As the LORD Commanded Moses

The title phrase of this blog, "As the LORD Commanded Moses", appears almost 40 times from Leviticus to Joshua. It indicates how obedient Moses was in performing what God ordered him to do. The requirements were not easy. Many times during the construction of the Tabernacle there were so many minute details that need to be executed. And each time we read that Moses did them exactly, "as the LORD commanded" him to.

When you meditate on this seemingly monotonous repetition of this detail it brings to mind an important fact, Moses was an incredibly obedient and detailed person. He heard the LORD's instructions and followed them to the letter every time. Some were nauseating. He was to separate intestines, liver, kidneys from certain sacrifices. Wash these parts with water and then burn them completely. What a gross mess. Why not just burn them without washing them? Because, God had commanded him to do it that way. Period.

At the beginning of the Israelites time at the foot of Mount Sinai, I always find it staggering how many times God sends Moses from the top of the mountain to the foot with a seemingly banil instructions. Count the ups and downs of that dialogue and you will need a respirator. And Moses was in his 80s! However, Moses did as the LORD commanded every time.

This makes what happens at the Rock of Meribah a difficult pill to swallow. Moses was commanded by God to "speak to the rock" and that water would come out. However, in one of his only fits of anger, he hits the rock twice with his staff. The water still came out but Moses was thus denied entry into the Promised Land. His attention to detail failed him at the moment and it cost him dearly. It seems unfair to put it bluntly. But there was a purpose that God couldn't let this detail slip unnoticed.

The event is in Numbers 20. God's answer is in verse 12, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” For all of his obedience and suffering in dealing with the Israelites for 40 years in the desert, he was still taken to task because he didn't trust God's word here. He obeyed in so many details but he didn't honor God's holiness.

Back to the Tabernacle construction and Moses' attention to each detail. The second reason detail was so important is stated by the author to the Hebrews in 8:5, 5 They (the priests) serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” Moses Tabernacle was a copy of the heavenly one where Christ serves as the Ultimate High Priest right now.

The question we need to reflect on now is, "How detailed are we when it comes to our obedience to Jesus' commands? Jesus tied our obedience directly to our level of love for him when he stated simply, If ye love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15). How detailed are you?

Daughter and dog...

About six months ago we discovered that Ann was pregnant and were very excited for she and Jackson. We will have babies on this side and that of the Atlantic. We weren't prepared for that news and we we were even less prepared for the news that our little dog is pregnant. To date we have spent more on the dog than on Annie (don't tell her... Ann that is). Ann has yet to discover whether her baby is a boy or girl. Both ultrasound images were inconclusive. Though I did some further investigation of my own and was startled with what I found. to me it looks as if the baby is definitely a boy and has some resemblance from both sides of the family. Take a look for yourself and let me know what you think.

Urgent Prayer (part 2)

Does God ever give you a gut punch? He did that just a few days ago when I watched a missionary story from the other side of the world. It was short but poignant, and it punched me in the belly button and brought a few tears too. One thing that shook me was the final statement that the missionary made. He was questioning himself and said, I wonder if what I have done will make a difference. This question comes to a missionary's mind now and again as they ponder how vast God's world is and how tiny one’s work is. As I thought, and identified, with his sentiment, the Lord brought a verse to mind that I had used recently in a youth talk. It was this one in John 12:24, “ Very truly, I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ” When, in Matthew, the sower sowed his seed, it was the Word of God. Here in John, Jesus indicates that the seed is the life of the servant. Jesus talked of his comi...

Church Isn't a Place

Many times we say, I'm going to church on Sunday. What some fail to understand is that "church" isn't a building. I remember our pastor saying, "the church is an organism, not an organization." He was teaching us the Bible truth about the church. Jesus Christ is the head of the body, and the church is his body on earth. Another pastor once said, "God's hands have human fingers." This is a difficult concept for some to grasp, pun intended. However, it is important to understand that God accomplishes his work through human beings. He uses us, the church, to do his will and work. It's not that if we don't do his will that he is stymied. But he does use willing servants. To be in the church, one must be a part of the family. You cannot be in the church if you don't have the Savior. The church is not for the lost; it is for the edification of the saved. The lost can come and hear the message of salvation. But the church is made up of t...

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