Title: Exodus 35 "The Lord [Again] Commanded"
Exodus 35 “The Lord [Again] Commanded”
God made the stone tablets of the broken covenant again and issued the word of the covenant again. Moses delivered the words of the newly established covenant again. So are we. After God saved us, He made a covenant with us, and we made a covenant with Him. They made a covenant to keep Sunday holy, to participate in all worship services and prayer meetings, to offer living sacrifices, to give tithes and gifts of thanks, and to fulfill the ministry of service and evangelism. But we have broken that covenant countless times. God renews the broken covenant and makes a new covenant.
1. Keep the Sabbath day holy (2-3)
Keeping the Sabbath is a blessing for the saints. It is the greatest blessing for a life that cannot enjoy rest and peace because of the price of sin, and can enjoy rest and peace while worshiping God the Creator and God the Redeemer. The Old Testament Sabbath foreshadowed the New Testament Sunday, and the New Testament Sunday foreshadowed the eternal rest in heaven. Keeping the Sabbath (Sunday) is a sign of high acknowledgment of God and the importance of worship in our personal, family, and social lives. Doing business or studying on a Sunday is a violation of the Sunday. The early church in the 1st and 2nd centuries, the Puritans in the 17th century, and the early church in Korea regarded Sunday holy water as life. "Whoever works on this day shall be put to death." This spirit is still alive today.
2. Offer a gift (4-9)
Giving gifts is also a blessing of the saints. Although God is the lord of all things, who owns and rules all things in the universe, he is pleased with the gifts offered by the saints. If we could give the President a gift, it would be a pleasant honor, not a painful one. If we can give a gift to God, it's not a pain, it's a joyous glory. Although God accepts our gifts, God accepts gifts that are offered "with pleasure" (29), not because of compulsion, but rather because of the desire of the heart (5,21,22,29). You may offer gifts, gold or silver according to your circumstances, or you may offer linen, goat hair, and sea otter skins. A person who is stingy in giving to God cannot please God and cannot receive God's blessing.
3. Come and serve (10-19)
It is also a blessing of the saints to come to God's house and serve. It is said that working at the Blue House is a privilege, but you don't know what a great privilege and blessing it is to come to God's house and do the work that God tells you to do. “It is good to be a gatekeeper to my God” (Psalm 84:10). God allows the saints to come to God's house and do various things according to their circumstances and talents. He made the tabernacle and its covering, the ark of the testimony and the mercy seat, the showbread and the lighthouse, the anointing oil and incense, and the paving for the courtyard, and the pillars and stakes. One condition is to be moved by the Spirit of God to have a “wise heart” (10,31,34,35).
4. People who gave and served (20-35)
Israel now obeyed and gave with sincerity (20-29) and worked diligently (30-35). We too need to turn back our past disobedience and mistakes and start over by obeying again.