Friday, Oct. 4
Exodus 35:1 – 36:38 Read it here
Earlier when we were reading about sacrifices I mentioned how much of an act of faith they were. While we think of the Sabbath mainly as a break from work when we can rest, it also represents a sacrifice that requires faith.
For most of us, time is the most valuable resource we have. We sell our time to an employer in order to get the money we need to live, we show devotion to our loved ones through devoting time to them and we require time to do all the business (and busyness) of living. At the end of all that, we have little left over and want to guard it jealously.
But that’s the problem. As with animal and grain sacrifices, God doesn’t ask for some part of what’s left over. He demands a commitment of the best: the perfect animals, the firstfruits of the crops, and a full one-seventh of our life devoted to doing nothing but recognizing that God is God, and worshiping him for it.
Notice that the building of the tabernacle (we’re back to the formal Tent of Meeting now), doesn’t come from the sacrifices, but rather from freewill offerings. In 35:21 we read, “everyone who was willing and whose heart moved him came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments.”
This wasn’t like the golden calf, for which gold had been required. These were gifts freely given. They weren’t just a way to build a place of worship—the act of giving was itself an act of worship. The required sacrifices were acts of obedience, requiring people to relinquish their resources and trust God. Here we have acts of joy, giving people the opportunity to celebrate God.