Category Archives: All Knowing

All Knowing, Father / Yahweh, Guide, Obeying God

Obey God Even In The Details

I am sure we could explore much detail and symbolism in regards to the details Jehovah provided in designing the ark. However, something else strikes me while I read Exodus 37… Bezalel took a tremendous amount of time to properly execute the details of the work according to Jehovah’s instructions. He did not just “wing it” or “hurry it”. He used his skills with painstaking detail and patience to complete the work exactly as Jehovah instructed… and it was magnificent.

Exodus 37

Construction Continues

      1Now Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was two and a half cubits, and its width one and a half cubits, and its height one and a half cubits; 2and he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a gold molding for it all around. 3He cast four rings of gold for it on its four feet; even two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. 4He made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 5He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry it. 6He made a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. 7He made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat; 8one cherub at the one end and one cherub at the other end; he made the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat at the two ends. 9The cherubim had their wings spread upward, covering the mercy seat with their wings, with their faces toward each other; the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat.

      10Then he made the table of acacia wood, two cubits long and a cubit wide and one and a half cubits high. 11He overlaid it with pure gold, and made a gold molding for it all around. 12He made a rim for it of a handbreadth all around, and made a gold molding for its rim all around. 13He cast four gold rings for it and put the rings on the four corners that were on its four feet. 14Close by the rim were the rings, the holders for the poles to carry the table. 15He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold, to carry the table. 16He made the utensils which were on the table, its dishes and its pans and its bowls and its jars, with which to pour out drink offerings, of pure gold.

      17Then he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of hammered work, its base and its shaft; its cups, its bulbs and its flowers were of one piece with it. 18There were six branches going out of its sides; three branches of the lampstand from the one side of it and three branches of the lampstand from the other side of it; 19three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower in one branch, and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower in the other branch—so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. 20In the lampstand there were four cups shaped like almond blossoms, its bulbs and its flowers; 21and a bulb was under the first pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the second pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the third pair of branches coming out of it, for the six branches coming out of the lampstand. 22Their bulbs and their branches were of one piece with it; the whole of it was a single hammered work of pure gold. 23He made its seven lamps with its snuffers and its trays of pure gold. 24He made it and all its utensils from a talent of pure gold.

      25Then he made the altar of incense of acacia wood: a cubit long and a cubit wide, square, and two cubits high; its horns were of one piece with it. 26He overlaid it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and he made a gold molding for it all around. 27He made two golden rings for it under its molding, on its two sides—on opposite sides—as holders for poles with which to carry it. 28He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 29And he made the holy anointing oil and the pure, fragrant incense of spices, the work of a perfumer.

When Jehovah calls us to live a certain way or do a certain task, do not take shortcuts and just try to get it “sort of right”. Take time to understand and follow all of the details in God’s instructions to us. God has much wisdom in His plans. We should take care not to miss the glorious because we choose to cut corners and take shortcuts on our obedience to Him.

Pray for the Holy Spirit to show you any areas in your life where you are not wholeheartedly seeking to obey God even in the details and ask for His help for you to rededicate yourself to live out the details of your life as God intends.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Guide, Obeying God

Jehovah Is Not In A Hurry, But He Is Always On Time

It is easy for us to get in a hurry to finish things we want to do. We may deliberate for awhile, but once the decision is final, there is a desire to hurry forward. Jehovah is not in a hurry, but He is always on time. He has known everything from the beginning. He is used to waiting for a specific timing for His plans. It took Noah 100 years to build the ark. Jehovah is patient and wants us to do what He calls us to do patiently and with attention to detail.

Exodus 36:8-38

Construction Proceeds

      8All the skillful men among those who were performing the work made the tabernacle with ten curtains; of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet material, with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman, Bezalel made them. 9The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains had the same measurements. 10He joined five curtains to one another and the other five curtains he joined to one another. 11He made loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set; he did likewise on the edge of the curtain that was outermost in the second set. 12He made fifty loops in the one curtain and he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was in the second set; the loops were opposite each other. 13He made fifty clasps of gold and joined the curtains to one another with the clasps, so the tabernacle was a unit.

      14Then he made curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; he made eleven curtains in all. 15The length of each curtain was thirty cubits and four cubits the width of each curtain; the eleven curtains had the same measurements. 16He joined five curtains by themselves and the other six curtains by themselves. 17Moreover, he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was outermost in the first set, and he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was outermost in the second set. 18He made fifty clasps of bronze to join the tent together so that it would be a unit. 19He made a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering of porpoise skins above.

