May 4, 2025 • 32 mins
The Life of Moses- Episode #32 (Part 1 of 3) 🩺 Have you ever questioned your purpose or wondered if you're spending your time on the right things? Once we start serving and working in our calling, how do we maintain the right heart and motivation?? Today's episode dives deep into the heart of service by examining the building of the Tabernacle in Exodus 35. Â
When Moses invited the Israelites to donate materials for God's dwelling place, he revealed some solid principles that can transform how we approach service today.  This episode challenges us to examine our motivations in all areas of service. Whether you're uncertain about your gifts or have been serving for years, this message will help you rediscover the purpose and purity in your service to God.
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Episode Transcript
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Julie (00:19):
Kia ora, and welcome to Whispers of Grace, a place for
women to be encouraged by God'sHoly Word.
I'm your host, julie Colbeth,and I am overjoyed to dig into
the Bible with you today.
Kia ora, friends, and welcomeback to Whispers of Grace.
(00:40):
I am so happy to have you hereas we continue our walk through
the life of Moses.
Do you ever have those days orlong nights where you're
wondering what your life isreally for and questioning if
you're spending your time on theright things?
I've had long seasons of beingin between things that felt
(01:02):
really, really long and I feltabsolutely useless.
I constantly asked the Lordwhat am I for?
I still ask that question a lot.
Understanding your calling andpurpose is so essential to
living a confident andfulfilling life, and I'm just so
excited to get into all of thiswith you guys today.
(01:23):
And I'm just so excited to getinto all of this with you guys
today.
God has placed us in abeautiful little bundle of
examples to examine in Exodus,to help us answer these
questions and do some reallydeep soul-searching.
So this is the first episode ina mini-series where we will be
looking at a few things theIsraelites donating items to
build the tabernacle, theartisans that crafted God's
(01:46):
house.
We're going to read about theelders that were called to
support Moses and dive intoestablishing the priesthood, and
then, finally, we're going toreflect on the mistakes of Nadab
and Abihu that offered profanefire before the Lord.
The three episodes will becalled Mot method and mistakes.
(02:07):
Today we're going to be gettinginto motivation, which is the
perfect place to start.
We all need to examine why wechoose to serve God and others,
so let's open up our hearts andour hands and hear what God
would say to us today.
So where we are in the book ofExodus, chapter 35, and the life
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of Moses.
Israel is rapidly changing as anation.
If you remember for a minutetheir origins, the nation of
Israel started out with a mannamed Abraham that God spoke to
and called out of his homeland.
Abraham's calling and covenantwith God passed on to his son,
isaac, and then his grandson,jacob, whose name God changed to
(02:52):
Israel.
And it's from this man and hiswives, leah and Rachel, that the
12 tribes of Israel were born.
Those boys betrayed theirbrother Joseph by selling him
into slavery.
But remember, god had plansthat they didn't understand and
he used that betrayal to bringJoseph to power in Egypt.
(03:12):
Now, eventually, all of thosebrothers and their families
moved down to Egypt following amassive famine, and eventually
they were enslaved after theylost their connection to Pharaoh
.
So 400 years passed as Israelmultiplied in the midst of this
pagan nation.
And that is when Moses entersthe scene.
(03:33):
God sends his enslaved people,a leader, to usher them out of
Egypt and into the promised land, but now at the foot of Mount
Sinai.
These recently freed slavesthat have the call and the
promises of God in their livesare being shaped into a nation.
It's here that they're given amore specific identity and
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culture and a rhythm of lifethrough Sabbath and festival
observances, commandments andrules to govern life.
The sacrificial system is setup, the priesthood is
established and the tabernacleis erected.
There's so much happening hereat the base of Mount Sinai,
(04:17):
roughly three months freed fromslavery, and this massive family
of millions is shaped and theterms of the covenant with God
are expanded.
So the rest of the book ofExodus and the books of
Leviticus and Numbers outlineall the details of establishing
this nation, and then all thosedetails are revisited again in
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the book of Deuteronomy, whichis spoken by Moses to a new
generation of Israelites.
It was his last act as Israel'sleader to narrate Israel's
story back to them and remindthem of the covenant and the
laws that God had passed to them.
So, for our purposes, I'm goingto continue to follow the life
(05:00):
of Moses, but I'm going to weavein different themes as I see
them emerge, because it's spreadover so many of these books.
So as I was looking through thenext huge pieces of scripture
that follow the Mount Sinaiaccounts, I saw a theme of
purpose and service, and at theend of my last episode I shared
(05:20):
one of my favorite scriptures 2Corinthians 3, 4-6, and it's in
the same heart of the scripturethat I want to continue in today
.
It says this and we have suchtrust through Christ, toward God
, not that we are sufficient ofourselves to think of anything
as being from ourselves, but oursufficiency is from God, who
(05:43):
has made us sufficient asministers of the new covenant,
not of the letter but of thespirit, for the letter kills but
the spirit gives life.
Did you know that if you are ablood-bought believer of Jesus
Christ, then you are called andgifted into service for the Lord
(06:05):
?
Because maybe you hear thewords ministry or service thrown
around and you don't feel likethose terms apply to you at all.
They apply to a pastor or amissionary or an elder, a priest
, a bishop or a deacon at yourchurch, but you don't associate
those terms with yourself andyou don't really think of
yourself in service to the Lord.
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Or maybe you don't feel worthyto be serving God because you
don't think your skills fit thedescription of service to the
Lord.
Today, as we dive into a fewdifferent texts, let's just have
open hearts to hear what Godwould say to us.
It's interesting to note that inGod's perfect world, all the
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way back in Genesis, god createda beautiful garden and then he
created man to live and work inthat garden with him.
Exodus 2.15 says Then the LordGod, took the man and put him in
the garden of Eden to tend andto keep it.
