Holy to God

Exodus 28:1-4 and 36-37 -  "Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, to serve me as priests--Aaron and Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abi'hu, Elea'zar and Ith'amar. And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty.  And you shall speak to all who have ability, whom I have endowed with an able mind, that they make Aaron's garments to consecrate him for my priesthood. These are the garments which they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a girdle; they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests.

…."And you shall make a plate of pure gold, and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, 'Holy to the LORD.'  And you shall fasten it on the turban by a lace of blue; it shall be on the front of the turban.”…reminded Moses that the High Priest of Israel was consecrated…sanctified…anointed for service.

God called to Moses …to give him instructions for calling and dressing the chosen High Priest. Aaron would be the one person that entered the Holy of Holies once a year….Aaron would be the one that taught his sons how to communicate with the Lord…how to use the urim and thummin to discern judgment for the many people that God would send to them for help. The garment had a special purpose…it set him apart for God’s service….providing for him a garment worthy of the meetings he would have with the Lord. Upon his head he was to wear a gold band…engraved with the words…. “Holy to God”

The Lord was teaching his people how to worship him.  He was showing his chosen priests how to bring all the people to the Lord to help them thank God for his blessings…or ask his forgiveness for their sins. God gave Moses instructions for an intricate outfit….worthy of many meetings with the Lord. Each piece had a purpose in the priest’s job of ministering the sacrifices….judging the people…or speaking with God for directions.

We are our own priests now…for when that veil tore in the Holy of Holies…God opened up a way for me to communicate with him without going through a priest. When I gave my life to Jesus that night I was fourteen…he sanctified me and consecrated me for his service. He dressed me in everything I would need to be his servant. He gave me everything I needed to do the job he placed me on the Earth for…and all I have to do is discover them and activate the talents he hid in me to do his will.

But I wondered as I read this chapter just how holy I am now…for I know that some of the things he dressed me in that night have never been discovered by my heart and soul. They lay dormant…not being used.  Maybe because some other piece of my outfit is not ready for me yet…maybe because I made some wrong choices….I sure did not use his urim and thummin to discern what was best for me.  I used my selfish human flesh to make most of my decisions. But the great news is that they are still there…just waiting on me to turn every part of my life over to Christ…so he can begin to reveal those things to me…and show me how to use them to glorify him…and teach others about his love…amazing!

Father…you amaze me with your unfailing love.  My heart soars with joy knowing that you love me in spite of my many mistakes and the side roads that Satan has tricked me into taking.  Help me to discover the talents you hid in me the day I was born…the ones you placed there to serve you. Help me to discern your will for me…and begin to use them to help  you spread the good news of your love for all.   Dress me anew in the robes that consecrate me for your service…place a new headband on my forehead that says…..”Holy to God”….and give me the strength to do the task you placed me here to do. Amen.

God's Altar

Exodus 27:1-8 -  "You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits.  And you shall make horns for it on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze.  You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and firepans; all its utensils you shall make of bronze.  You shall also make for it a grating, a network of bronze; and upon the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners.  And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net shall extend halfway down the altar.  And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze;  and the poles shall be put through the rings, so that the poles shall be upon the two sides of the altar, when it is carried.  You shall make it hollow, with boards; as it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.

Moses was told to make an altar. A square ….hollow structure…built of acacia wood…but covered in bronze.  The priests would offer sacrifices to God on this holy assembly….the “mizbeach” or in some commentaries spelled “mizbeah”…in the Hebrew language.  It was a place of death….of blood….of fire and smoke…a place where the struggle of the sacrifice was clearly seen by the priest who had to kill it and follow strict directions in offering it up to the Lord…depending on what kind of sacrifice it was.  The altar fire was to burn continually before the Lord…and be ready to receive an offering at any time.

This sight could not have been an easy thing for the priest to watch day after day… but they were the chosen representatives to communicate with God for the people. The people brought their offerings …and the priests offered them up to the Lord on their behalf. The altar was the central place of spiritual confession…submission…sacrifice for what they had done wrong…or what blessings they wanted to thank God for.

Even though the torn veil in the temple at Jesus’ death did away with the need to kill animals and offer their blood to God…the need for an altar did not change…and I believe that altar needs to be a portable symbol of our faith.  It needs to burn continually in our lives…just as the altar of the first tabernacle. Our eyes should look to God whenever we receive a blessing to him…and thank him for his mercy and grace. Our knees should bend in confession at the faintest hint from God that we have strayed from his will.  Our voices should call out to him in thankfulness and praise at all he does for us in spite of the sin in our lives. We need to grasp the real meaning of sacrifice as we turn our lives over to God…and let go of our own selfish …flesh driven desires.

