Saturday, Sept. 28
Exodus 23:20 – 25:40 Read it here
Today we start a section of about 10 chapters where the emphasis shifts from the gritty details of organizing a society to more exalted thoughts of worship.
The switch can be jarring for us, but it’s less of a change than it might appear.
In Micah 6:7-8, the prophet asks rhetorically if God will be pleased with sacrifices of rams, olive oil or the firstborn. He then answers with, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
In Matthew, Jesus rebukes the establishment leaders for being committed to right worship but not righteous conduct: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices – mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
The Bible makes no division between religious practice and “real life.” Being just, showing mercy and being faithful to God are just as much worship as are songs of praise or acts of adoration. God doesn’t ask for one or the other, but both. It’s not a matter of giving instructions about justice followed by instructions about faithful worship: both are about justice and both are about worship.
Before shifting gears entirely to worship, we read one of those difficult passages about God demanding his people live separately and not mix with the people who already occupy the land. Sometimes this is stated in terms that seem brutal to us.
By the time of Jesus, though, the message seems different. Jesus urges his followers not to conform to the world, but he also encourages them to actively engage with the world. The protection from pagan practices is found in Jesus, not in separation.
In 1 Corinthians 5:9-10 Paul goes even further, accepting that believers will unavoidably interact with even the most sinful people of the world: “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people – not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world.” Instead, he says, the Corinthians should not associate with people who claim to be followers of Christ, but do those things.
There’s no reason stated for the change in attitude as far as I know. I believe it’s a matter of growth and maturing of people’s relationship with God.
In the time of Exodus, it was still new. The call of the old ways was still strong, and the teachings of God through Moses were new and unfamiliar. The word of God needed time to grow within the people in safety from outside influences.
By the time of Jesus, though, it was time to take God to the whole world, and that mission can’t be accomplished through isolation.
It’s like the change in the way we teach and protect young people from the evils and temptations of the world. A child of 4 can’t be expected to understand and resist. The same person, though, at 14 can’t be protected in the same way…they need to be growing the skills and knowledge to recognize and resist evil on their own.