Tag Archives: Exodus

Exodus 29- Set Apart

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And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them to hallow them, to minister unto me in the priest’s office: Take one young bullock, and two rams without blemish, And unleavened bread, and cakes unleavened tempered with oil, and wafers unleavened anointed with oil: of wheaten flour shalt thou make them.And thou shalt put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bullock and the two rams. Exodus 29:1-3

Today we are taking a look at the “consecration” of the High Priests. Now the word consecration means to be set apart, to be separated from anything unclean or unholy. This is actually another foreshadow of the New Covenant. As I explained in my previous post, as Christians we are “consecrated” or set apart by the blood of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

This was a process the High Priests had to perform to be able to stand in the presence of God. Nobody could stand before God unclean or unconsecrated. Its the same for us today, we cant stand before God as sinners, however Christ consecrates us and declares us righteous so we now can.

Notice the elements here , more shadows of the New Covenant. The unleaven bread which is symbolic of the body of Christ ,which we partake in at Communion. And of course the innocent blood will be shed by the sacrifices. Jesus Christ is our perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God who paid the price for our sins.And the oil, which is symbolic of The Holy Spirit, that anoints us and sanctifies us to be more like Christ

And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water. And thou shalt take the garments, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of the ephod: And thou shalt put the mitre upon his head, and put the holy crown upon the mitre. Exodus 29:4-6

Notice the next element they practiced, the High Priests were cleansed with water, this is a foreshadow of Baptism. The cleansing of our unpurity , the cleansing of our sins, the washing of water has been symbolic and literal since the beginning.

 And as Christians, just as the High Priests, one day you will receive your crown, as a faithful disciple of Christ, we are all High Priests in the New Covenant.

Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him. Exodus 29:7

The anointing of oil over the head is a foreshadow of the New Covenant, the symbolism of oil is the Holy Spirit. This is the baptism of the Holy Spirit we receive when we become Born Again in Christ.

The ritual of consecrating the High Priest , is the same ritual we receive when we become Born Again in Jesus Christ Amen!

Exodus 28- Garments of Christ

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And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office. And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod, and a robe, and a broidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and his sons, that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office. Exodus 28:3-4

In this Chapter we see the instructions by God for the High Priests of the garments they should wear. Now failure to follow these instructions by God, will lead to death, why? Because remember we are sinful people coming into the presence of a Holy God. The High Priest needed to be consecrated  in order to stand into the presence of God before Christ instituted the New Covenant

Here the garments we see are the breastplate, the ephod, the robe, the belt. These were physical garments that needed to follow specific instructions by God. Now the garments themselves obviously didnt save the High Priests, but it was the obedience of following Gods commandments and trusting in Him for salvation

And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office. Exodus 28:41

After the High Priests put on these garments, they were to be anointed, consecrated, and sanctified before they can take the position of High Priests. This has many foreshadows of the New Covenant:

  • We are all High Priests in Christ (1 Peter 2:5-9)
  • We are anointed by the Holy Spirit (1 John 2:20)
  • We are called to be consecrated for God (Romans 12)
  • We are sanctified by the Holy Spirit (Romans 6)

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Ephesians 6:13-14

This also reminds me of the Armor of God Paul taught about in Ephesians. As Christians , we are now priests for God through Jesus Christ. Therefor we need to put on our breastplate , just as the High Priest of the Old Covenant did, we need to put on our “belt of truth, just as the High Priest did, most importantly put on the Lord Jesus Christ! (Romans 13:14)

Jesus is our High Priest, any righteousness is because of Him, these are all foreshadows that point to him, our Lord and Master Amen!

Exodus 27- Lamps Lit

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And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always.In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel. Exodus 27:20-21

As you study the Bible , you learn Oil is symbolic of The Holy Spirit. Anytime you see someone being “anointed with oil” or oil in the lamps, this is the anointing and filling of The Holy Spirit 

Notice also , this is a lasting ordinance, a commandment! This is a foreshadow for us to follow as an example, to keep our lamps full of oil

God commanded the Israelites to keep the lamps full burning with oil always! This is a foreshadow of the Holy Spirit to come, a foreshadow of Pentecost. Notice God wants the lamp to be full and burning in the tabernacle always. There are alot of foreshadows here:

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. Matthew 25:1-4

This reminds me of the Parable of the Ten Virgins Jesus taught, The Virgins being symbolic of The Church or Christians, 5 were wise and kept their lamps full of oil. While the other 5 were foolish and lazy and let their lamps run out.

When Christ returned , the 5 with the lamps full were ready to meet The Lord. While the other 5 who were not filled with oil, were not prepared to meet The Lord. What was the difference between the two groups? The Oil, 5 were filled with the Holy Spirit, the other 5 were not filled, became lazy and unfocused on their calling

Jesus ended the parable by saying to the ones who were spiritual asleep and empty of Oil “Truly I tell you , I dont know You” (Matthew 25:12”  These are scary words by Christ, this is why you should listen to his commands and instructions, keep your lamps full!