      20Then he made the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright. 21Ten cubits was the length of each board and one and a half cubits the width of each board. 22There were two tenons for each board, fitted to one another; thus he did for all the boards of the tabernacle. 23He made the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards for the south side; 24and he made forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for its two tenons and two sockets under another board for its two tenons. 25Then for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, he made twenty boards, 26and their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board and two sockets under another board. 27For the rear of the tabernacle, to the west, he made six boards. 28He made two boards for the corners of the tabernacle at the rear. 29They were double beneath, and together they were complete to its top to the first ring; thus he did with both of them for the two corners. 30There were eight boards with their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets, two under every board.

      31Then he made bars of acacia wood, five for the boards of one side of the tabernacle, 32and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle for the rear side to the west. 33He made the middle bar to pass through in the center of the boards from end to end. 34He overlaid the boards with gold and made their rings of gold as holders for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.

      35Moreover, he made the veil of blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen; he made it with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman. 36He made four pillars of acacia for it, and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four sockets of silver for them. 37He made a screen for the doorway of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver; 38and he made its five pillars with their hooks, and he overlaid their tops and their bands with gold; but their five sockets were of bronze.

I often have to remind myself that Jehovah’s timing is different than mine. Even when I feel like He has given me direction, it is not always as fast to complete as I might prefer. If we get impatient and do things our own way, we may mess up the results of what God intended, like when Abraham brought about Ishmael . I may be ready to go, but God may have a schedule that requires years of waiting and preparation that I may not even recognize. We must be patient and trust in Him. We can not force or hurry His timing even to accomplish that which He calls us to do.

The workmen building the Tabernacle used their skill patiently and with attention to detail. It took time. So, too, should we challenge ourselves to focus on what God has called us to do and then do it faithfully, patiently, and joyfully… neither hurrying the timing nor skipping over the details God has intended.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Jesus Christ / Yeshua, Prophecy, Share the Good News, Teachable, Through Prophets

Why Does Jesus Speak In Parables?

Parables are actually quite interesting to consider. To those whom the Holy Spirit enlightens the mind and heart to accept what is being taught, they create a very memorable picture we can understand that teach us about the kingdom of God… a very complicated subject of which we can not fully comprehend all of it. To those who willingly reject God and do not seek Him, but rather seek the world, they provide confusion and blindness and are easily dismissed as not meaningful.

The theme in which God shows His servants that many will reject the message of God despite hearing it is repeated throughout the whole of the Bible quite a bit.

Mark 4:11-12

11And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables, 12so that WHILE SEEING, THEY MAY SEE AND NOT PERCEIVE, AND WHILE HEARING, THEY MAY HEAR AND NOT UNDERSTAND, OTHERWISE THEY MIGHT RETURN AND BE FORGIVEN.”

Matthew 13:14

14“In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;

Isaiah 6:9

9He said, “Go, and tell this people:
‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive;
Keep on looking, but do not understand.’

Jeremiah 5:21

 21‘Now hear this, O foolish and senseless people,
Who have eyes but do not see;
Who have ears but do not hear.

These verses do no imply a command for people not to hear, but rather a prediction or observation that they will refuse to hear. For these who reject God and do not seek Him earnestly, God gives them over to it and to the blindness associated with it so that they can not see.

For those that earnestly desire to seek and understand Jehovah… pray for the Holy Spirit to dwell inside you and enlighten your heart and mind to the truth of scripture and God will draw you to Him.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Doubt / Lacking Faith, Faith / Trusting God, Father / Yahweh, Idols / False Gods, Obeying God, Speaking, Through Prophets

Put Your Faith In Jehovah Rather Than Your Religious Leaders

Jehovah tells us to put our faith in him rather than men, even when men may be righteous and in leadership roles. Now that is not to say we should not be respectful and honor those in leadership over us, we should. However, men fail or even when they do not fail, we may lose sight of them. Eventually they die. If our faith is in men, then we will surely have our faith tested and fail. If our faith is in Jehovah, He will never fail us.

Consider the Israelites, who were led out of slavery in Egypt by God through Moses.

Exodus 32:1-18

The Golden Calf

      1Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people assembled about Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” 2Aaron said to them, “Tear off the gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3Then all the people tore off the gold rings which were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4He took this from their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 5Now when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” 6So the next day they rose early and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

      7Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8“They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it and have sacrificed to it and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!’” 9The LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people. 10“Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.”

