Today's Reading:
- Exodus 33-40
- Psalm 45-48
- Isaiah 45-48
- Matthew 21-22
- 1 Corinthians 14-15
I didn't feel like reading today. That doesn't mean I didn't want to. I didn't feel like it. I was physically and mentally exhausted. I even put off my Bible reading, hoping that I would "wake up" and be able to concentrate. But when I finally sat down to read, my eyes wouldn't focus on the words, my brain wouldn't focus on the meaning. It was rather frustrating. So I went home to take a nap.
Rested, refreshed, showered, and dressed for church, I came back over to the office to spend my hour reading.
And what did I get? Eight chapters dealing with the aftermath of the golden calf incident and a detailed account of the construction of the tabernacle and its furnishings. Which in itself followed up on the multi-chapter instructions regarding the construction of the tabernacle and its furnishings. Admittedly, I skimmed some of those passages rather than read every word.
Still, I came away with a powerful thought from the final chapter in Exodus. There are things (perhaps) that God leaves up to our conscience, our intelligence, our imagination, our decision-making skills. We do the best we can with what we have. But there are other things, important things about life and faith, that God didn't want to leave up to our own devising. So He gave detailed instructions, and He expects those instructions to be followed. To the letter.
Bored with blueprints and patterns of a tabernacle which ceased to be functional 3000 years ago? Which modulated into the temple worship of Israel that ceased 2000 years ago? Confused over an intricate sacrificial system that was fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ? Not connected to a priesthood and their garments that have nothing to do with what we wear or how we practice our religion today? Sometimes, me too. Nevertheless, God put it in the Bible for a reason, by Divine Inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Surely there is something we can come away with.
For when all the structure and furnishings were complete, Moses oversaw the setting up of the tabernacle in the wilderness. Once the tent was up, he placed the Ark of the Covenant--which represented the presence of God--in its place. He hung up the veil, arranged the altar of incense, the table of shewbread, and the seven-branched candlestick. He hung the curtain over the entrance, placed the great bronze altar and the bronze sea in their place. Then he sprinkled everything with the holy oil he had been instructed to make.
And when he was done, the fiery cloud of God's glory descended upon the tabernacle, and God's glory--His manifest presence--filled the whole place, so that even Moses (who had been with God on the mountain and been exposed to the unfiltered glory) could not stay in there.
Still don't get it? For the best results, follow God's directions.
And on that note, let me share the words of the song I woke up with this afternoon:
I know the Lord will make a way for you
I know the Lord will make a way for you
If you live a holy life
Shun the wrong and do what's right
I know the Lord will make a way for you
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