Since the beginning, godcreated and man was put to work
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caring for the earth.
While this God-ordained work orservice was happening, they
also enjoyed fellowship with God.
Scripture tells us that theywalked in the garden together,
no doubt enjoying and discussingall that was around them.
I can just imagine Adam tellingGod about the names that he
chose for the animals and hisplans for this amazing garden,
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talking about the taste of thefruit that was coming off of
these trees.
I'm sure their fellowship wasbeautiful.
But our reality today is vastlydifferent from this scene,
because sin has corrupted theperfection that God created in
Eden, but the simple concept ofGod creating and humans working
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within that plan.
It still endures because God isstill the giver of good gifts,
he still fellowships with us.
Us and we are still called toserve in his world.
Now I'm going to share a versewith you that I really want us
to try to tune into, because itreally sets each of us in a
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place to be a part of what Godis doing here on the earth.
1 Peter 4, 10-11 tells us Doyou have the gift of helping
others?
Do it with all the strength andenergy that God supplies.
Then everything you do willbring glory to God through Jesus
Christ.
All glory and power to Himforever and ever.
(09:00):
Amen.
Do you hear this message?
God has equipped you and calledyou to be an active part of his
plan.
It's not just for your pastoror missionaries.
He has gifted you for service.
These verses in Peter heartilytell us to use our gifts to
serve one another and to do itwith all of the strength and
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energy that God supplies.
You are called to minister.
As we get into Exodus today, Iwant you to keep these
encouragements in mind.
The first piece of our texttoday is in Exodus 35, verses 4
through 9.
We're going to see that Godwanted to work with the people
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of Israel to build his house,the tabernacle, it says.
Then Moses said to the wholecommunity of Israel this is what
the Lord has commanded.
Take a sacred offering for theLord.
Let those with generous heartspresent the following gifts to
the Lord Gold, silver and bronze, blue, purple and scarlet
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thread, fine linen and goat hairfor cloth, tanned ram skins and
fine goat skin, leather, acaciawood, olive oil for the lamps,
spices for the anointing oil andthe fragrant incense, onyx
stones and other gemstones to beset in the ephod and the
priest's chest piece.
So Moses made a proclamationthat the Lord's place of worship
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was going to be built, just asGod had instructed Moses on
Mount Sinai, and the materialsto assemble God's house were to
be supplied by the Israelites.
God's dwelling place among manwas about to be built and he
invited the people of Israel tobe a part of that work.
I want to take some time andjust hone in on verse 5, because
(10:55):
there are a lot of great thingsto take away from this simple
scripture.
It reads take a sacred offeringfor the Lord.
Let those with generous heartspresent the following gifts to
the Lord.
Now I see a few things in thisverse worth pointing out.
Number one the whole communityof Israel is invited to be
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involved in the work of thetabernacle.
No one was excluded fromsupplying things to build God's
house.
They were all invited topartake in the blessing of
giving to God.
This reminds me of God'sinvitation in the Garden of Eden
for man to walk alongside himand work in his garden.
(11:38):
There is a beautiful unity bornthrough this invitation.
Everyone worked together toachieve the goal of building the
sacred space for God.
The community would all be seenas equals in this work, even
though Israel had sinned andscrewed up many times before
this moment.
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They've complained and doubtedGod every step of the way.
They built a golden calf andworshipped it, yet God, because
of his covenant promises toAbraham, his great mercy and his
undying love, still invitedIsrael to be a part of building
his house.
God's heart for partnership isamazing and it can soothe even
(12:24):
the most condemned hearts amongus.
If you feel unworthy to helpbuild the house of God, to call
yourself a servant of the king,to be involved in building the
kingdom of God.
No, your worth does not rest onyour ability to perform
perfectly, but it rests onChrist's completed work on the
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cross that removes all thestains of your sins.
Yesterday, today and tomorrow.
You stand as a priest beforethe Lord because of his work on
the cross.
Your shortcomings can'tovercome the grace of God.
You can't undo the work of thecross through your failures.
You are called forgiven.
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Holy, beloved saints andpriests because of Jesus.
Israel didn't earn the abilityto partake in the work of
building God's house.
They were gifted this honorbecause of the faithfulness of
God's love and his desire topartner with his called out ones
.
We are not perfect, far from it, but God delights in using weak
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and imperfect things tohighlight his greatness.
He is big enough to overcomeevery obstacle, and he makes the
biggest messes beautiful.
So rejoice, my friends.
Like Israel, we are all invitedto build God's house.
1 Corinthians 12 talks aboutspiritual gifts that are given
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to the whole body of believers.
If you've put your trust inJesus Christ, that means you too
.
You've been given something toshare with others, to build up
the body of Christ.
You have a part to play in thefamily of God.
Every single person is uniqueand valuable and invited to be a
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part of building God's kingdom.
I want to read out 2 Corinthians3, 4-6 for you again, because
it is the heart of this message.
And we have such trust throughChrist toward God.
Not that we are sufficient ofourselves to think of anything
as being from ourselves, but oursufficiency is from God, who
(14:41):
has made us sufficient asministers of the new covenant,
not of the letter, but of thespirit, for the letter kills,
but the spirit gives life.
God has paid the price.
He has called you out ofdarkness and into his glorious
light to be a part of what he isdoing.
(15:03):
Are you showing up to work andto walk in the garden with God?
To work and to walk in thegarden with God?
The second thing that I see inExodus 35, 5 is that the
offerings that Israel brings tobuild God's house are not to be
given for the sake of Moses, orto prove the status of the giver
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, or to be seen by other people.
It says that these gifts wereoffered to the Lord and given
for him alone.
This slight detail makes allthe difference in the world and
it speaks volumes about ourheart intentions.