God has been telling me this for days now…those prayer cards that I wrote out as reminders of what to pray for have been gathering dust. I glance at them every night and think…tomorrow I will use those again. I can’t remember the last time I made an effort to get on my knees. I have become way to complacent with the blessings he has bestowed on my life…and I must find time to renew my prayer time with him. For communication with the father is the only thing that will provide me the strength and wisdom to become strong and faithful to whatever task he has planned for me. My evening prayers after I read his word have become way to short…and way too focused on me again. I can not let myself be satisfied with the morning time I write…I must speak with him all day long.  I must learn to be more submissive to his spirit….confess my many sins….and sacrifice more and more time for him.

Father…I am so sorry that I have once again become too self-sufficient in the bubble of a world you placed me in. Help me father to increase my time at your altar….to define more time in my day to come to you and kneel…and pray…not just for your guidance in my own life…but to really lift up the needs of others.  Give me a passion for prayer like Daniel…who sought you morning… noon… and evening.  Give me the heart of King David…who sought you even though he found himself in dark caves…hiding from his enemies.   Help me father to solidify my prayer time with you and carry your altar in my heart always. Amen.

Our Tabernacle

Exodus 26:30-35 - And you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it which has been shown you on the mountain.  "And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined linen; in skilled work shall it be made, with cherubim;  and you shall hang it upon four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold, upon four bases of silver.  And you shall hang the veil from the clasps, and bring the ark of the testimony in thither within the veil; and the veil shall separate for you the holy place from the most holy.  You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place.  And you shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand on the south side of the tabernacle opposite the table; and you shall put the table on the north side.

Moses was given the directions for building the tabernacle…the holy house of God. Fine materials of linen…of royal colors…would be used to make great curtains that had the form of a cherubim skillfully worked into the cloth.  The hard sturdy wood of the acacia tree would be used to make poles. Gold and silver and bronze would be used to overlay the wood…..and make study bases for the poles to sit in. It would be a grand tent…a temporary place for God to live….a temporary place for the people to place  to place the ark of the covenant he had them build…to house his commandments. The whole tent would be covered in the finest animal skins…to make it waterproof…to protect the holy things inside.

The tabernacle would have 3 parts….an outer court where anyone could come to worship and pray…an inner room sanctified only for priests…where the bread of God’s presence…his lampstand…and the container of incense stayed ….and the most inner room of the tent of God would be sanctified to hold the ark…containing the stone tablets of God’s covenant with the people of Israel.  A simple veil separated the two inner rooms… hid the presence of God from the priests…except for the one chosen each year to offer an atonement sacrifice once a year for all the people.

The temporary house of God they built in the desert… is much like our temporary body God gave us to reside in while we walk the Earth. It’s rough exterior….the fine animal skins …they were just coverings to protect the rooms inside. The part inside is what mattered most….for the heart of the tent kept the most important part….the ark. Our hearts are where God lives…our exterior shell just protects his holy creation from the world

And this tent…you approached it from the outside…just like we approach God.  You had to enter it…and move through its inner room to get to his presence….you had to be chosen to be the one to offer that yearly sacrifice…so God could wash the hearts of the people clean each year. God stills works that way with us….we approach him from the outside-in…but he changes our hearts from the inside-out.  I love what Reverend John Schultz said in one of the commentaries I read, “The tabernacle speaks of God’s holiness which separates him from man, and his love that draws man to himself.”

Oh father…I thank you that you gave Moses the directions to build the first house that you lived in. I sit here and imagine that it was a grand place…built out of what the people had in their possession.  You took all that they had and showed them how to build a tent worthy of your presence….a temporary place for you to reside in their midst. I thank you that you now reside in my heart…the holy of holies that you created inside me….a place for me to write your covenant straight on my heart.  Help me father to keep it holy and worthy of you…help me father not to worry about how the outside looks….but concentrate more on the beauty you placed within. Amen.

Our Offerings to Build God's House

Exodus 25:1-8 -  The LORD said to Moses,  "Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me an offering; from every man whose heart makes him willing you shall receive the offering for me.  And this is the offering which you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze,  blue and purple and scarlet stuff and fine twined linen, goats' hair,  tanned rams' skins, goatskins, acacia wood,  oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense,  onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece.  And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. 

