Reflection on Exodus 30:1-31:18
Scripture
“Look, I have specifically chosen Bezael, son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, ability, and expertise in all manner of crafts.”
Application
The Lord filled Bezael with His Spirit to oversee the construction of the Tabernacle, its furnishings, and the clothing for the priests.
We don’t often think of people being filled with the Holy Spirit to make beautiful artefacts for the worship of God. In particular, in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit was given for specific purposes to the prophets, kings and priests.
In our context, we might think of someone filled or anointed with the Holy Spirit to be a preacher or evangelist, pastor or prophet.
But why not the worship leader or musicians? The people who make beautiful objects for the church to inspire people to worship the Lord?
Whenever any person seeks to lift up people’s attention to encourage them to worship the Lord, there the Spirit of God is.
Not all of these people may feel filled with the Holy Spirit every time they for their thing- the same applies to pastors and preachers. There will be times, thought, that they know that God has inspired that flower arrangement, that banner, or that musical performance.
We rejoice that God can dwell in and empower the most humble of tasks dedicated to His glory.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, come and fill me and enable me to glorify you in my acts of service. Amen.
Revolution of the Daleks
I watched the new Doctor Who festive special last night.
It wasn’t awful, although it was too long. Could have been better if it was 60 minutes not 75.
A couple of plot holes, but not too bad. The standard Dalek Invasion plot of people trying to use the Daleks for their own purposes- that never ends well.
The plot twist of using Daleks to destroy one another was interesting.
I might even check out a couple of earlier episodes from the series- maybe.
Today’s Sermon
Reflection on Exodus 29:1-46
Scripture
“These burnt offerings are to be made each day from generation to generation. I will meet the people of Israel there in the place made holy by my glorious presence.”
Application
Every day from generation to generation the priests were to offer a burnt offering of a lamb in the morning and the afternoon in order to atone for Israel’s sins.
Jesus is our sacrifice. He died once to pay for our sins for all time. This is a powerful reminder. What the priesthood of Aaron could only achieve for half a day, Jesus our high Priest has achieved for eternity.
From the beginning there have always been some christians who have wanted to add in the Old Testament rituals and observances. But why would you do that? We have the perfect sacrifice already. We can add nothing to what Christ has done.
When the priests made the sacrifices, the Lord promised that He would meet them in that holy place that He consecrated by His presence.
Because we have the Holy Spirit, we are carriers of God’s presence and are consecrated by Him.
We don’t have to go to a particular place to meet with the Lord. He is always with us.
The Lord is always ready to meet with us also. All it takes is a desire to meet with Him and time to listen to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer
Lord I thank you that we have a better sacrifice and a better covenant than was available in the Old Testament. Thank you that I can meet with you at any time and in any place. Amen.
Breaking News: Tony Abbott Obeyed the Law
The Left absolutely loathe former PM Tony Abbott, even years after he left office.
So no surprise that former low achieving NSW Premier and current non-achieving Senator Kristina Kennealy accused him of *shock* riding his bike in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney, the heart of the current coronavirus lockdown.
Naturally this accusation has been aired in all the mainstream media. Naturally the Police investigated the claim. Naturally the claim was half true- Tony did ride his bike, but that is allowed in the current regulations.
If this sort of nonsense is the best the Federal Labor Party can come up with, they don’t deserve a single vote at any election.
POTD
Ephesians 4:3
Here is my commentary on Ephesians 4:3 . I am publishing these once or twice a week, but you can read all of the available articles at our web-site, http://www.new-life.org.au
Ephesians 4:3
“Make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
In the previous verse, Paul list qualities such as humility, patience, and love which help to keep christians on the same page and living to the high calling God has placed on us.
We might think that these are passive qualities which just bring about Christ-like living by virtue of them being in our lives. But Paul now tells us to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit.
There are people who think that God has to take all of the steps necessary to make us better people. They speak of striving as a bad thing because it takes away from God’s grace. Yet as we read through Paul’s epistles, he has a very even-handed approach. ”God has done this for you,” he says, “ Therefore you need to do this.”
Paul tells us we have to make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit. In other words, we are to strive, work hard, make it our goal to pursue unity in the Spirit.