Israel was told that theirofferings were being brought to
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the Lord and for the Lord's usealone.
If we could apply this simplementality to our areas of
service, our lives could reallybe transformed.
Personally, I know that I needto check my heart motivation on
a daily basis Not that I alwaysdo, but I know I need to.
I find that I can easily slipinto just ticking boxes in my
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mind and I don't understand whyI'm really even doing things
sometimes, and often the realreason is quite shameful.
I like to be thought of well byothers.
I want to be loved andrespected and noticed and
thought of.
I often want to prove to myselfthat I'm worth the price that
Jesus paid for me or I need tofeel needed or important.
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When we offer to help at church,are we doing it because we feel
guilty or pressured?
When you watch your neighbor'skids or you help someone move
into a new house, are you doingit to be seen by others or
fulfill some unwrittenrequirement?
When you bring a meal to a newfamily on the block or put in
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extra hours at work to completea job?
Are you doing it to makeyourself feel useful or more
important when you drive yourkids to soccer practice or go to
prayer meeting in the eveningwhen you're tired, is it to
prove something to yourself?
When you give financially or ofyour time, who are you looking
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to please?
What is your heart motivation?
Do you know who ticked every boxand never missed a Sabbath or
feast day, always gave to thepoor and read the scriptures
more than anyone?
The Pharisees.
They literally tithed fromtheir herb garden and put in
hours of observance andcommunity outreach, but their
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hearts were corrupt,self-serving.
They were prideful and empty,puffed up and vain.
Our heart's intent is essentialto examine and examine often.
These are the people that Jesusdespised the most and spoke out
against, even though they wereticking every box and looked
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like they were faithfulfollowers on the outside.
This is the crux of the Sermonon the Mount, which is the
longest recorded sermon that wehave of our Lord.
He wanted to show everyone thatfollowing the rules really
meant nothing if the inner manwas corrupt.
He showed that without thetouch and the power of God,
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man's absolute best effortswould never satisfy God's
requirements.
So back to our text.
In Exodus, god only wanteditems donated to the work of his
house that were given for hissake alone and not for a lesser
reason.
Are you giving of yourself andyour time to please an audience
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of one?
Are we solely motivated by ourlove for God?
Do we serve and bring our giftsstraight to Jesus for his glory
alone?
I think this is one of ourbiggest challenges in walking
with God.
Because God, help us.
Our hearts are deceitful andwicked and it's our job to be
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constantly turning our lives andour hearts over to Jesus and
letting him do his work ofconviction.
He's always aiming to conformus more and more into his image.
A prayer of David from Psalm 139, verses 23 and 24, is very
helpful for sifting motives.
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It says search me, oh God, andknow my heart, try me and know
my anxieties and see if there'sany wicked way in me and lead me
in the way everlasting.
I love the New LivingTranslation of it.
It says this search me, oh God,and know my heart, test me and
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know my anxious thoughts, pointout anything in me that offends
you and lead me along the pathof everlasting life.
We need the Holy Spirit toconsistently do the work of
pointing out what is offensiveto God and our service for him.
We need to do the work of Godin the way that he has
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prescribed it to be done.
We need to live and move andbreathe for an audience of one.
Now, I know that this is noteasy.
Many of us perform serviceevery day, especially those of
us that are parents, because weare constantly pouring out to
our kids, and I think that'swhere things can get a bit
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confusing, because you havethese instincts as parents to
care for your kids.
But it is also exhausting andwe often do it out of duty.
But how different would it beif we could see our service to
our children as service to Godand we woke up and made them
breakfast and got them to school, or cleaned snotty noses in the
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middle of the night and tiedshoes for the thousandth time
and played the same game andread the same book over and over
again, not just because we loveour children, but because we
love our God.
And I'm telling you, when Iserve my kids to the glory of
God, I last so much longer as aparent, I'm a better mother, I
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have more patience, because it'snot about this kid who doesn't
even realize what they'regetting.
Most of the time, right, theydon't see it, but God does, and
he has called me to serve mykids.
So I think this is one of theareas that I apply this to
pretty directly, because God hasgiven me four amazing kids that
I am called to be their mama.
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But if I serve them for theirown sake I will burn out, I will
be exhausted, I will befrustrated.
But if I can serve them,because I know that Jesus has
called me to do it and I'mreally serving him, his children
, that I can do over and overagain without thanks because it
is for him.
(21:54):
So let's try and take thismindset and apply it to all the
areas of service that God hasgiven us.
The third thing that I see inour text today is that the items
that were donated to build thetabernacle were to be given in a
spirit of generosity.
I'll read our verse again toremind you.
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Exodus 35, 5 says thetabernacle would only contain
items that were sourced from anoverflowing and willing heart.
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There was absolutely nocompulsion to give to the work
of building God's house, theHebrew word used in verse 5.
That is translated as generousor willing.
In some translations is alsoused to describe a prince or a
noble.
This word gives the idea thatthe items that were given were
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from a noble or princely heart,a magnanimous heart that was
free and willing and not coercedor pressured at all.
It was a gift that could not bedemanded or forced, but was
offered with a ready, generous,willing spirit.
It's amazing to see that God hadequipped his people with all
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that was required for the workof the tabernacle before it was
even needed.
If you'll remember, back whenthe Israelites were being freed
from slavery in Egypt, god toldthem to ask their Egyptian
neighbors for treasures as theywere leaving.
Exodus 12, 36 tells us.
And the Lord gave the peoplesuch favor in the sight of the
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Egyptians that they grantedtheir request.
In this way they plundered theEgyptians.
The Lord had made the Egyptiansfavorably disposed toward the
people and they gave them whatthey asked for.
So they plundered the Egyptians.
So it was the Egyptians thatsupplied the Israelites with the
items that they are nowdonating, in this section of
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scripture, to the work of theirtabernacle.
