Exodus, part 2

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Exodus, part 2
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Strange laws for a strange time

• Do not cook a young sheep or goat in its
  mothers milk (Exodus 2319 GN)
• Weave the tunic of fine linen. Make the turban
  of fine linen. The sash will be the work of an
  embroiderer. Make tunics, sashes, and hats for
  Aarons sons to express glory and beauty. Dress
  your brother Aaron and his sons in them. Anoint,
  ordain, and consecrate them to serve me as
  priests. Make linen underwear to cover their
  nakedness from waist to thigh. (Exodus 2839-42
  The Message)
• If you use stones to make my Altar, dont use
  dressed stones. If you use a chisel on the stones
  youll profane the Altar. Dont use steps to
  climb to my Altar because that will expose your
  nakedness. (Exodus 2025,26 The Message)

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Strange laws for a strange time

• Each of the flamboyant fertility cult festivals
  (orgies) were countered by a celebration in
  Israel (Exodus 23)
• Passover - Unleavened bread Spring. Remember
  God who delivered them from Israel.
• Harvest festival (firstfruits) June. Gratitude
  to God who gave them prosperity and health
• Day of atonement - Feast of tabernacles (booths)
  Fall. Remember entry into the promised land and
  when they used to live in temporary booths

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Strange laws for a strange time

• Archaeological evidence (Ras Shamra ancient
  city Ugarit in Tyre Caananite culture 1400 BC)
• Even the temple design which God gave to Moses
  shared features of the Caananite temples of that
  time period
• Anyone in that day would recognize it as a temple
• God is meeting the people where they were
• God is offering an attractive alternative to what
  was going on at that time
• There is nothing arbitrary about the things God
  has asked us to do

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What does the law point to?

• Jesus answered, Love the Lord your God with all
  your heart, with all your soul, and with all your
  mind. This is the greatest and the most
  important commandment. The second most important
  commandment is like it Love your neighbor as
  you love yourself. (Matthew 2237-39 GN)
• How did Jesus discover this?
• Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with
  all your soul, and with all your strength
  (Deuteronomy 65 GN). Do not mistreat
  foreigners who are living in your land. Treat
  them as you would an Israelite, and love them as
  you love yourselves (Leviticus 193,4 GN).
• If you happen to see your enemys cow or donkey
  running loose, take it back to him. If his donkey
  has fallen under its load, help him get the
  donkey to its feet again dont just walk off
  (Exodus 234,5 GN).
• If you lend money to any of my people who are
  poor, do not act like a moneylender and require
  him to pay interest (Exodus 2225 GN)

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God distinguishes himself from all the other
gods

• If you take any of your neighbor's clothes as
  collateral, give it back to him by sunset. It may
  be the only clothes he has to cover his body.
  What else will he sleep in? When he cries out to
  me, I will listen because I am compassionate
  (Exodus 2226,27 GODS WORD)
• Dont pass on malicious gossip. Dont link up
  with a wicked person and give corrupt testimony.
  Dont go along with the crowd in doing evil and
  dont fudge your testimony in a case just to
  please the crowd. And just because someone is
  poor, dont show favoritism in a dispute.
  (Exodus 231-3 The Message)
• Do not mistreat a foreigner you know how it
  feels to be a foreigner, because you were
  foreigners in Egypt (Exodus 239 GN)

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What does the law point to?

• Be under obligation to no one---the only
  obligation you have is to love one another.
  Whoever does this has obeyed the Law. The
  commandments, Do not commit adultery do not
  commit murder do not steal do not desire what
  belongs to someone else---all these, and any
  others besides, are summed up in the one command,
  Love your neighbor as you love yourself. If you
  love others, you will never do them wrong to
  love, then, is to obey the whole Law. (Romans
  138-10 GN)

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What does the law point to?

• And now I give you a new commandment love one
  another. As I have loved you, so you must love
  one another. If you have love for one another,
  then everyone will know that you are my
  disciples. (John 1334,35 GN)
• If we must love, must we keep the law?

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What does the law point to?

• Ive loved you the way my Father has loved me.
  Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep
  my commands, youll remain intimately at home in
  my love. Thats what Ive done - kept my Father's
  commands and made myself at home in his love.
  Ive told you these things for a purpose that my
  joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly
  mature. This is my command Love one another the
  way I loved you (John 159-12, The Message).

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How do we obey?