Exodus 26- The Veil Is Torn

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And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made: And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver. And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. Exodus 26:30-33

In this reading we see Gods instructions for creating the Veil. What was the purpose of the Veil? Notice at the end it states “The Veil is to divide between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place” Meaning the Veil was too separate God from the sinful man. Nobody was to enter behind the Veil unless they have been cleansed.

Again this is a foreshadow of Christ and the New Covenant to come. Why? Because when Jesus said on the Cross “It Is Finished” The Veil was torn, the division between God and Man has become reconciled because Christ has paid the debt for our sins. We have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ

And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place. And thou shalt set the table without the vail, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table on the north side. Exodus 26:34-35

The Mercy Seat again is symbolic and a foreshadow of Christ. What was the purpose of the Mercy Seat? Exactly what it says to obtain mercy. The highpriest on the day of Atonement would sprinkle the sacrificial blood on the Mercy Seat to be atoned for their sins.

Jesus is our Mercy Seat, He is the only atonement for our sins. The Veil has been torn and you can now enter the Holy of Holies and obtain mercy by the blood of Jesus Christ, the only way to salvation

 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost. John 19:30

Jesus said on the cross “It Is Finished” meaning the debt has been paid. The atonement for our sins has been completed. Jesus is the Lamb of God, the only acceptable sacrifice for us, Jesus paid it all Amen!

Exodus 25- Communion with God

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Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood: two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. And thou shalt make unto it a border of an hand breadth round about, and thou shalt make a golden crown to the border thereof round about. And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof. Exodus 25:23-26

Here we see God instructed Moses to build a table to display the showbread for God. Does this remind you of anything? I believe this is a foreshadow of Communion, the sign that Jesus said would institute the New Covenant (Luke 22) Again everything we see in this Exodus story, and everything we see in the Tabernacle are foreshadows of Christ

Why a table? Because God wants to have Communion (Fellowship) with You, just as He wanted fellowship with the Israelites, he wants fellowship with the Gentile believers. Jesus is about a personal relationship with God, not a religion, fellowship with your God and Lord

And thou shalt make the dishes thereof, and spoons thereof, and covers thereof, and bowls thereof, to cover withal: of pure gold shalt thou make them. Exodus 25:29

This commandment was to make all the dishes pure gold, including pitchers , to pour out drink offerings to God. First the symbolism of pure gold showing the purity of the Sinless Lamb of God. Second as Paul told us in Philippians 2, Jesus poured himself or emptied himself taking on the form of a servant, for our sins

And thou shalt set upon the table shewbread before me alway. Exodus 25:30

The table with the Show Bread (The body of Christ) was to be displayed to God at all times. This is why I believe Communion is a very sacred act, that should be performed daily as in Communion with God. The proclamation or sign of the New Covenant is Communion

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. Luke 22:19-20

The bread is symbolic of the body of Christ, given to us as an atonement for our sins. The drink offering, the wine, is symbolic of Jesus blood shed for our sins. This cup is the New Covenant, the table of Show Bread is a foreshadow of the New Covenant and Christ Amen!

Exodus 25- Offerings To God

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And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. Exodus 25:1-2

God asked Moses and the Israelites for everyone to bring Him an offering that they were willing in their heart. This is the root of our practice of giving tithes and offerings today. Does God need the money or possessions? Of course not, but He wants to see your heart, He wants to see what your willing to part with for Him

Notice God said “Whatever is willing of their heart” God wants to know your heart. The truth is many people cling to their money and possession as their savior instead of God. This creates a form of idolatry, anything we put ahead of God is an idol. Nothing should be put ahead of God

And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood, Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate.  Exodus 25:3-7

Notice all the things God listed were very valuable to the Israelites for daily living, especially considering they were in the Wilderness at this point. That is the point God is trying to make, we should rely on him for our daily living. God wants us to cling to Him daily, for everything, for everyday, for every moment!

And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. Exodus 25:8-9

Now for the really exciting part, God instructed the Israelites to make a Tabernacle so God can live among them! Imagine that the presence of God is going to be with the Israelites wherever they go, even in the Wilderness!

Now this is a foreshadow of Christ, “The Word became Flesh and made His “dwelling” among us” (John 1:14) Jesus is the Tabernacle of God, this tabernacle was a foreshaow of Christ becoming Flesh to live among us!

Thankfully, because of Christ, the Holy Spirit lives inside us all today in Jesus name Amen!

Exodus 24- The Old Covenant

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And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. And Moses alone shall come near the LORD: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him. Exodus 24:1-2

God is going to establish His covenant with the Israelites, the question first arises “What is a Covenant”? A Covenant is a contract, an agreement that God is making with His people. Now the interesting thing is looking at the Mosaic (Old) Covenant, there are many foreshadows of the New Covenant with Christ

First we see Moses is the only one to come to God. Moses is a foreshadow of Christ, as Jesus said “Nobody comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6) Moses was the mediator between God and the Israelites, Jesus is the mediate between Christians and God

And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. Exodus 24:3-4

The Israelites agreed to the terms of the contract “Covenant” notice it says “All the words which Yahweh has said we will do” They are agreeing to the terms of the Covenant. Just as Jesus said “If you love me you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15) , its the same as a marriage, when you enter into a marriage you are agreeing to terms.