After Moses had heard all of the commands of God to give to the people…God gave Moses one other instruction.  God told Moses to tell the people of Israel to bring him an offering….and offering from all that they had received from the people of Egypt…the gold and precious metals…the best of their animal skins…oils and fragrant incense….and precious stones.  They were to bring what their hearts desired…whatever they wanted too…so they could build God a holy place…a house…so he could dwell with them.

God isn’t satisfied with watching us from above…he wants to live among us….and dwell  in our midst.  And so he gave Moses instructions to have the people bring an offering to him….knowing that each small piece brought by one family…would provide more than they needed to build him a grand tent…a holy tent…so he could live right there in the middle of the camp….where they could all come worship him. This would be God’s house…a holy sanctuary…a place built with his instructions…and the love of the people he had chosen for his own.

God wanted a permanent place for them to place his rules….so he gave them instructions for an ornate box of gold and acacia wood…a grand table inlayed with precious gold for his bread…and a pure gold candle stick to provide a steady light as they learned to follow God and make him more than just a presence that spoke to Moses from a cloud. God wanted a relationship with all of them…so he instructed them to build his house in the midst of them.

God stills wants a personal relationship with us all…he still asks us to bring the best of what he gave us to his feet. He wants us to give back to him the most precious things that he blessed us with…so he can abide with us. He wants us to channel his love through his body of believers…to gather for worship…to bring him the best of the money he blessed us with… the time he allows us to spend on his Earth … and all the other resources he placed in us all….so that he may use us..use our blessings to bless others with his love.

And even as I feel his presence strongly when I go into his sanctuary…that precious building where I gather with others to sing hymns…fellowship and pray…worship and listen to his word….I also feel him very much at home….and everywhere I find my feet taking me each day.  I feel him the greatest when I am on my knees…and he guides my thoughts each morning as I write…because God is not hidden by a veil any more…the light of that lamp reflects his holy face everywhere I go. And if I let him…even my own life can be a mirror of that sweet light.

Oh father…I thank you that you allowed Moses to show us how to bring our offerings to the Lord…so he can use them to build a great network of resources…to use to tell others about your great love.  Take all that I have been given…I give it all back to you…to use the way you need. Show me Lord exactly what to do with every penny you allow me to make.  Show me Lord how to spend every minute of my day with you…working to bring all the lost and dying people to know your great love.  Allow me to bask in the light of your love and eat of your great table as long as I live. Amen.

Sacrificial Blood

Exodus 24:5-8 -  And he sent young men of the people of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD.  And Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he threw against the altar. Then he took the book of the covenant, and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, "All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient." And Moses took the blood and threw it upon the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words." 

Moses followed the instructions of the Lord…and brought the people together…and they offered sacrifices to the Lord. Half the blood from the sacrificial animal was thrown against the altar that would offer it up to the Lord. Then Moses read the book of the covenant…given to him by God himself…in the hearing of all the people. They immediately said that they would keep every word God had spoken…so Moses sealed their promise to God with the rest of the blood….the blood of the Lord’s sacrifice…to seal the promise.

I can’t imagine what it would have been like to be there that day. …to be one of the first people to hear God’s covenant….to realize he was real…to be a part of the crowd that offered up that sacrifice…had the blood of that animal thrown upon me as Moses declared me sealed in the blood …that in that moment belonged to the Lord. Oh how awed they must have been…a select few actually getting to see God manifest on that mountain….and eat before him.

But it isn’t hard to translate what that means for me…for I know the rest of the story…the part where that blood just did not do a permanent job of changing these people…so God put in motion his backup plan…and sent his son to Earth.  He walked it 33 years and ministered to the people…taught us what God wanted us to hear. He became not just our spokesman…to read us the covenant of God…he became our lamb as well…and gave his life freely for all who would believe in him.

Oh how thankful I am that he made a permanent way for me to connect to his covenant.  I don’t have to wander around the wilderness…and read tablets of stone.  I have been given his complete words in the Bible…and can call on him to wash me clean in his precious blood anytime I need his cleansing.

Father…I thank you that you loved me so much that you gave your life for me.  I thank you for being my blood sacrifice….that permanently connects me with the father above. Oh how I need you to wash me clean each morning…and seal me for your service each day. Give me strength to overcome all that Satan will throw in my way today…to try and separate me from you temporarily…and keep me from knowing your complete love. Amen.

Love all the Same!

Exodus 23:1-5 - "You shall not utter a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man, to be a malicious witness.  You shall not follow a multitude to do evil; nor shall you bear witness in a suit, turning aside after a multitude, so as to pervert justice;  nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his suit."If you meet your enemy's ox or his ass going astray, you shall bring it back to him.  If you see the ass of one who hates you lying under its burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it, you shall help him to lift it up. 

