February 10, 2012

“During Plowing Time and Harvest You Shall Rest” (2/10)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 33-35.

Though the Sabbath law had already been given to the Israelites, the Lord provided further instructions regarding the application of the command:

“You shall work six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest” (Exodus 34:21).

From the beginning, God has expected man to work hard (Genesis 3:19). The wise man gives this admonition: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Paul tells Christians: “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men” (Colossians 3:23). So this instruction to the Israelites was not advocating slothfulness but that they strictly obey the commandment of God.
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February 9, 2012

"And Out Came This Calf" (2/9)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 30-32.

When Moses confronted Aaron about the sin of the people regarding the golden calf, Aaron acknowledged the sin but tried to excuse himself from any blame.

“Aaron said, ‘Do not let the anger of my lord burn; you know the people yourself, that they are prone to evil. For they said to me, ‘Make a god for us who will go before us; for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’  I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them tear it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf’” (Exodus 32:22-24).

While Aaron’s defense had some truth in it, he was wrong about the formation of the calf. It did not just happen. He “fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf” (Exodus 32:4).
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February 8, 2012

"I Am the Lord their God" (2/8)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 28-29.

Amidst the detailed instructions regarding the pattern for the tabernacle, its furnishings, the priests, and the sacrifices, God reminds the people why they were to obey.

“I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the Lord their God” (Exodus 29:45-46).

Why were they to follow the instructions? The instructions came from the Lord their God.
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February 7, 2012

According to the Pattern (2/7)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 25-27.

“Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I am going to show you, as the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct it” (Exodus 25:8-9).

God was about to reveal His instructions to the Israelites regarding the construction of the tabernacle and its furnishings. In these instructions, the Lord was very specific about what He expected them to do. He did not explain a vague concept He had for the tabernacle and allow the people to use their creativity to fill in the details. Nor did He permit them to create something that would be more “personal” so that the worshipers would be better able to “connect” to God and the worship “experience.”

God gave His instructions for a reason: He expected the Israelites to follow His instructions.
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February 6, 2012

Justice for All (2/6)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 22-24.

“You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not follow the masses in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after a multitude in order to pervert justice; nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute” (Exodus 23:1-3).

In giving the Law to the Israelites, God emphasized the importance of justice being carried out properly among the people. This passage teaches us a few things about justice that would be good for us to remember today:
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February 5, 2012

Life for Life (2/5)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 19-21.

“If men struggle with each other and strike a woman with child so that she gives birth prematurely, yet there is no injury, he shall surely be fined as the woman’s husband may demand of him, and he shall pay as the judges decide. But if there is any further injury, then you shall appoint as a penalty life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise” (Exodus 21:22-25).

Capital punishment for murder has been a divine rule since the end of the flood (Genesis 9:6). Today, governments continue to “bear the sword” to punish evildoers as part of their divinely ordained role (Romans 13:4).

But this case that is addressed in the Law is a little different than most murder cases. This involved an unborn child. In the event that someone’s action against that unborn child led to his/her death, the offender would be subject to the same penalty as if he had murdered another grown man.
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February 4, 2012

Pots of Meat and Plenty of Bread (2/4)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Exodus 16-18.

It did not take long for the Israelites who had seen the destruction of Pharaoh and his army to begin murmuring and complaining.

“The whole congregation of the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The sons of Israel said to them, ‘Would that we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat, when we ate bread to the full; for you have brought us out into the wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger’” (Exodus 16:2-3).

How quickly they forgot the conditions they had endured in Egypt – forced labor, cruel beatings, and lacking the freedom to worship God according to His instructions. By this point, all they wanted to remember was the fact that they had food to eat and, though the circumstances may not have been ideal, they had sufficient security and stability to expect that those “pots of meat” would continue to be available.
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