Notice Israel made 12 pillars, symbolic of the 12 tribes of Israel, its no coincidence in the New Covenant Jesus ordained the 12 Apostles to build His Church

And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the LORD. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basons; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.  Exodus 24:5-6

The Bible says “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin” (Hebrews 9:22)  The Israelites need to be cleansed of their sin, as noted, Moses is acting as Mediator between God and the Israelites, hes offering a sacrifice for forgiveness of their sin. As you can tell, there are many foreshadows of the New Covenant here, Christ is present throughout this process. 

And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words. Exodus 24:7-8

The blood of the covenant, the Covenant was sealed by the sacrifice of innocent blood for the sinful nature of man. As Jesus said at the Lords Supper “ This is my blood the New Covenant” (1 Corinthians 11:25) Jesus paid the penalty for our sin with His own blood this is the New Covenant

How can Jesus accomplish this? Because He is The Lamb of God, He is God in the Flesh, He is the Only One who could atone for our sins. Just as the Israelites enter into a Covenant with God, through Christ we are in a better Covenant forever Amen!

Exodus 23- Jesus Is With The Israelites

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Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him. Exodus 23:20-21

Here we see God is going to send an “Angel” before the Israelites. Now the word Angel is translated from the Hebrew word “malak” which means Messenger. The Greek word “Angelos” also means Messenger where we get the word Angel. Therefore dont necessarily assume this is just an Angel, this I believe is Jesus Christ himself

If you notice it says “for my name is in him” Now the name Jesus (Yeshua) means Yahweh is salvation. Simply the name Jesus has the name of The Father in it as told in the scriptures. Therefore its a stronger case, that this was Christ that was with the Israelites and not just an ordinary Angel

But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off. Exodus 23:22-23

God made it very simple, if you listen to Jesus you will be saved. This is the same today, Christ did the work for us, if we just obey and follow him, we will be saved. Notice the Jesus of the Bible is a little different than the liberal theology Jesus portrayed today. Jesus wiped out all of the enemies of the Israelites, those who reject Christ will perish

Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images. And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. Exodus 23:24-25

Why were these other nations in such opposition to Israel? Because they were all pagan nations, worshipping false gods , practicing evil such as human sacrifice including their own children. These were wicked nations that would not repent and worship the One true Living God. Those who don’t follow and worship Christ will perish!

Just as the Israelites , Jesus will go before you, He will walk with you. As Jesus said “I have already overcome the world” (John 16:33) Put your trust in Jesus Amen!

Exodus 20- The Moral Law

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And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Exodus 20:1-2

Today we are reading about one the biggest events in human history, the day when God handed down his Moral Law. Why? Because now we are seeing the Holy nature of God and how much we fall short. Secondly we are being taught what Sin is. Without the Moral Law (The Ten Commandments) we could never know how Holy God is and truly what sin is

Can we have a standard of morality without God? No, because typically everyone believes they are a good person. Because we know there is a good and evil, a right and wrong, we know that God exists. Because of the Moral Law, we know what sin is and we know we need to repent!

Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20:3-8

Jesus simplified the Ten Commands into 2 categories, Love God and Love your Neighbor. (Mark 12:30-31) If you notice the first four commandments are about loving God. They are all about putting God first in your life and showing Him the respect, love and honor He deserves

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s. Exodus 20:12-17

The second half of the Commandments are to Love your Neighbor. Who is your Neighbor? It is everyone, including your parents and your enemies. Sin is committed by selfish acts. When you Love God and Love your neighbor, you are living as Jesus commanded us to

When we look at the 10 Commandments, its like were looking into a mirror and seeing how far we have fallen from the glory of God. The 10 Commandments is not to condemn, but to teach us how to be more like Christ Amen!

Exodus 19- Moses Meets God

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And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount. Exodus 19:16-17

Here we see an amazing event of God coming down to meet Moses, now the first thing that sticks out to me , is this happened on the 3rd day. As we know the 3rd day is when our Lord rose from the dead, breaking the barrier between God and Man. I think its no mistake, that God came down on the 3rd down at Mt Sinai

Notice the Israelites’ reaction, they were trembling at the awesomeness of God. Imagine the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth coming down! I think sometimes we minimize God and put him in a box, read the details of these scriptures and see how amazing He is

And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. Exodus 19:18-19

Some translations state when God spoke it was like Thunder, imagine hearing the voice of The Great I AM, that spoke the planets and universe into existence. This brings a whole new understanding to Fear of God, as we realize how small we are compared to our Creator

And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the LORD called Moses up to the top of the mount; and Moses went up. And the LORD said unto Moses, Go down, charge the people, lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish. And let the priests also, which come near to the LORD, sanctify themselves, lest the LORD break forth upon them. Exodus 19:20-22

God is warning Moses not to allow anyone to come near Him or they will perish? Why? Because God is Holy and we are sinful people. This is why Jesus said “Nobody comes to the Father except through him” (John 14:6) Nobody can come to God unless your cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ for your sins

Thats why when Jesus was on the cross he said “It Is Finished” meaning the veil has been torn. The barrier that separated God and Man was removed. Because of Jesus Christ we can have a relationship with our Heavenly Father Amen!