• Mishna approach
• Heaped burdensome rules on top of what God had
  given
• Focus on the rules as an end
• Relationship/friendship with God approach
• Whole person care

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The law and freedom

• Freedom is what we have---Christ has set us
  free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not
  allow yourselves to become slaves again.
• As for you, my friends, you were called to be
  free. But do not let this freedom become an
  excuse for letting your physical desires control
  you. Instead, let love make you serve one
  another. For the whole Law is summed up in one
  commandment Love your neighbor as you love
  yourself. (Galatians 51,13,14 GN)
• Slaves I must sit at each patients bed-side
  today and be compassionate I will not watch
  football later because I should help my elderly
  next door neighbor then I must spend some time
  reading the Bible and praying then, I should
  call and encourage my classmate
• Friends of God Set free through knowing God as a
  friend. To love becomes the natural thing to do.
• To obey without knowing God and devoid of love,
  turns us into the worst possible rebels cold,
  hardened, rigid, and deep down fearful.

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The golden calf

• The Lord said to Moses, Hurry and go back down,
  because your people, whom you led out of Egypt,
  have sinned and rejected me. They have already
  left the way that I commanded them to follow
  they have made a bull-calf out of melted gold and
  have worshiped it and offered sacrifices to it.
  They are saying that this is their god, who led
  them out of Egypt. I know how stubborn these
  people are. Now, don't try to stop me. I am angry
  with them, and I am going to destroy them. Then I
  will make you and your descendants into a great
  nation (Exodus 327-10).

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The golden calf

• Is God really about to destroy this entire nation
  of about 600,000 men, not counting women and
  children (Exodus 1237), completely out of
  existence?
• Just 40 days earlier he had claimed them as his
  own in very tender language. The whole earth is
  mine, but you will be my chosen people, a people
  dedicated to me alone, and you will serve me as
  priests (Exodus 195, 6).
• Is God going back on his promise?
• Does a creature need to step in to talk down the
  Creator from his anger?

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The golden calf

• Is this an opportunity for Moses to rid himself
  of these rebellious people and start up a proud
  country of his own children?
• What an honor, and who would dare argue with God
  - - -
• Gods emphasis to Moses is that they are his
  people, not Gods.

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The golden calf

• The Lord said to Moses, Hurry and go back down,
  because your people, whom you led out of Egypt,
  have sinned and rejected me. They have already
  left the way that I commanded them to follow
  they have made a bull-calf out of melted gold and
  have worshiped it and offered sacrifices to it.
  They are saying that this is their god, who led
  them out of Egypt. I know how stubborn these
  people are. Now, don't try to stop me. I am angry
  with them, and I am going to destroy them. Then I
  will make you and your descendants into a great
  nation (Exodus 327-10).

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The golden calf

• But Moses pleaded with the Lord his God and
  said, Lord, why should you be so angry with your
  people, whom you rescued from Egypt with great
  might and power? Why should the Egyptians be able
  to say that you led your people out of Egypt,
  planning to kill them in the mountains and
  destroy them completely? Stop being angry change
  your mind and do not bring this disaster on your
  people. Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac,
  and Jacob. Remember the solemn promise you made
  to them to give them as many descendants as there
  are stars in the sky and to give their
  descendants all that land you promised would be
  their possession forever. So the Lord changed
  his mind and did not bring on his people the
  disaster he had threatened (Exodus 3211-14).

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The golden calf

• Did Moses, in this instance have greater control
  over his emotions that God?
• Remember the on-looking universe God is making
  the case about his true character. Is he really
  this way?
• Moses, who spoke with God face to face, just as
  someone speaks with a friend (Exodus 3311),
  could not be led away from the truth about God,
  even by God himself!
• Moses is more concerned about Gods reputation
  than any personal honor.

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The golden calf

• Moses says to God, in essence, God, as I know
  you, you couldnt do that. What would it do to
  your reputation?
• God used his friend Moses to declare of himself,
  by means of contrast, I am not this way, and I
  wish that all of you knew me as well as my friend
  Moses.
• God uses his friends to elevate people from their
  current picture of God Abraham and Isaac, Job.

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The golden calf

• The ideal of love is revealed by this story
• Please forgive their sin but if you wont, then
  remove my name from the book in which you have
  written the names of your people (Exodus 3232
  GN)
• Is Moses more forgiving than God?
• Forgive them Father! They dont know what they
  are doing (Luke 2334 GN)

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Gods methods of teaching

• A Canaanite woman once asked Jesus to heal her
  daughter. The disciples looked on this heathen
  woman with scorn. But Jesus did not say a word
  to her. His disciples came to him and begged him,
  Send her away! She is following us and making
  all this noise! Then Jesus replied, I have been
  sent only to the lost sheep of the people of
  Israel (Matthew 1523, 24).
• The disciples must have felt that they were
  correct in their air of bigotry and superiority.
• At this the woman came and fell at his feet.
  Help me, sir! she said. Jesus answered, It
  isn't right to take the children's food and throw
  it to the dogs (Matthew 1525, 26).