The people put their faith in Moses rather than God! Thus when he was out of sight for awhile, they grew nervous and failed in their faith very quickly.

    1Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people assembled about Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”

The people had not learned to trust in God directly, but relied on having an intermediary, a go-between, to communicate between God and man. Moses was even righteous… he did not fail in this case, but still the people were separated from him and their faith failed. When it did, they acted boldly in rebellion to God’s instructions by creating and worshipping an idol. They worshipped God the way they saw Egyptians worshipping their gods. They had not drawn near to God, but rather relied on Moses to do so on their behalf.

God invites each of us to draw near to Him in personal relationship and to put our faith in Him and Him alone. Let us each accept this generous invitation from the Creator of all things and put our faith where it belongs!

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, All Powerful / King of All, Consequences of Sin, Disobeying, Rebelling Against, Ignoring God, Father / Yahweh, Hebrew Roots / Commands / Law, Idols / False Gods, Justice / Judgment, Speaking, Through Prophets, Traditions / Holidays, Worthy of Fear / Reverence

Do Not Turn Aside From God’s Commands

Most of us who have followed Yahweh for awhile have had the opportunity to see His hand at work in our lives. I have marveled that He takes such an interest in someone so insignificant as me, but nonetheless He does! He loves each of His children. As we get to know Him more closely, we more easily recognize His hand at work in our lives.

We must take heed, however, and not turn away when we feel distant from Him or when we do not feel His presence. At those times, we must continue obeying His commands and His ways, faithfully believing that He is there, even if we do not see His hand at work. Often we can point back to events in our lives where He intervened to encourage us to remember Him. Do not turn from Him.

Consider His people as they left Egypt. Yahweh delivered them from slavery through many mighty miracles. There were ten plagues, parting of the Red Sea, defeat of Pharaoh’s army, God appearing as fire  and smoke to lead them, manna and water miraculously to meet their needs in the dessert. Surely we would think that generation could never turn from God, but they did.

Exodus 32:1-10

The Golden Calf

      1Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people assembled about Aaron and said to him, “Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” 2Aaron said to them, “Tear off the gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” 3Then all the people tore off the gold rings which were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4He took this from their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 5Now when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” 6So the next day they rose early and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

      7Then the LORD spoke to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. 8“They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it and have sacrificed to it and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!’” 9The LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people. 10“Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.”

I think we can all see clearly that Yahweh was not pleased with His people for making this idol and worshipping it. He was going to destroy them and start over. Let us consider carefully what happened. If we read to quickly we may conclude, as many have, that the Israelites were worshipping an idol of a false god and that is why Yahweh was upset… but this is not the case.

Look closer. Indeed they had created an idol and began to worship it, but in fact they were using the idol to represent Yahweh Himself. Consider the following verses:

“This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 5Now when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.”

In fact, the people were worshipping Yahweh, and He was very upset! Why? Yahweh does not want His people to worship Him in the way that the pagans worship their false gods. It disgusts Him. He wants us to worship Him in the way He tells us.

Deuteronomy 12:30-32

30beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?’ 31“You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.

      32“Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.

The Israelites may have been worshipping Yahweh, but they were doing so in like manner to how the Egyptians worshipped their false gods by making idols.

While this may seem like it does not apply today, it certainly does! Yahweh has not changed His opinion on what is good and what is bad. He still does not want us to worship Him with idols or with any of the manners or traditions with which the pagans worship false gods. If we take the time to study our common Christmas and Easter traditions (and other traditions as well), we will certainly find the history of many of these traditions are derived not from God’s word, but from pagan worship practices. Christians have created new meanings for many of these traditions, but they still are derived from pagan worship. Yahweh is not pleased, even if we say it is He whom we are worshipping.

Do not repeat the error of the Israelites, which drew great anger from Yahweh. Instead, learn the history and true origin of the traditions you practice. Reject the ones that are derived from pagan worship. Instead, study and learn the practices and worship that Yahweh instructs us in His word. There is so much to learn!

I feel like I have been on an archaeological dig for a decade to understand and lay down traditions rooted in pagan worship and instead to focus on and adopt practices and traditions that are commanded in God’s word in the Old Testament.