The ninth commandment must have needed some extra explaining.  Moses gets really detailed with just what this ‘false witness’ thing was…and then he explains why we have all those other commandments …that this love God more than you love anything else should trickle down into everything else we do. He wanted us to understand who our neighbor is …basically…. everyone we know…not just the people we like and hang out with.

 God gave Moses these rules to make sure that we keep our mouth shut when we don’t know what we are talking about….to make sure what we say is not a lie….to make sure that we consider our friends motives before we join in their activities….and to treat all people the same…even the ones that we have a hard time loving. We should all be ‘good Samaritans’ ….people that spread God’s love to all people in need….no matter what he calls us to do.

Easier said than done…of course! And as I write this I am sure that God is up there in Heaven…or looking over my shoulder…lining up all the people I have a hard time with …to meet up with me sometime today. He knows that I will need some practice on this one to get it right. I can say that I love everyone…and will treat them all the same….but do my actions truly show that to everyone? I am woman enough to admit that I don’t always get this one right…and I don’t always trust God’s covering when he asks me to do something that seems a little less safe.

It is easy to hand some beggar a ten dollar bill out the window….put my left over yard sale stuff in the bin at the good will store….write a kind word into a post on facebook every morning.  But how will I treat that next person that God puts right in front of my face…that might not be my best friend…that might be someone I had a hard time with before….someone that did something even hurtful to me. I will sure need to stop and ask him to fill me with his words….and show me what to do. I hope I don’t lie ….and make an excuse….to sideswipe the situation. I hope I don’t pass by on the other side…as I have done in the past.

Oh father…I need your help to love others more. Help me to keep hurtful…judging words from ever leaving my brain.  Help me to think only kind things….loving words that will build up others to know your great love. Help me to always speak the truth in love. Father…I ask you to strength me and give me discernment in all the things I am asked to participate in.  Guide me to do only the things that you have ordained as good and worthy of your love. Help me to pick friends that will help me spend my time doing wholesome things that speak of your love.  Help me to trust you more…and stop and ask you for help when I meet up with something I don’t trust….or with someone who has hurt me.  Help me to be filled with your love and mercy and great forgiveness….and use your strength to bring about healing. Amen.

Restitution

Exodus 22:5-8 -  "When a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his beast loose and it feeds in another man's field, he shall make restitution from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard. "When fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, he that kindled the fire shall make full restitution.  "If a man delivers to his neighbor money or goods to keep, and it is stolen out of the man's house, then, if the thief is found, he shall pay double.  If the thief is not found, the owner of the house shall come near to God, to show whether or not he has put his hand to his neighbor's goods. 

God knew that all men would not choose to follow his rules…so he added a few verses about what we should do…if we have caused even accidental damage to another ones property with our actions.  The animals and belongings of the Israelites were everything they had…if they lost one…they lost more than just an animal…they lost the resources to feed or trade that animal for other things they needed. So God  introduces the Israelites to the concept of restitution…and tells them to pay back more than was damaged…and to make sure that the best of what we have is given as our payment.  God calls us to right our wrongs….even we didn’t do it on purpose.

Hard concept to grasp in our minds…even harder to put into action with our heart…but the scripture is clear here. No matter how hard it might be to do…we must find a way to make right the wrongs we have caused in life. That gossip you passed on…that by the way was not true…has to be apologized for. That sweater you borrowed and ruined…needs to be replaced…even if your sweet friend says it’s okay. That child that you slighted time…because you are a workaholic…needs to be made up as soon as possible.  Those tithe checks that you have not been writing …they need to be written in larger amounts than you thought you hid from God. And if you have done something worse…God will make a way for you to pay that back too.

It makes my mind wander on to a story in the New Testament.  That horrid tax collector Zacchaeus….who had an encounter with Jesus in Luke 19.  He knew this law well…and went way beyond it when he poured out to Jesus that he would not only pay back what he had taken 4 times…but give everything else he had to the poor. And if Jesus can change the heart of Zacchaeus….with just a simple dinner…he can change the heart of anyone. What joy and blessings must have filled Zacchaeus’ heart as he began to grasp the love of God….and gave more than he took.

Father…help me to see the past ...just enough to know what things I have done that need to be made right. Bring them to my mind so I can make them right.  Teach me how to have the heart of Zacchaeus….and give more than I take…so I can feel your sweet love wrap around me and fill me with the joy of doing more than what is expected of me. Amen.