This just goes to show us thatGod knows what he's doing.
He is not broke.
He does not need to beg ormanipulate people into giving.
If you ever encounterChristians that act as though
the work of the ministry willfall apart unless you give now,
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please know that this is not areflection of God's heart, but
evidence of a spirit of fear orgreed.
The true work of God issustained by his spirit, because
God is not in need of anything.
He is the God that fed Elijahwith ravens, he miraculously
extended the widow's oil, hepays taxes from the mouth of a
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fish, he multiplies loaves andfish, he owns the cattle on a
thousand hills, and his truework will continue, with or
without us.
He is sovereign and he does notneed the works of man to
accomplish his goals.
God invites us to be a part ofwhat he's doing.
He welcomes us into fellowshipand service with him, through
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him and for him.
But the reason we serve and thereason we give is because our
hearts overflow with love andgratitude and, yes, obedience to
God as well.
But that obedience is aGod-facing one.
God is our master and he tellsus to pick up our cross and
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follow him.
We obey him because he is God,but he never wants it to be a
cold-hearted obedience that isbased in a pharisaical heart.
It's worth taking a look at theareas of service or giving, and
asking God to reveal our deepestmotivations behind them.
Are you overflowing with joywhen you give to the work of the
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Lord?
2 Corinthians 9 7 says you musteach decide in your heart how
much to give, and don't givereluctantly or in response to
pressure, for God loves a personwho gives cheerfully.
I love the Greek word forcheerful in this verse.
It's the root word forhilarious.
(26:21):
God loves a hilarious giver.
God wants us to be smiling andjoyful when we give of our money
or our time and our efforts.
He is worthy to be served inthis manner.
And before we wrap up, I want toread the section in Exodus that
tells us about Israel'sresponse in giving for the work
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of the tabernacle.
Exodus 35, 20 through 29 readsso the whole community of Israel
left Moses and returned totheir tents.
All whose hearts were stirredand whose spirits were moved
came and brought their sacredofferings to the Lord.
They brought all the materialsneeded for the tabernacle, for
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the performance of its ritualsand for the sacred garments.
Both men and women came.
All whose hearts were willing,they brought to the Lord their
offerings of gold brooches,earrings, rings from their
fingers and necklaces.
They presented gold objects ofevery kind as a special offering
to the Lord.
(27:29):
All those who owned thefollowing items willingly
brought them Blue, purple andscarlet thread, fine linen and
goat hair for cloth and tannedrimskins and fine goatskin
leather.
And all who had silver andbronze objects gave them as a
sacred offering to the Lord.
And those who had acacia woodbrought it for the use in the
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project.
All the women who were skilledin sewing and spinning prepared
blue, purple and scarlet threadand fine linen cloth.
All the women who were willingused their skills to spin the
goat hair into yarn.
The leaders brought onyx stonesand the special gemstones to be
set in the ephod and thepriest's chest piece.
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They also brought spices andolive oil for the light, the
anointing oil and the fragrantincense.
So the people of Israel, everyman and woman who was eager to
help in the work the Lord hadgiven them through Moses,
brought their gifts and gavethem freely to the Lord.
Did you catch how often theword all was used?
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God moved in the hearts ofeveryone who was gifted in
various areas to be a part ofthe work.
And in the next chapter down,we're told that Moses had to
tell the people to stop bringingitems because they already had
more than enough for the project.
The people of God rallyingtogether to complete a divine
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task is one of the mostbeautiful things to witness.
This is how the church is tofunction.
God designed us to work as ateam.
You are a valuable member ofthat team, even if you don't
know what your role is yet.
Ephesians 4.16 says he makesthe whole body fit together
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perfectly.
As each part does its ownspecial work, it helps the other
parts grow so that the wholebody is healthy and growing and
full of love.
That is how God designed us towork together.
So if you don't know what yourrole is yet, press into prayer
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and ask God what he's gifted youto do, and ask your friends and
family members what they see inyou, because often the people
that are closest to us can seethings that we judge too harshly
in ourselves.
If you are already serving,this is a good time to do a
heart check.
Are you serving to please God?
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Are you working and serving forsome lesser reason?
Are you serving from a willingheart that is overflowing with
generosity and joy.
Was there some compulsionsomewhere?
Are we looking to please or toimpress man or God?
These are all great questionsthat we need to ask ourselves
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over and over again, becauseoften we start out like the
Israelites giving freely andjoyously, but somewhere along
the way we start to get jaded.
We get impatient or prideful,unkind and judgmental,
self-righteous or burned outbecause our hearts have gone
astray.
It's really easy to forget ourwhy and for our eyes to slip
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from looking at Jesus.
This is why the word tells usto fix our eyes on Jesus, who is
the author and the finisher ofour faith.
We need to be working for thataudience of one, just for him.
We need to keep ourselvesmotivated and centered by
remembering that Jesus camebefore us and he will never
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leave us or forsake us.
He is the finisher of our faith.
He is the one that bringsthings to completion.
Faith, he is the one thatbrings things to completion.
Philippians 1.6 tells us he whobegan a good work in you will
complete it until the day ofChrist Jesus.
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That is a promise that you canbelieve in.
I'm going to leave you with theencouragements of the Apostle
Peter from 1 Peter 4.10-11.
God has given each of you agift from his great variety of
spiritual gifts, so use themwell to serve one another.
Do you have the gift ofspeaking, then speak as though
God himself were speakingthrough you.
(31:52):
Do you have the gift of helpingothers, do it with all the
strength and energy that Godsupplies, then everything you do
will bring glory to God throughJesus Christ.
All glory and power to himforever and ever.
Amen.
Thank you.