When Paul talks about unity, he is not meaning uniformity. We can be one in the Spirit without being all the same. There are many gifts but one giver. There are many styles of worship, but one God is worshipped. There are many ways to serve, but just one Saviour.
We must pursue unity in our own congregation. Love has to be practised among the believers in the same faith community. If we have strong disagreements with other believers, we must seek reconciliation. Genuine repentance and true forgiveness are the practices that keep communities together.
We must also show respect and love to believers in other congregations. They may have different worship styles, traditions, and doctrinal emphases than we have, but they are still members of the same body, the Body of Christ.
The phrase unity of the Spirit does not mean that we have to work to keep the Holy Spirit together. When christians fight, it grieves the Holy Spirit, but it does not divide Him. I have the Holy Spirit in me, and you have the Holy Spirit in you, but when we stop talking to each other it does not cut off the Spirit in me from the Spirit in you.
The phrase “the unity of the Holy Spirit” suggests that unity is found in the Holy Spirit, that it comes from the Holy Spirit. This unity is about us being together, not the Holy Spirit being together.
We are to maintain the unity of the Holy Spirit through the bond of peace.
In chemistry, a bond is a force that joins atoms together to form molecules. In water, for example, two atoms of hydrogen are bound to an atom of oxygen to form a molecule of water. These bonds can be very hard to break.
When christians are bound by the bond of peace, it means that the peace that comes from the Holy Spirit joins us together and keeps us together regardless of circumstances. This is not something we are forced into, but it is a natural byproduct of the peace of the lord.
In Psalm 46, there is a strong contrast made between the nations which are in turmoil and the peace of the people of God. The nations are in turmoil because they do not know the peace of the Lord.
Peace is more than just an absence of fighting or of noise. Peace, or shalom in Hebrew, carries a sense of harmony, of things being in the right place doing the right thing and all in cooperation or purposefulness .
We experience God’s shalom in four dimensions. Firstly, harmony with God comes when we are in fellowship with Him. Second, there is harmony within. This is the inner peace that comes from knowing that God loves us. Third, there is harmony with others. We no longer have to put ourselves forward or put others down to know that we are valued. Finally, there is harmony with creation as we realise that we are to steward creation and not pillage it.
So the Holy Spirit gives us this peace which transforms us from the inside out, and which enhances every relationship we have. This peace binds us to other people, and makes it possible to work to maintain the unity of the Holy Spirit.
Key points in this verse:
- We are to be active in maintaining unity in the Body of Christ
- This is not by human effort alone, but a partnership with the Holy Spirit
- Unity does not mean everyone has to be the same
- The bond of peace is the force that helps to keep christians together
- Peace is harmony that comes from everybody knowing that we are loved and accepted by God
Reflection on Matthew 2:13-23
Scripture
“A cry was heard in Ramah –
weeping and great mourning.
Rachel weeps for her children
refusing to be comforted for they are dead.”
Observation
The wise men leave and, having been warned in a dream, they bypass Jerusalem. Joseph again has a dream in which an angel tells him to flee with the child to Egypt.
Herod orders all the boys under two years old who were born in or near Bethlehem to be killed.
After Herod dies, Joseph again has a dream that reassures him that it is time to return. The family settles in Nazareth in Galilee.
Application
When God is at work, we can be sure that satan is at work also, trying to undo God’s plans. Ironically, satan is often just dancing to the tune previously set by the Lord.
The Messiah is born, and satan seeks to destroy Him. He provokes the anger of Herod in an attempt to destroy God’s rescue plan. This plot, wicked as it is, was foreseen by Jeremiah hundreds of years prior.
Satan loves to think he is in control. He tries to convince God’s people to be afraid of him, to avoid big steps of faith, because of possible consequences. Yet, satan at every step is shown to be weaker than God.
The child of God has no reason to ever be afraid. “Greater is he that is in you than he than he that is in the world.”
Prayer
Father, the grief of those mothers and families whose little boys were killed by a paranoid king was great. Yet your grief for humanity lost in sin is even greater. Thank you for the knowledge that you have won the victory over the devil. Amen.
