Confessional Lutheran Ministerium

Psalm 76:1-12 NKJV

76 In Judah God is known;
His name is great in Israel.
² In Salem also is His tabernacle,
And His dwelling place in Zion.
³ There He broke the arrows of the bow,
The shield and sword of battle. Selah

⁴ You are more glorious and excellent
Than the mountains of prey.
⁵ The stouthearted were plundered;
They have sunk into their sleep;
And none of the mighty men have found the use of their hands.
⁶ At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
Both the chariot and horse were cast into a dead sleep.

⁷ You, Yourself, are to be feared;
And who may stand in Your presence
When once You are angry?
⁸ You caused judgment to be heard from heaven;
The earth feared and was still,
⁹ When God arose to judgment,
To deliver all the oppressed of the earth. Selah

¹⁰ Surely the wrath of man shall praise You;
With the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself.

¹¹ Make vows to the Lord your God, and pay them;
Let all who are around Him bring presents to Him who ought to be feared.
¹² He shall cut off the spirit of princes;
He is awesome to the kings of the earth.

In this, yet another psalm penned by Asaph (as was last Sunday’s), thanks is given to God that He has his dwelling, Word, and worship in Jerusalem and that He wonderfully protects his people from being overcome and devoured by the enemy. In vv. 3-5 it is clear that God Himself is the One who breaks “the arrows and the bow” and plundered the stouthearted and cast chariots and horses into “a dead sleep.”

It is the same way with the enemies of God’s people today. We have so many and great promises from our good and gracious God that He will ultimately deliver His people, if not in this life, then perfectly by taking them to the life of the world to come. Yet, when our sinful nature rears its ugly head and we allow our attention and focus to wander away from God’s Word and promises, the Evil One then licks his chops because he has us right where he wants us – focusing on ourselves, our problems, and our anxieties.  That is a manifestation of the sinful nature curving in on itself; it’s also called “navel gazing.”

Repent, dear Christian, of allowing yourself to be thrown that far off course. Cry out to God in your weakness and receive His strength. Look to Christ who paid for your sins on his cross. Know that God fights for you, even when it seems hard to defend yourself against temptation and sin. Take courage in knowing and believing that even the devil himself must flee before the Lord, for “Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world” (I John 4:4). Remember and live in your baptism and receive Christ’s gifts in the Divine Service. By these you will be sustained for the battle and comforted with Christ’s victorious resurrection.

Let us pray: O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of Your people who call upon You and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfill the same; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Exodus 32:17-35 NKJV

¹⁷ And when Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.”

¹⁸ But he said:

“It is not the noise of the shout of victory,
Nor the noise of the cry of defeat,
But the sound of singing I hear.”

¹⁹ So it was, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing. So Moses’ anger became hot, and he cast the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain. ²⁰ Then he took the calf which they had made, burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder; and he scattered it on the water and made the children of Israel drink it. ²¹ And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought so great a sin upon them?”

²² So Aaron said, “Do not let the anger of my lord become hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil. ²³ For they said to me, ‘Make us gods that shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ ²⁴ And I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them break it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I cast it into the fire, and this calf came out.”

²⁵ Now when Moses saw that the people were unrestrained (for Aaron had not restrained them, to their shame among their enemies), ²⁶ then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side—come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. ²⁷ And he said to them, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Let every man put his sword on his side, and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.’ ” ²⁸ So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day. ²⁹ Then Moses said, “Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord, that He may bestow on you a blessing this day, for every man has opposed his son and his brother.”

³⁰ Now it came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people, “You have committed a great sin. So now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” ³¹ Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, these people have committed a great sin, and have made for themselves a god of gold! ³² Yet now, if You will forgive their sin—but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.”

³³ And the Lord said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book. ³⁴ Now therefore, go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, My Angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit for punishment, I will visit punishment upon them for their sin.”

³⁵ So the Lord plagued the people because of what they did with the calf which Aaron made.

As the incident with the golden calf worship continues to play out in today’s reading, Moses himself sees the calf and the people dancing and committing idolatry. In righteous anger, Moses threw to the ground and broke the two stone tablets containing the first giving of God’s Ten Commandments. Moses then took the calf, burned it and ground it to powder, scattered it upon the water, and made the people drink it. Though it is not revealed in Scripture why Moses did this and the effect of the tainted water upon the Israelites, it may be that it was intended to set forth in a visible manner both the people’s sin and its consequences. The sin was poured, as it were into their bowels along with the water, as a possible symbolic sign that they would have to bear it. It may also have been partly to fill the people with terror and dreadful expectation of some ill effect or curse of God to come upon them, either by this drinking, or by other means. Either way, it must have been a highly unpleasant reminder of their sin.

