The last couple of weeks in Exodus we have read about the historic failure of the Israelite people when they asked Aaron to make them a visible god and then worshipped it with pagan activities. Moses was so angry over it that he broke the stones with the 10 Commandments on them. God was so angry that He tried to assign ownership of the people to Moses instead of Himself. Actually, this was a protection of the people because God said if He went with the people He might destroy them. So what might seem like a capricious attitude on God's part is actually not. He always kept their best interest in mind.

But there were dire consequences for their sin. The ring-leaders died immediately by the hand of those who had not participated in the sinful idolatry. Others died from a plague. Deuteronomy tells us all the fighting men died in the wilderness.

So, while the people's relationship with God was strained, Moses's only grew stronger. He set up a tent outside the camp where he went to speak with God. And then God called him back up onto the mountain again.

In Chapter 34, Moses took two more stone tablets and hiked to the top of Mount Sinai. There, God revealed the His character to Moses through the proclamation of His name: Yahweh. Moses responded with an act of worship. He bowed down to the ground. There is something about the pysical act of bowing low that not only shows God our awe of Him, but affects us. Have you ever experienced such an overwhelming revelation of His glory that you fell on your knees, or your face, before Him? It is an almost involuntary act at first, born of a desire to acknowledge that I'm giving up all control and putting my life in His hands.

Interestingly, what did Moses do next? He asked God one more time to go with the people. Isn't that what naturally comes along with worship? We want to talk to God, to tell him the things most important to us. God agreed. He forgave their sin.

God then outlined the covenant again, as a renewal of the vows. But the covenant was dependent upon the people keeping God's instructions, His terms of the deal, if you will. Highlighted in verses 10-17 is the most important part--not having any other gods and not even compromising with the enemy on this issue.

Is God the ruler of your life? Is there any compromise?

Verses 29-35 tell us that Moses's face began to glow as a result of spending so much time with God and His glory. This same principle still works today. When we spend time with Him every day in worship and prayer, our faces will change. People will notice. Do you know somebody who just glows because of their walk with the Lord? I think we all do. Don't you want to be that person? After today, you know how. Join me in a daily pursuit of Jesus and let's see if we can't all radiate the love of Christ.

Sunday we studied two sections of Exodus chapter 30. The first was verses 11-16 and concerned the atonement money. By asking what, why, and how questions about the passage, we discovered some profound truths.
1. The wealthy and the poor paid the same amount. Nobody was more special than anybody else.
2. It was paid as a ransom to the Lord for their lives so no plague would come on them.
3. The money was to be used by the priests for the service of the tabernacle.
4. The money was used by God as a reminder to make atonement for the people.
Since everything God did for the Isrealites in the physical, He does for us in the spiritual, this atonement money becomes a metaphor for the ransom price Jesus Christ paid for us with his death on the cross. That is our atonement. Our At-One-Ment with God.
So once again, our study of the tabernacle points us directly to Jesus Christ.

Verses 17-21 tell us about the bronze basin (or brazen laver, depending on your translation. Brazen means bronze and laver means basin. Also keep in mind that bronze and brass are used interchangeably.)
-This basin was placed in front of the doorway to the tabernacle--the Holy place. It was used for the priests to wash their hands and feet before entering the place of fellowship with God.
-The basin was made from expensive mirrors the women gave. The priests would be able to see their reflections in it.
-Exodus 29:4 describes a cleansing of the priests' whole body which was done only once at their consecration and was initiated for them.
-Exodus 30:19 describes a cleansing of only the hands and feet which was done every time they entered the tabernacle and was initiated by them.
-So we can understand that a one-time total cleansing refers to our salvation experience, initiated by God for us. But to stay in fellowship with God on an on-going basis, we must have clean hands and a pure heart. (See Psalm 24:3-6.)
-We can look into the mirror of God's Word to see where our dirty spots are and then spend time in prayer asking God to wash them off.
-Beyond this cleansing of ourselves, we are instructed by Jesus in John 13:1-17 to also wash the feet of others. In class we discussed several reasons we might have trouble washing others' feet. One of the most important to me was that in order to wash, we must have water. A pitcher full of water. If my own pitcher is empty, I cannot pour it out on anyone. We keep our pitchers full by filling ourselves with God's Word on a daily basis.

On that note, so far I am reading three chapters in the Bible every day. I really like the plan I previously laid out for you. It is helping me stay on track with my reading. If you haven't started your own reading yet, let me encourage you to do so. It is really a tremendous joy to me and a refreshing way to start the day. I read it while I eat my breakfast.