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Gods methods of teaching

• Most would have given up at this point, but not
  this woman. 
• That's true, sir, she answered, but even the
  dogs eat the leftovers that fall from their
  masters' table. So Jesus answered her, You are
  a woman of great faith! What you want will be
  done for you. And at that very moment her
  daughter was healed (Matthew 1527, 28).
• The fact that Jesus led the disciples down the
  road of believing that they were correct in their
  self-righteous attitude, made the rebuke, and the
  teaching point, all the more striking.
• Moses revealed exactly what God wanted him to
  reveal. Moses represented the truth about God.

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Leviticus

• The sacrificial system
• The tabernacle

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The sacrificial system

• What was the purpose?
• What effect would it have on you?
• What were they supposed to learn from it?
• Or, was it only for our benefit in pointing
  towards Christ?

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Adam and Eve

• How did Adam kill the first lamb?
• The most vivid means possible of impressing on
  them the serious consequences of rebellion
• As it is, however, the sacrifices serve year
  after year to remind people of their sins
  (Hebrews 103 - GN).
• But instead of removing awareness of sin, when
  those animal sacrifices were repeated over and
  over they actually heightened awareness and
  guilt. The plain fact is that bull and goat blood
  cant get rid of sin. (Hebrews 103,4 The
  Message
• To remind them of the penalty for sin, or of the
  natural consequences of sin?
• Gods words were true sin does lead to death
  sin is serious stuff

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The sacrificial system

• How were sacrifices generally understood?
• Appeasement
• The idea of appeasement towards an offended god
  is a pagan idea, and is a counterfeit of the
  truth
• Satan has effectively twisted the meaning most
  beliefs
• Jesus 1st coming

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Is sacrifice what God wants?

• You do not want sacrifices, or I would offer
  them you are not pleased with burnt offerings.
  My sacrifice is a humble spirit, O God you will
  not reject a humble and repentant heart (Psalms
  5116,17)
• He says, Do you think I want all these
  sacrifices you keep offering to me? I have had
  more than enough of the sheep you burn as
  sacrifices and of the fat of your fine animals. I
  am tired of the blood of bulls and sheep and
  goats. Who asked you to bring me all this when
  you come to worship me? Who asked you to do all
  this tramping around in my Temple? It's useless
  to bring your offerings. I am disgusted with the
  smell of the incense you burn. I cannot stand
  your New Moon Festivals, your Sabbaths, and your
  religious gatherings they are all corrupted by
  your sins. I hate your New Moon Festivals and
  holy days they are a burden that I am tired of
  bearing (Isaiah 111-14).

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Is sacrifice what God wants?

• What shall I bring to the Lord, the God of
  heaven, when I come to worship him? Shall I bring
  the best calves to burn as offerings to him? Will
  the Lord be pleased if I bring him thousands of
  sheep or endless streams of olive oil? Shall I
  offer him my first-born child to pay for my sins?
  No, the Lord has told us what is good. What he
  requires of us is this to do what is just, to
  show constant love, and to live in humble
  fellowship with our God (Micah 66-8).
• The Lord says, I hate your religious festivals
  I cannot stand them! When you bring me burnt
  offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept
  them I will not accept the animals you have
  fattened to bring me as offerings. Stop your
  noisy songs I do not want to listen to your
  harps. Instead, let justice flow like a stream,
  and righteousness like a river that never goes
  dry. People of Israel, I did not demand
  sacrifices and offerings during those forty years
  that I led you through the desert (Amos
  521-25).
• I want your constant love, not your animal
  sacrifices. I would rather have my people know me
  than burn offerings to me (Hosea 66).
• Jesus words

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The tabernacle

• Why make a tent?
• The people must make a sacred Tent for me, so
  that I may live among them (Exodus 258 GN)
• I will meet you there at set times and speak
  with you from above the Atonement-Cover and from
  between the angel-figures that are on it,
  speaking the commands that I have for the
  Israelites. (Exodus 2522 The Message)
• For all time to come, this burnt offering is to
  be offered in my presence at the entrance of the
  Tent of my presence. That is where I will meet my
  people and speak to you. There I will meet the
  people of Israel, and the dazzling light of my
  presence will make the place holy. I will make
  the Tent and the altar holy, and I will set Aaron
  and his sons apart to serve me as priests. I will
  live among the people of Israel, and I will be
  their God. They will know that I am the LORD
  their God who brought them out of Egypt so that I
  could live among them. I am the LORD their God.
  (Exodus 2942-46 - GN)

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