Kia ora, and welcome to Whispers of Grace, a place for
women to be encouraged by God'sHoly Word.
I'm your host, julie Colbeth,and I am overjoyed to dig into
the Bible with you today.
Kia ora, friends, and welcomeback to Whispers of Grace.
(00:40):
I am so happy to have you hereas we continue our walk through
the life of Moses.
Do you ever have those days orlong nights where you're
wondering what your life isreally for and questioning if
you're spending your time on theright things?
I've had long seasons of beingin between things that felt
(01:02):
really, really long and I feltabsolutely useless.
I constantly asked the Lordwhat am I for?
I still ask that question a lot.
Understanding your calling andpurpose is so essential to
living a confident andfulfilling life, and I'm just so
excited to get into all of thiswith you guys today.
(01:23):
And I'm just so excited to getinto all of this with you guys
today.
God has placed us in abeautiful little bundle of
examples to examine in Exodus,to help us answer these
questions and do some reallydeep soul-searching.
So this is the first episode ina mini-series where we will be
looking at a few things theIsraelites donating items to
build the tabernacle, theartisans that crafted God's
(01:46):
house.
We're going to read about theelders that were called to
support Moses and dive intoestablishing the priesthood, and
then, finally, we're going toreflect on the mistakes of Nadab
and Abihu that offered profanefire before the Lord.
The three episodes will becalled Mot method and mistakes.
(02:07):
Today we're going to be gettinginto motivation, which is the
perfect place to start.
We all need to examine why wechoose to serve God and others,
so let's open up our hearts andour hands and hear what God
would say to us today.
So where we are in the book ofExodus, chapter 35, and the life
(02:28):
of Moses.
Israel is rapidly changing as anation.
If you remember for a minutetheir origins, the nation of
Israel started out with a mannamed Abraham that God spoke to
and called out of his homeland.
Abraham's calling and covenantwith God passed on to his son,
isaac, and then his grandson,jacob, whose name God changed to
(02:52):
Israel.
And it's from this man and hiswives, leah and Rachel, that the
12 tribes of Israel were born.
Those boys betrayed theirbrother Joseph by selling him
into slavery.
But remember, god had plansthat they didn't understand and
he used that betrayal to bringJoseph to power in Egypt.
(03:12):
Now, eventually, all of thosebrothers and their families
moved down to Egypt following amassive famine, and eventually
they were enslaved after theylost their connection to Pharaoh
.
So 400 years passed as Israelmultiplied in the midst of this
pagan nation.
And that is when Moses entersthe scene.
(03:33):
God sends his enslaved people,a leader, to usher them out of
Egypt and into the promised land, but now at the foot of Mount
Sinai.
These recently freed slavesthat have the call and the
promises of God in their livesare being shaped into a nation.
It's here that they're given amore specific identity and
(03:57):
culture and a rhythm of lifethrough Sabbath and festival
observances, commandments andrules to govern life.
The sacrificial system is setup, the priesthood is
established and the tabernacleis erected.
There's so much happening hereat the base of Mount Sinai,
(04:17):
roughly three months freed fromslavery, and this massive family
of millions is shaped and theterms of the covenant with God
are expanded.
So the rest of the book ofExodus and the books of
Leviticus and Numbers outlineall the details of establishing
this nation, and then all thosedetails are revisited again in
(04:39):
the book of Deuteronomy, whichis spoken by Moses to a new
generation of Israelites.
It was his last act as Israel'sleader to narrate Israel's
story back to them and remindthem of the covenant and the
laws that God had passed to them.
So, for our purposes, I'm goingto continue to follow the life
(05:00):
of Moses, but I'm going to weavein different themes as I see
them emerge, because it's spreadover so many of these books.
So as I was looking through thenext huge pieces of scripture
that follow the Mount Sinaiaccounts, I saw a theme of
purpose and service, and at theend of my last episode I shared
(05:20):
one of my favorite scriptures 2Corinthians 3, 4-6, and it's in
the same heart of the scripturethat I want to continue in today
.
It says this and we have suchtrust through Christ, toward God
, not that we are sufficient ofourselves to think of anything
as being from ourselves, but oursufficiency is from God, who
(05:43):
has made us sufficient asministers of the new covenant,
not of the letter but of thespirit, for the letter kills but
the spirit gives life.
Did you know that if you are ablood-bought believer of Jesus
Christ, then you are called andgifted into service for the Lord
(06:05):
?
Because maybe you hear thewords ministry or service thrown
around and you don't feel likethose terms apply to you at all.
They apply to a pastor or amissionary or an elder, a priest
, a bishop or a deacon at yourchurch, but you don't associate
those terms with yourself andyou don't really think of
yourself in service to the Lord.
(06:25):
Or maybe you don't feel worthyto be serving God because you
don't think your skills fit thedescription of service to the
Lord.
Today, as we dive into a fewdifferent texts, let's just have
open hearts to hear what Godwould say to us.
It's interesting to note that inGod's perfect world, all the
(06:48):
way back in Genesis, god createda beautiful garden and then he
created man to live and work inthat garden with him.
Exodus 2.15 says Then the LordGod, took the man and put him in
the garden of Eden to tend andto keep it.
Since the beginning, godcreated and man was put to work
(07:11):
caring for the earth.
While this God-ordained work orservice was happening, they
also enjoyed fellowship with God.
Scripture tells us that theywalked in the garden together,
no doubt enjoying and discussingall that was around them.
I can just imagine Adam tellingGod about the names that he
chose for the animals and hisplans for this amazing garden,
(07:35):
talking about the taste of thefruit that was coming off of
these trees.
I'm sure their fellowship wasbeautiful.
But our reality today is vastlydifferent from this scene,
because sin has corrupted theperfection that God created in
Eden, but the simple concept ofGod creating and humans working
(07:55):
within that plan.
