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Sermon #114 Exodus Series Title: Doing Things
GodÕs Way Text: Exodus
36:1-39:43 Subject: The
Gifts and Obedience of the People Date: Tuesday
Evening — December 1, 1112008 Tape
: Exodus
#114 Readings: Allen
Kibby and Dave Burge Introduction: Doing
Things GodÕs Way — That is my subject. If we would
worship and serve the Lord our God, the true and living God, we must worship
and serve him in the way he prescribes. — Ask Uzza! We either do
things GodÕs way, or all that we call worship and service to the Lord is but
will worship and a vain show of religion. — Doing Things GodÕs Way. May God the Holy Spirit be our Teacher. We will begin
in Exodus 36. My text will actually be Exodus 36-39. In these four chapters
God the Holy Spirit tells us how the Tabernacle was actually constructed by
the children of Israel under the direction of Bezaleel and Aholiab. We have
seen in the earlier chapters of Exodus what the Lord revealed to Moses in the
mount and how Moses conveyed GodÕs revelation to his people. There is no need
to go over all the types again; but these chapters are not redundant
repetitions. They were not written just to fill up space. These chapters,
like all the Book of God, — Òwere
written for our learning and admonition, that we through patience and
consolation of the Scriptures might have hopeÓ(Romans 15:4). Remember, the
Tabernacle in the Wilderness was intended by God to portray and typify three
things: 1.
The
Person and Work of Christ. á
His
Glorious Person á
His
Perfect Obedience á
His
Blood Atonement á
His
Acceptance 2.
The
redemption and salvation of GodÕs elect by ChristÕs obedience unto death, by
ChristÕs righteousness and satisfaction. 3.
The
whole Church of God, built by Christ and upon Christ, as one habitation of
God through the Spirit. á
The
boards of shittim wood, overlaid with gold could not be set in their place
except in the divinely prescribed order. á
These
boards, representing sinners saved by grace, surrounding the mercy-seat,
around the throne of God. á
The
boards were all standing up, fixed upon sockets of silver (blood atonement). —
ÒWherein ye stand!Ó á
Each
board had two sockets (righteousness and satisfaction). á
The
boards were all coupled together. á
They
were held in place by the bars surrounding them, which appear to represent
the attributes and promises of God. á
They
were all shot through with the middle bar, which no one could see but the one
who put it through them. — That middle bar is ÒChrist in you, the Hope of Glory.Ó LetÕs read just
a few verses from these four chapters that show us the direction of the
message they contain. I urge you to read all four chapters before you go to
bed tonight, or as soon as you can, while the message is still fresh on your
mind. We will begin reading at Exodus 36:1. Ò1 ¦ Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab,
and every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom and understanding to
know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary,
according to all that the LORD had commanded.2 And Moses called Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise
hearted man, in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, even every one whose heart stirred him
up to come unto the work to do it:3
And they received of Moses all the offering, which the children of
Israel had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, to make it withal. And they brought yet unto him
free offerings every morning.4
And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came
every man from his work which they made;5 And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much
more than enough for the service of the work, which the LORD commanded to
make.6 And Moses gave
commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying,
Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the
sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing.7 For the stuff they had was sufficient
for all the work to make it, and too much.Ó(Exodus 36:1-7 ) Exodus 39: 32 ÒThus was all the work of the
tabernacle of the tent of the congregation finished: and the children of
Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did they.Ó(Exodus
39:32 ) Exodus 39:42 Ò42 According to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so the
children of Israel made all the work.43
And Moses did look upon all the work, and, behold, they had done it as
the LORD had commanded, even so had they done it: and Moses blessed them.Ó(Exodus
39:42-43 ) Generosity What
a picture of devotion and generosity this is! These men and women and their
rulers, all the children of Israel are here held before us as examples of
consecration to God in performing the work of the sanctuary! No effort was
needed to move the hearts of the people to give. No appeals were made. No
impressive arguments were given. Nothing was promised. Nothing was
threatened. Oh!