I encourage you to invest time to get to know Yahweh. If He is Lord, then you should take time to learn His ways and reject the ways of the pagan worship… even if done in Yahweh’s name.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, All Powerful / King of All, Father / Yahweh, Guide, Speaking

If God Calls You, He Already Has A Plan

If Jehovah calls you to do something, no matter how difficult or  intimidating to you, He already has a plan for how you will succeed. You will not have to do it alone. He will be with you. Sometimes, He intervenes directly and supernaturally. Other times, He will provide the support and talents that you need personally and in those around you to be successful. When He instructed Moses in all the detail of the Tabernacle, Jehovah had already created and placed the skilled craftsmen to do the work He commanded.

Exodus 31:1-11

The Skilled Craftsmen

      1Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2“See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 3“I have filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of craftsmanship, 4to make artistic designs for work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, 5and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, that he may work in all kinds of craftsmanship. 6“And behold, I Myself have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all who are skillful I have put skill, that they may make all that I have commanded you: 7the tent of meeting, and the ark of testimony, and the mercy seat upon it, and all the furniture of the tent, 8the table also and its utensils, and the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, and the altar of incense, 9the altar of burnt offering also with all its utensils, and the laver and its stand, 10the woven garments as well, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, with which to carry on their priesthood; 11the anointing oil also, and the fragrant incense for the holy place, they are to make them according to all that I have commanded you.”

When God calls us to do something for Him and for His kingdom, we do not have to do it alone. Trust in Him to direct your path and provide you with the resources you need.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, All Powerful / King of All, Father / Yahweh, Guide, Loving / Kind, Obeying God, Speaking, Through Prophets

Is Jehovah Is Too Busy To Get Into Details?

Our human nature typically feels best when we feel we have control of the details of our lives. It can be tempting to believe that Jehovah is too busy to really care about the details of our life, so we will just make all those decisions on our own. After all, He has a lot to look after, right?  Some even teach that we should pray not to the Father, but to dead people that are labeled saints. Somehow, we are to believe, Jehovah is not able to handle it all and must have the help of dead people for us to pray to? The truth is that we are to pray only to the Father, following the example of Jesus Christ. Never did he support or teach that we should pray to anyone except the Father. Jesus did not even teach that we should ever pray to Him… only in His name to the Father.

Jehovah is quite sufficient on His own to hear all our prayer and be involved in intimate details in our lives. Let us consider an example in Exodus. Several chapters provide painstaking detail of exactly what the Father wanted for His people to do in creating an altar and tabernacle in which He would dwell among them in the wilderness.

Exodus 27

The Bronze Altar

      1“And you shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits wide; the altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits. 2“You shall make its horns on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze. 3“You shall make its pails for removing its ashes, and its shovels and its basins and its forks and its firepans; you shall make all its utensils of bronze. 4“You shall make for it a grating of network of bronze, and on the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners. 5“You shall put it beneath, under the ledge of the altar, so that the net will reach halfway up the altar. 6“You shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze. 7“Its poles shall be inserted into the rings, so that the poles shall be on the two sides of the altar when it is carried. 8“You shall make it hollow with planks; as it was shown to you in the mountain, so they shall make it.

Court of the Tabernacle

      9“You shall make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side there shall be hangings for the court of fine twisted linen one hundred cubits long for one side; 10and its pillars shall be twenty, with their twenty sockets of bronze; the hooks of the pillars and their bands shall be of silver. 11“Likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings one hundred cubits long, and its twenty pillars with their twenty sockets of bronze; the hooks of the pillars and their bands shall be of silver. 12“For the width of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits with their ten pillars and their ten sockets. 13“The width of the court on the east side shall be fifty cubits. 14“The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits with their three pillars and their three sockets. 15“And for the other side shall be hangings of fifteen cubits with their three pillars and their three sockets. 16“For the gate of the court there shall be a screen of twenty cubits, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver, with their four pillars and their four sockets. 17“All the pillars around the court shall be furnished with silver bands with their hooks of silver and their sockets of bronze. 18“The length of the court shall be one hundred cubits, and the width fifty throughout, and the height five cubits of fine twisted linen, and their sockets of bronze. 19“All the utensils of the tabernacle used in all its service, and all its pegs, and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

      20“You shall charge the sons of Israel, that they bring you clear oil of beaten olives for the light, to make a lamp burn continually. 21“In the tent of meeting, outside the veil which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall keep it in order from evening to morning before the LORD; it shall be a perpetual statute throughout their generations for the sons of Israel.