It still endures because God isstill the giver of good gifts,
he still fellowships with us.
Us and we are still called toserve in his world.
Now I'm going to share a versewith you that I really want us
to try to tune into, because itreally sets each of us in a
(08:38):
place to be a part of what Godis doing here on the earth.
1 Peter 4, 10-11 tells us Doyou have the gift of helping
others?
Do it with all the strength andenergy that God supplies.
Then everything you do willbring glory to God through Jesus
Christ.
All glory and power to Himforever and ever.
(09:00):
Amen.
Do you hear this message?
God has equipped you and calledyou to be an active part of his
plan.
It's not just for your pastoror missionaries.
He has gifted you for service.
These verses in Peter heartilytell us to use our gifts to
serve one another and to do itwith all of the strength and
(09:23):
energy that God supplies.
You are called to minister.
As we get into Exodus today, Iwant you to keep these
encouragements in mind.
The first piece of our texttoday is in Exodus 35, verses 4
through 9.
We're going to see that Godwanted to work with the people
(09:44):
of Israel to build his house,the tabernacle, it says.
Then Moses said to the wholecommunity of Israel this is what
the Lord has commanded.
Take a sacred offering for theLord.
Let those with generous heartspresent the following gifts to
the Lord Gold, silver and bronze, blue, purple and scarlet
(10:08):
thread, fine linen and goat hairfor cloth, tanned ram skins and
fine goat skin, leather, acaciawood, olive oil for the lamps,
spices for the anointing oil andthe fragrant incense, onyx
stones and other gemstones to beset in the ephod and the
priest's chest piece.
So Moses made a proclamationthat the Lord's place of worship
(10:33):
was going to be built, just asGod had instructed Moses on
Mount Sinai, and the materialsto assemble God's house were to
be supplied by the Israelites.
God's dwelling place among manwas about to be built and he
invited the people of Israel tobe a part of that work.
I want to take some time andjust hone in on verse 5, because
(10:55):
there are a lot of great thingsto take away from this simple
scripture.
It reads take a sacred offeringfor the Lord.
Let those with generous heartspresent the following gifts to
the Lord.
Now I see a few things in thisverse worth pointing out.
Number one the whole communityof Israel is invited to be
(11:18):
involved in the work of thetabernacle.
No one was excluded fromsupplying things to build God's
house.
They were all invited topartake in the blessing of
giving to God.
This reminds me of God'sinvitation in the Garden of Eden
for man to walk alongside himand work in his garden.
(11:38):
There is a beautiful unity bornthrough this invitation.
Everyone worked together toachieve the goal of building the
sacred space for God.
The community would all be seenas equals in this work, even
though Israel had sinned andscrewed up many times before
this moment.
(11:58):
They've complained and doubtedGod every step of the way.
They built a golden calf andworshipped it, yet God, because
of his covenant promises toAbraham, his great mercy and his
undying love, still invitedIsrael to be a part of building
his house.
God's heart for partnership isamazing and it can soothe even
(12:24):
the most condemned hearts amongus.
If you feel unworthy to helpbuild the house of God, to call
yourself a servant of the king,to be involved in building the
kingdom of God.
No, your worth does not rest onyour ability to perform
perfectly, but it rests onChrist's completed work on the
(12:46):
cross that removes all thestains of your sins.
Yesterday, today and tomorrow.
You stand as a priest beforethe Lord because of his work on
the cross.
Your shortcomings can'tovercome the grace of God.
You can't undo the work of thecross through your failures.
You are called forgiven.
(13:08):
Holy, beloved saints andpriests because of Jesus.
Israel didn't earn the abilityto partake in the work of
building God's house.
They were gifted this honorbecause of the faithfulness of
God's love and his desire topartner with his called out ones
.
We are not perfect, far from it, but God delights in using weak
(13:35):
and imperfect things tohighlight his greatness.
He is big enough to overcomeevery obstacle, and he makes the
biggest messes beautiful.
So rejoice, my friends.
Like Israel, we are all invitedto build God's house.
1 Corinthians 12 talks aboutspiritual gifts that are given
(13:57):
to the whole body of believers.
If you've put your trust inJesus Christ, that means you too
.
You've been given something toshare with others, to build up
the body of Christ.
You have a part to play in thefamily of God.
Every single person is uniqueand valuable and invited to be a
(14:18):
part of building God's kingdom.
I want to read out 2 Corinthians3, 4-6 for you again, because
it is the heart of this message.
And we have such trust throughChrist toward God.
Not that we are sufficient ofourselves to think of anything
as being from ourselves, but oursufficiency is from God, who
(14:41):
has made us sufficient asministers of the new covenant,
not of the letter, but of thespirit, for the letter kills,
but the spirit gives life.
God has paid the price.
He has called you out ofdarkness and into his glorious
light to be a part of what he isdoing.
(15:03):
Are you showing up to work andto walk in the garden with God?
To work and to walk in thegarden with God?
The second thing that I see inExodus 35, 5 is that the
offerings that Israel brings tobuild God's house are not to be
given for the sake of Moses, orto prove the status of the giver
(15:26):
, or to be seen by other people.
It says that these gifts wereoffered to the Lord and given
for him alone.
This slight detail makes allthe difference in the world and
it speaks volumes about ourheart intentions.
Israel was told that theirofferings were being brought to
(15:48):
the Lord and for the Lord's usealone.
If we could apply this simplementality to our areas of
service, our lives could reallybe transformed.
Personally, I know that I needto check my heart motivation on
a daily basis Not that I alwaysdo, but I know I need to.
I find that I can easily slipinto just ticking boxes in my
(16:11):
mind and I don't understand whyI'm really even doing things
sometimes, and often the realreason is quite shameful.
I like to be thought of well byothers.
