discipline, wipe them out, and start all over, yet Moses steps in with concerns for the people and how others will view God. We find later in the chapter that the actions do not go unpunished.  This is where things turn dark as we see all the sons of Levi called to take up swords and kill their brothers, companions, and neighbors, which they faithfully do. Moses mentions that these actions ordain them to their service, we can assume for the obedience shown in setting forth discipline for the actions of the people seeking other gods.
 
Real Life Principles – God is very specific in his commands to his people (including us in His expectations clearly defined in the Bible). We should be taking his commands to heart as we navigate the world around us! To take them seriously, we must know what they are. We are under a new covenant now, but the Ten Commandments still apply to our lives, (the sabbath is obeyed in Jesus as our Sabbath and we do recognize a day set apart for congregating), along with numerous other New Testament teachings that relate to the original ten in some way.

Relevant Life Applications – We need to keep our faith walk focus on what God has done for us and what He offers us. This gives us a respect for Him to WANT to honor his commandments and keep faithful in our service to Him. A healthy fear is a good deterrent, however,a healthy respect/reverence for our Creator and what He offers freely to us through Jesus should be a more compelling reason (in my opinion).

Being Ready with Life Action Steps – Be honest with yourself…how well are you doing at adhering to God’s expectations for you? What can you do to improve this part of your faith walk daily? Are there key people you can turn to for guidance and discipling you? We are here for you as a Church family! (Reach Out)