Next time you are facing difficult decisions, whether great or small, know that you can come prayerfully and humbly before our heavenly Father and ask for His help. He is able and willing to help us even in the small details of our lives. He may be the Creator of all, sustaining all things, but He is also our loving Father who cares very much for His children!

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Father / Yahweh, Guide, Obeying God, Speaking, Through Prophets

Why Is God So Picky About Details? Is He A Control Freak?

Have you ever heard someone ask if God is a control freak? “Why does He care about details so much? Why can’t I just do things my own way?”  We do well to think of our Creator as a master craftsman. Would we criticize a world renown sculptor for working intricate detail into his work? Would we criticize a master painter like Michelangelo for taking time and paying attention to amazing detail in his work? Do we criticize Apple for all the detail it manages in design and construction associated the iPhone? Of course not! We marvel at their works. We appreciate the end result delivered by the  details in the user experience.

So too we must consider our Creator a master. He has a vision and a plan and it includes many details to bring forth His glory and teach us about His kingdom. Let us not criticize our Creator for His attention to detail, but instead remember He has a plan far beyond what we can see or understand from our perspective. He has the plan, but wants His people to be part of it.  Consider the relatively small example of how He led His people to design and build  the tabernacle for Him to dwell among them while they wandered in the wilderness seeking the promised land.

Exodus 26

Curtains of Linen

      1“Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and blue and purple and scarlet material; you shall make them with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman. 2“The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall have the same measurements. 3“Five curtains shall be joined to one another, and the other five curtains shall be joined to one another. 4“You shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set, and likewise you shall make them on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set. 5“You shall make fifty loops in the one curtain, and you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite each other. 6“You shall make fifty clasps of gold, and join the curtains to one another with the clasps so that the tabernacle will be a unit.

Curtains of Goats’ Hair

      7“Then you shall make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; you shall make eleven curtains in all. 8“The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains shall have the same measurements. 9“You shall join five curtains by themselves and the other six curtains by themselves, and you shall double over the sixth curtain at the front of the tent. 10“You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the first set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set.

      11“You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and you shall put the clasps into the loops and join the tent together so that it will be a unit. 12“The overlapping part that is left over in the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that is left over, shall lap over the back of the tabernacle. 13“The cubit on one side and the cubit on the other, of what is left over in the length of the curtains of the tent, shall lap over the sides of the tabernacle on one side and on the other, to cover it. 14“You shall make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red and a covering of porpoise skins above.

Boards and Sockets

      15“Then you shall make the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright. 16“Ten cubits shall be the length of each board and one and a half cubits the width of each board. 17“There shall be two tenons for each board, fitted to one another; thus you shall do for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18“You shall make the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards for the south side. 19“You shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards, two sockets under one board for its two tenons and two sockets under another board for its two tenons; 20and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, twenty boards, 21and their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board and two sockets under another board. 22“For the rear of the tabernacle, to the west, you shall make six boards. 23“You shall make two boards for the corners of the tabernacle at the rear. 24“They shall be double beneath, and together they shall be complete to its top to the first ring; thus it shall be with both of them: they shall form the two corners. 25“There shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets; two sockets under one board and two sockets under another board.

      26“Then you shall make bars of acacia wood, five for the boards of one side of the tabernacle, 27and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle for the rear side to the west. 28“The middle bar in the center of the boards shall pass through from end to end. 29“You shall overlay the boards with gold and make their rings of gold as holders for the bars; and you shall overlay the bars with gold. 30“Then you shall erect the tabernacle according to its plan which you have been shown in the mountain.

The Veil and Screen

      31“You shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen; it shall be made with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman. 32“You shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, their hooks also being of gold, on four sockets of silver. 33“You shall hang up the veil under the clasps, and shall bring in the ark of the testimony there within the veil; and the veil shall serve for you as a partition between the holy place and the holy of holies. 34“You shall put the mercy seat on the ark of the testimony in the holy of holies. 35“You shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand opposite the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side.

      36“You shall make a screen for the doorway of the tent of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver. 37“You shall make five pillars of acacia for the screen and overlay them with gold, their hooks also being of gold; and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them.