I want to be loved andrespected and noticed and
thought of.
I often want to prove to myselfthat I'm worth the price that
Jesus paid for me or I need tofeel needed or important.
(16:37):
When we offer to help at church,are we doing it because we feel
guilty or pressured?
When you watch your neighbor'skids or you help someone move
into a new house, are you doingit to be seen by others or
fulfill some unwrittenrequirement?
When you bring a meal to a newfamily on the block or put in
(16:58):
extra hours at work to completea job?
Are you doing it to makeyourself feel useful or more
important when you drive yourkids to soccer practice or go to
prayer meeting in the eveningwhen you're tired, is it to
prove something to yourself?
When you give financially or ofyour time, who are you looking
(17:18):
to please?
What is your heart motivation?
Do you know who ticked every boxand never missed a Sabbath or
feast day, always gave to thepoor and read the scriptures
more than anyone?
The Pharisees.
They literally tithed fromtheir herb garden and put in
hours of observance andcommunity outreach, but their
(17:39):
hearts were corrupt,self-serving.
They were prideful and empty,puffed up and vain.
Our heart's intent is essentialto examine and examine often.
These are the people that Jesusdespised the most and spoke out
against, even though they wereticking every box and looked
(18:01):
like they were faithfulfollowers on the outside.
This is the crux of the Sermonon the Mount, which is the
longest recorded sermon that wehave of our Lord.
He wanted to show everyone thatfollowing the rules really
meant nothing if the inner manwas corrupt.
He showed that without thetouch and the power of God,
(18:22):
man's absolute best effortswould never satisfy God's
requirements.
So back to our text.
In Exodus, god only wanteditems donated to the work of his
house that were given for hissake alone and not for a lesser
reason.
Are you giving of yourself andyour time to please an audience
(18:46):
of one?
Are we solely motivated by ourlove for God?
Do we serve and bring our giftsstraight to Jesus for his glory
alone?
I think this is one of ourbiggest challenges in walking
with God.
Because God, help us.
Our hearts are deceitful andwicked and it's our job to be
(19:06):
constantly turning our lives andour hearts over to Jesus and
letting him do his work ofconviction.
He's always aiming to conformus more and more into his image.
A prayer of David from Psalm 139, verses 23 and 24, is very
helpful for sifting motives.
(19:27):
It says search me, oh God, andknow my heart, try me and know
my anxieties and see if there'sany wicked way in me and lead me
in the way everlasting.
I love the New LivingTranslation of it.
It says this search me, oh God,and know my heart, test me and
(19:49):
know my anxious thoughts, pointout anything in me that offends
you and lead me along the pathof everlasting life.
We need the Holy Spirit toconsistently do the work of
pointing out what is offensiveto God and our service for him.
We need to do the work of Godin the way that he has
(20:10):
prescribed it to be done.
We need to live and move andbreathe for an audience of one.
Now, I know that this is noteasy.
Many of us perform serviceevery day, especially those of
us that are parents, because weare constantly pouring out to
our kids, and I think that'swhere things can get a bit
(20:32):
confusing, because you havethese instincts as parents to
care for your kids.
But it is also exhausting andwe often do it out of duty.
But how different would it beif we could see our service to
our children as service to Godand we woke up and made them
breakfast and got them to school, or cleaned snotty noses in the
(20:53):
middle of the night and tiedshoes for the thousandth time
and played the same game andread the same book over and over
again, not just because we loveour children, but because we
love our God.
And I'm telling you, when Iserve my kids to the glory of
God, I last so much longer as aparent, I'm a better mother, I
(21:13):
have more patience, because it'snot about this kid who doesn't
even realize what they'regetting.
Most of the time, right, theydon't see it, but God does, and
he has called me to serve mykids.
So I think this is one of theareas that I apply this to
pretty directly, because God hasgiven me four amazing kids that
I am called to be their mama.
(21:33):
But if I serve them for theirown sake I will burn out, I will
be exhausted, I will befrustrated.
But if I can serve them,because I know that Jesus has
called me to do it and I'mreally serving him, his children
, that I can do over and overagain without thanks because it
is for him.
(21:54):
So let's try and take thismindset and apply it to all the
areas of service that God hasgiven us.
The third thing that I see inour text today is that the items
that were donated to build thetabernacle were to be given in a
spirit of generosity.
I'll read our verse again toremind you.
(22:16):
Exodus 35, 5 says thetabernacle would only contain
items that were sourced from anoverflowing and willing heart.
(22:36):
There was absolutely nocompulsion to give to the work
of building God's house, theHebrew word used in verse 5.
That is translated as generousor willing.
In some translations is alsoused to describe a prince or a
noble.
This word gives the idea thatthe items that were given were
(22:58):
from a noble or princely heart,a magnanimous heart that was
free and willing and not coercedor pressured at all.
It was a gift that could not bedemanded or forced, but was
offered with a ready, generous,willing spirit.
It's amazing to see that God hadequipped his people with all
(23:21):
that was required for the workof the tabernacle before it was
even needed.
If you'll remember, back whenthe Israelites were being freed
from slavery in Egypt, god toldthem to ask their Egyptian
neighbors for treasures as theywere leaving.
Exodus 12, 36 tells us.
And the Lord gave the peoplesuch favor in the sight of the
(23:41):
Egyptians that they grantedtheir request.
In this way they plundered theEgyptians.
The Lord had made the Egyptiansfavorably disposed toward the
people and they gave them whatthey asked for.
So they plundered the Egyptians.
So it was the Egyptians thatsupplied the Israelites with the
items that they are nowdonating, in this section of
(24:03):
scripture, to the work of theirtabernacle.
This just goes to show us thatGod knows what he's doing.
He is not broke.
He does not need to beg ormanipulate people into giving.