Yesterday we covered Exodus chapter 29 and 30:1-10, 34-38. The focus of chapter 29 is on the consecration of the priests. They were to wash themselves and then put on the robes. Next, they offered animal sacrifices which were burned on the altar of sacrifice. The blood of the second ram was sprinkled on the robes and put on the right earlobes, right forfingers, and right big toes of the priests. Since there was only one robe for each man, every time they put it on after that, they put on a blood-stained robe.

Every detail of the tabernacle and the priestly garments has pointed to Jesus Christ. The doctrine of the Priesthood of the Believer means we as post-New Testament Christians are priests. Who was our sacrifice? Jesus Christ. So when we say we're washed in the blood, this is what we're referring to. Our consecration to Him. Like the priests, our robes are blood-stained.

The priests also were to eat the meat of the sacrifices. There were two reasons for this. 1) It was their provision since they had no other job with which to gain food.
2) They consumed a holy sacrifice as a picture of taking in that holiness and it becoming part of them - literally.

Once again, here's a picture of what happens to us at salvation. We partake of the Holiness of God. Jesus was the sacrifice and sent the Holy Spirit to live in and become part of us. The priests eating the sacrifice is also a preview of what we do when we partake of the Lord's Supper. We eat and drink the representation of Jesus' body and blood - the sacrifice made for us.

Chapter 30:1-10 and 34-38 are about the altar of incense. We learned that this incense represents the prayers of the saints (us) by reading Psalm 141:2, Revelation 5:8, and Revelation 8:3. Then we read Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:25. These verses teach that Jesus' work now is to intercede, or pray, for us.

Jesus died to save us from our sins, but now He lives to intercede for us at the right hand of the Father.

The challenge this week is to memorize Hebrews 7:25.

Sunday we spent time studying the garments for the priests, specifically Aaron, the high priest. We discovered that Aaron wore the names of the 12 tribes over his heart engraved on precious stones and the same names on his shoulders as a memorial. He bore the guilt of all the people's sins when he entered the tabernacle to offer sacrifices for them.

How like our Savior, who bore our sins when he sacrificed Himself for us on the cross and carries us on His heart and our names engraved on His palms. We truly are held in His hands, safe there, where no one or anything can pull us out.

We also talked about how God is a God of detail, not generalities. We were challenged to share the details of our lives with Him for greater intimacy in our relationship.

This week we will cover Exodus 29 and 30. Well, at least we'll go as far as we can in this section!

I confess that I did not read all the chapters in the Bible that I was scheduled to read over the holiday. So, I picked up where I left off. Then I got a new Bible I had been wanting, The Maxwell Leadership Bible. So I went back to re-read what I had covered so I could read the accomanying articles I had missed. I want to read the Bible through with this one.

So, I'm just now through chapter 12 in the three books I'm reading: Genesis, Job, and Matthew. I have also discovered that I'll probably not get twice as many chapters read on Sunday. So it may take me longer than a year. But I am determined to keep plodding along. How about you?

On Sunday, November 28, we will study Exodus 28. Hopefully we can cover the whole chapter. You should read the whole chapter, and then we'll see how far we get in class.

Concerning the Spiritual Disciplines I wrote about last week: I'm working on my second memory verse, a good one to meditate on, and am ready for chapter 9 in all three books of the Bible that I'm reading.

If you've started, where are you? I'd love to hear about your journey through the disciplines.

If you haven't started, or have no idea what I'm referring to, check out my entries from last week. It's all there.

Sunday we learned about the outer court of the tabernacle including the hanging curtains, the embroidered entrance screen, and the way the people were instructed to camp around it.

We discovered that the camp arrangement was for the purpose of staying close to their Commander because they faced their worst enemy--themselves--before they faced any outward enemies.

Henry Blackaby has said, "In every generation there seem to exist certain cliches used by members of the body of Christ. No doubt, on the top of the list for this generation are the words 'I'm under attack!' Every difficulty seems to be labeled 'spiritual warfare.' Without question we fight wars in the heavenlies; but before we can be sure it's spiritual warfare, we must be able to answer three questions negatively: (1) Am I living outside the will of God? (2) Do I have any unconfessed sin? (3) Is God simply working His completion in me? Far more often, our difficulties originate from one of these three realms."

Think of a difficulty you are dealing with. Test it according to these three questions. Are you under attack from Satan or from your flesh?

If you are fighting a battle of the flesh, how can you be victorious?

What can you do to ensure that you are camped close to your Commander?

Romans 7:14-25 describes the problem we have battling ourselves.

Although a continual war is waged against us internally, we must never accept defeat!

What does 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 say about the weapons of our warfare?

What does Deuteronomy 23:14 say is God's promise if we choose to camp with Him and walk with Him?