Prayerfully consider what you are doing in your life. Are you honoring God even in the details? Are you seeking His ways not just for church on Sunday and major celebrations but even for what you watch on television or the internet? Do you consider what He wants when you decide how to spend your time or do you just do what you want? Spend some time reflecting in prayer and asking God to help you identify changes you can make in your life even this week that can help you to follow the world less and follow God more… even in the details. It is the details that ultimately make a good work of art into a masterpiece. Allow the Master to work through you!

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Father / Yahweh, Holy, Learning To Pray Effectively, Loving / Kind

Is God a Micro-Manager?

To some, you may be surprised that the Ark of the Covenant is real and not just a storyline in a popular movie from a few decades ago. Indeed it is not only real, but Jehovah Himself designed it. In truth, it is one of many good examples that show us Jehovah’s great interest in details. We can have good discussion around why Jehovah gets into the detail of a very specific design… “Is He a micro-manager needing to be in control of every detail? or is it just that He loves His people and has a plan for them. He cares enough to lay out even minute details.” In fact, as we read on through the Bible, we will confirm many other instances where He gets involved and leads on even seemingly small and perhaps insignificant details. We must conclude He cares about His people even to a detailed level. He cares about leading them well. He cares about setting up holy things in a way that distinguishes them as set apart for His purpose and not just a few more items around the camp.

Exodus 25:10-22

Ark of the Covenant

      10“They shall construct an ark of acacia wood two and a half cubits long, and one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. 11“You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall overlay it, and you shall make a gold molding around it. 12“You shall cast four gold rings for it and fasten them on its four feet, and two rings shall be on one side of it and two rings on the other side of it. 13“You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 14“You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark with them. 15“The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be removed from it. 16“You shall put into the ark the testimony which I shall give you.

      17“You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. 18“You shall make two cherubim of gold, make them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat. 19“Make one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat at its two ends. 20“The cherubim shall have their wings spread upward, covering the mercy seat with their wings and facing one another; the faces of the cherubim are to be turned toward the mercy seat. 21“You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony which I will give to you. 22“There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel.

I believe that Jehovah cares about the detail here in large part to make the point to the people that these things are holy and set apart for His purpose. Details matter. The people are called to follow His direction in every detail. He wants to help people have the right attitude toward Him when they approach Him and the ark and mercy seat are symbolic of that interface between Creator and created.

Since our Creator does not change, we should take note that He wants us to take it seriously when we seek to come into His presence. Scripture clearly tells us He is like a Father and we can approach Him with anything, but let us also not forget that He is the holy Creator of all things. He is to be revered and respected. Let us challenge ourselves not to get so casual in our relationship with Him that we forget who He is and instead redefine Him in our own image and desires. He sets the agenda. He defines right and wrong. He directs every detail. Praise to Jehovah indeed that He also makes a way for us to come before Him and enter into His presence. He loves us!

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

All Knowing, Faith / Trusting God, His Ways Are Not Our Ways, Protector / Deliverer

Taking The Long Way… On Purpose

After terrorists flew planes into the twin towers in New York years ago, many people were shaken and actually turned toward Jehovah for answers. I know a single mother who has been through a lot of trials, and her faith in God has come out stronger than before she endured them. I have read about a particular online blogger who is doing very well today, but first went through a season of unemployment that seemed to be quite scary. Now, he readily praises God in that that situation in his life prepared and seasoned him to be more faithful and trusting of God in his life. In my personal life, the worst failures I endured have brought me closer to God and strengthened my relationship with Him.

We see this same theme throughout scripture over and over. Joseph and David were seasoned and prepared by God through difficult times to be better able to be faithful to God and obey Him.

The same is true when God led the people out of Egypt and into the wilderness. The journey did not take long because God got lost. God was actively and intentionally preparing His people along the way for what He knew was to come later.

Exodus 13:17-22

God Leads the People

      17Now when Pharaoh had let the people go, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, “The people might change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.” 18Hence God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Red Sea; and the sons of Israel went up in martial array from the land of Egypt. 19Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones from here with you.” 20Then they set out from Succoth and camped in Etham on the edge of the wilderness. 21The LORD was going before them in a pillar of cloud by day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire by night to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.

When things do not go the way you expect, when God shows you something He is going to do in your life, but you seem to be taking the long way to get there… prayerfully turn to God and ask Him to help you be patient and learn the lessons He has planned for you. Do not consider it a failure just because something does not happen quickly, in your desired timing.

—-

Have you submitted your life to Jesus Christ? If you die today, do you know for sure that you would be with God in heaven? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.