If you ever encounterChristians that act as though
the work of the ministry willfall apart unless you give now,
(24:26):
please know that this is not areflection of God's heart, but
evidence of a spirit of fear orgreed.
The true work of God issustained by his spirit, because
God is not in need of anything.
He is the God that fed Elijahwith ravens, he miraculously
extended the widow's oil, hepays taxes from the mouth of a
(24:49):
fish, he multiplies loaves andfish, he owns the cattle on a
thousand hills, and his truework will continue, with or
without us.
He is sovereign and he does notneed the works of man to
accomplish his goals.
God invites us to be a part ofwhat he's doing.
He welcomes us into fellowshipand service with him, through
(25:15):
him and for him.
But the reason we serve and thereason we give is because our
hearts overflow with love andgratitude and, yes, obedience to
God as well.
But that obedience is aGod-facing one.
God is our master and he tellsus to pick up our cross and
(25:35):
follow him.
We obey him because he is God,but he never wants it to be a
cold-hearted obedience that isbased in a pharisaical heart.
It's worth taking a look at theareas of service or giving, and
asking God to reveal our deepestmotivations behind them.
Are you overflowing with joywhen you give to the work of the
(26:00):
Lord?
2 Corinthians 9 7 says you musteach decide in your heart how
much to give, and don't givereluctantly or in response to
pressure, for God loves a personwho gives cheerfully.
I love the Greek word forcheerful in this verse.
It's the root word forhilarious.
(26:21):
God loves a hilarious giver.
God wants us to be smiling andjoyful when we give of our money
or our time and our efforts.
He is worthy to be served inthis manner.
And before we wrap up, I want toread the section in Exodus that
tells us about Israel'sresponse in giving for the work
(26:44):
of the tabernacle.
Exodus 35, 20 through 29 readsso the whole community of Israel
left Moses and returned totheir tents.
All whose hearts were stirredand whose spirits were moved
came and brought their sacredofferings to the Lord.
They brought all the materialsneeded for the tabernacle, for
(27:07):
the performance of its ritualsand for the sacred garments.
Both men and women came.
All whose hearts were willing,they brought to the Lord their
offerings of gold brooches,earrings, rings from their
fingers and necklaces.
They presented gold objects ofevery kind as a special offering
to the Lord.
(27:29):
All those who owned thefollowing items willingly
brought them Blue, purple andscarlet thread, fine linen and
goat hair for cloth and tannedrimskins and fine goatskin
leather.
And all who had silver andbronze objects gave them as a
sacred offering to the Lord.
And those who had acacia woodbrought it for the use in the
(27:50):
project.
All the women who were skilledin sewing and spinning prepared
blue, purple and scarlet threadand fine linen cloth.
All the women who were willingused their skills to spin the
goat hair into yarn.
The leaders brought onyx stonesand the special gemstones to be
set in the ephod and thepriest's chest piece.
(28:11):
They also brought spices andolive oil for the light, the
anointing oil and the fragrantincense.
So the people of Israel, everyman and woman who was eager to
help in the work the Lord hadgiven them through Moses,
brought their gifts and gavethem freely to the Lord.
Did you catch how often theword all was used?
(28:31):
God moved in the hearts ofeveryone who was gifted in
various areas to be a part ofthe work.
And in the next chapter down,we're told that Moses had to
tell the people to stop bringingitems because they already had
more than enough for the project.
The people of God rallyingtogether to complete a divine
(28:53):
task is one of the mostbeautiful things to witness.
This is how the church is tofunction.
God designed us to work as ateam.
You are a valuable member ofthat team, even if you don't
know what your role is yet.
Ephesians 4.16 says he makesthe whole body fit together
(29:16):
perfectly.
As each part does its ownspecial work, it helps the other
parts grow so that the wholebody is healthy and growing and
full of love.
That is how God designed us towork together.
So if you don't know what yourrole is yet, press into prayer
(29:37):
and ask God what he's gifted youto do, and ask your friends and
family members what they see inyou, because often the people
that are closest to us can seethings that we judge too harshly
in ourselves.
If you are already serving,this is a good time to do a
heart check.
Are you serving to please God?
(29:58):
Are you working and serving forsome lesser reason?
Are you serving from a willingheart that is overflowing with
generosity and joy.
Was there some compulsionsomewhere?
Are we looking to please or toimpress man or God?
These are all great questionsthat we need to ask ourselves
(30:18):
over and over again, becauseoften we start out like the
Israelites giving freely andjoyously, but somewhere along
the way we start to get jaded.
We get impatient or prideful,unkind and judgmental,
self-righteous or burned outbecause our hearts have gone
astray.
It's really easy to forget ourwhy and for our eyes to slip
(30:45):
from looking at Jesus.
This is why the word tells usto fix our eyes on Jesus, who is
the author and the finisher ofour faith.
We need to be working for thataudience of one, just for him.
We need to keep ourselvesmotivated and centered by
remembering that Jesus camebefore us and he will never
(31:09):
leave us or forsake us.
He is the finisher of our faith.
He is the one that bringsthings to completion.
Faith, he is the one thatbrings things to completion.
Philippians 1.6 tells us he whobegan a good work in you will
complete it until the day ofChrist Jesus.
(31:30):
That is a promise that you canbelieve in.
I'm going to leave you with theencouragements of the Apostle
Peter from 1 Peter 4.10-11.
God has given each of you agift from his great variety of
spiritual gifts, so use themwell to serve one another.
Do you have the gift ofspeaking, then speak as though
God himself were speakingthrough you.
(31:52):
Do you have the gift of helpingothers, do it with all the
strength and energy that Godsupplies, then everything you do
will bring glory to God throughJesus Christ.
All glory and power to himforever and ever.
Amen.
Thank you.
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