no; their Òhearts stirred them up.ÓThe streams of voluntary devotion flowed from within. ÒRulers,ÓÒmen,ÓÒwomenÓ—
all felt it to be their sweet privilege to give to the Lord, not with a
narrow heart or niggardly hand, but after such a princely fashion that
Bezaleel and Aholiab told Moses that they had enough and too much. Implicit
Obedience Not
only did the children of Israel give generously, with open hearts and open
hands, their obedience was implicit. They did everything exactly as the Lord
commanded Moses (Exodus 39:42-43). — We read Òaccording to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the children of
Israel made all the work. And Moses did look upon all the work, and, behold, they
had done it as the Lord had commanded, even so had they done it: and Moses
blessed them.Ó The
Lord God had given the minute, detailed instructions concerning the entire
work of the Tabernacle. Every pin, every socket, every loop, every buckle,
was to be made exactly as God said. There was no room for manÕs vote, manÕs
reason, or manÕs common sense. Jehovah did not give a general outline and
leave it for the children of Israel, or even Bezaleel, to fill in the
details. He left no place for any man to enter an opinion, let alone a
regulation. None! ÒSee, saith he, that
thou make all things according to the pattern showed to thee in the mountÓ(Ex. 25:40; Ex. 26:30; Heb. 8:5). ÒAnd look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.Ó(Exodus
25:40 ) ÒAnd thou shalt rear up the tabernacle
according to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount.Ó(Exodus
26:30 ) ÒWho serve unto the example and shadow
of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make
the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the
mount.Ó(Hebrews 8:5 ) This
left no room for human device. If man had been allowed to make a single pin,
that pin would have been made wrong and out of place in the Tabernacle of
God. We see what manÕs Ògraving toolÓproduces in Exodus 32. There is no place
for it in the worship and service of God! In
this matter, the children of Israel did just what they were told —
nothing more — nothing less. God the Spirit constrained them to do
exactly as they were instructed, that we might have in their obedience an
example to follow. There are many things in the history of Israel we must earnestly
seek to avoid — their impatient murmurings, their legal vows and their
idolatry. But that which is before us here in their giving and in their
obedience is utterly exemplary. Blessed are they who follow the example. The tabernacle was, in all respects, according
to the divine pattern, and, therefore, it could be filled with the divine
glory. There is a volume of
instruction in this. We are too prone to regard the Word of God as
insufficient for the most minute details connected with His worship and
service. This is a great mistake, a mistake which has proved the source of much
evil and great errors in the professing Church. The Word of God alone is and
must be our only rule of faith and practice. It is sufficient for everything
(2 Timothy 3:16-17). á
Doctrine á
Salvation á
Obedience á
Life á
Worship Ò16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness:17
That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good
works.Ó(2 Timothy 3:16-17 ) Taking
the example set before us in these chapters, I want to call your attention to
four things; and I will send you home. The Givers First,
look at the givers. Those who brought the gifts were all the congregation of
the children of Israel: men, women and rulers, young and old, rich and poor,
the well-known and the unknown. á
A Chosen, Covenant People á
A Redeemed People á
A People to Whom God Revealed Himself in Saving Grace á
A People Willingly Obedient to The Lord The Users Next,
let me say just a word or two about Bezaleel and Aholiab, the men who were
appointed by God to use the things the children of Israel brought for the
service of God. These two men, while typical of the Lord Jesus, as I showed
you a few weeks ago, also represent GodÕs servants, pastors and gospel
preachers, appointed by the Lord to be overseers in his house. á
They were filled with the Spirit of God (35:31). á
They were specifically gifted of God with wisdom and
understanding to perform the work. á
God put it in their heart to do the work (35:34). á
The Lord made it obvious to all Israel that they were the men he
had chosen for the work. á
They were truly the servants of God. — They wanted nothing
but to serve him as he had ordained. When they had all that they needed to do
the work, they refused to take any more! The Gifts Third,
there is much to be learned from the gifts themselves, the gifts the children
of Israel brought, the gifts God received and used for his glory. The gifts varied
greatly: Gold and Oil, Silver and
Spices, Precious Stones and Wool, Brass and GoatsÕ Hair, Wool and Linen, Dyes
for Blue and Purple and Scarlet, and Onyx Stones. The
gifts all came from people with willing hearts, happy to give; from people
who knew that what they brought to the Lord was not theirs, but his. ÒTake ye from among you
an offering unto the LORD: whosoever is
of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the LORD; gold, and
silver, and brass,Ó(Exodus 35:5 ) ÒAnd they came, every one whose heart
stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the LORDÕS offering to the work of the
tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.Ó(Exodus
35:21 ) The Word of God supplies us with an abundance of instruction about
this matter of giving. All of 1
Corinthians 9 and 2 Corinthians chapters 8-9 am taken up with this subject.
But there are no commands given to the people of God, anywhere in the New
Testament, about how much we are to give, when we are give, or where we am to
give. Tithing and all systems like it are totally foreign to the New
Testament. Giving, like all other acts of worship, is an act of faith and
grace. It must be free and voluntary, or it is unacceptable. However, there are
some plain, simple guidelines laid down in the Scriptures for us to follow. Here
are ten things revealed in the New Testament about giving. — 1.
Our
giving should be planned (2 Cor. 9:7). 2.
Our
giving must be free, voluntary, unconstrained (2 Cor. 9:7). 3.
Our
giving must be motivated by love and
gratitude
towards Christ (2 Cor. 8:7-9). 4.
Our
giving must arise from a willing heart (2 Cor. 8:12). 5.
Every
believer should give to the work of the gospel according to his personal ability (1 Cor. 16:2). 6.
Every
believer should give a portion of his goods for the cause of
Christ (1 Cor. 16:2). 7.
Our
gifts for the gospel should be liberal and
sacrificial
(2 Cor. 9:5-6; Mark 12:41-44). 8.
We
are to give as unto the Lord (Matt. 6:1-5). 9.
This
kind of giving is well-pleasing to God (2 Cor. 9:7; Phil. 4:18; Heb.
13:16). 10. If
we am willing to give, God will supply us with the ability to give (2 Cor. 9:10: Luke 6:38; Phil.
4:19). The Result Fourth,
because the children of Israel were stirred up in their hearts by the Spirit
of God, stirred up by the knowledge of what was to be represented in the
Tabernacle, the Priesthood, the Sacrifices and the Services of the Sanctuary,
they devoted themselves to doing the work, giving whatever and all that was
needed. — ÒThe stuff they had was
sufficient for the workÓ(36:7). AndÉ ÒThus was all the work of
the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation finished: and the children of
Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did they.Ó(Exodus
39:32 ) Ò34 ¦ Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the
glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the
congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD
filled the tabernacle.Ó(Exodus 40:34-35 ) Amen. Don Fortner Listen to sermons
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