As the scene progresses, three thousand men of the people – those who did not come to Moses’s side when asked – were slain by the sons of Levi, some of whom were the Levites’ own family. Moses then asked God to forgive their sin. But God visited a plague upon the people for their heinous trashing of His First Commandment.

God is serious about His First Commandment. We are not to violate it. But when we do – and we do in many and various ways – we are to repent, turn from our idolatry, and receive God’s forgiveness through Holy Absolution and in Holy Communion to strengthen our faith and bolster us against the sinful nature that we wrestle with daily. Only with God’s help can we life our lives to His glory and the good of those around us as a witness to God’s endless mercies to His people.

Let us pray: Gracious God, You have commanded us to have no other gods. Grant that we may fear, love, and trust in You above all things, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Exodus 32:1-16 NKJV

32 Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, the people gathered together to Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make us gods that shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”

² And Aaron said to them, “Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” ³ So all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. ⁴ And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf.

Then they said, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

⁵ So when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow is a feast to the Lord.” ⁶ Then they rose early on the next day, offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

⁷ And the Lord said to Moses, “Go, get down! For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. ⁸ They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made themselves a molded calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ ” ⁹ And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! ¹⁰ Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.”

¹¹ Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? ¹² Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people. ¹³ Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’ ” ¹⁴ So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.

¹⁵ And Moses turned and went down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the Testimony were in his hand. The tablets were written on both sides; on the one side and on the other they were written. ¹⁶ Now the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved on the tablets.

In today’s reading idolatry, impatience with God, and peer pressure rear their ugly heads. Moses has been delayed in coming down from Mount Sinai where he was being given God’s Ten Commandments and all the other stipulations by which the Israelites were to live and conduct themselves as God’s people and by which to honor and obey Him. The people harangued Aaron about Moses’ absence and Aaron, who was too easily persuaded, acted rashly and fashioned a golden calf for the people to worship, and an altar before it. Thus, we have the Old Testament equivalent of religious syncretism – the fusion of diverse religious beliefs and practices. In this case, rank idolatry mixed with a feast to the Lord. And the people were all too eager to proclaim that this golden calf was indeed their god.

God, of course, was incensed and told Moses that He would consume the people in His hot wrath. But Moses pleaded with God to turn away His wrath and to remember His promise to make Abraham’s descendants as numerous as the stars in heaven. Moses knew that if God would destroy the Israelites now, that promise would not be fulfilled. God would keep that promise anyway, for He always does, even when we don’t see how He could. Recall Abraham being asked to sacrifice his own son, the one through whom the lineage to Jesus would continue, but still believed God would continue the line anyway (Gen 22:5 – “The lad and I…will come back to you.”).

It’s not that Moses had any special influence or power with God to make Him change His plans; God certainly knew that Moses would plead with Him and He also knew exactly what He would do. But Moses’ pleading with God teaches us that we, too, must always come to God with our concerns, petitions, and prayers. Even though we do not know how or when God will work, He does, and He always invites us to come to Him and ask anything, for it is always right to ask.

Let us pray: Lord, Jesus, help me always to ask according to Your good and gracious will, and give me strength to accept it. Amen.

Exodus 31:1-15 NKJV

31 Then 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 And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, ⁴ to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, ⁵ in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship.

⁶ “And I, indeed I, have appointed with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the gifted artisans, that they may make all that I have commanded you: ⁷ the tabernacle of meeting, the ark of the Testimony and the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furniture of the tabernacle— ⁸ the table and its utensils, the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense, ⁹ the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base— ¹⁰ the garments of ministry, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, to minister as priests, ¹¹ and the anointing oil and sweet incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you they shall do.”

¹² And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹³ “Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. ¹⁴ You shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people. ¹⁵ Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.

Bezalel and Aholiab are described in the first part of today’s reading as master craftsmen endowed with the Spirit and wisdom of God who possessed a divine understanding and knowledge in all kinds of craftsmanship. Their role was crucial during the Israelites’ journey in the wilderness, as they were responsible for creating the Ark of the Covenant, the table for the showbread, the lampstand, and other sacred items. Their work reflects the importance of artistry and skill in worship and the construction of sacred spaces in ancient Israelite culture. That God specifically called and appointed these men to do His Work is an important distinction. They were, in the truest sense of the word, inspired to do their work, which was really God’s work. God had not only chosen and appointed them, but He is the One who gave them these extraordinary gifts.

We thank God today for the many artisans and craftsmen who design and build places of worship and sacred appointments to be used in the Divine Service. Even though musicians are not mentioned in today’s reading, they, too, can be gifted and inspired by God to serve in the Church.

In the latter part of the reading God instructs His people to keep the Sabbath Day, as He did in Exodus 20 in the original giving of the Ten Commandments. And we know that this means, according to Luther, that we “should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” So, it’s not so much about what day is kept as it is the hearing and receiving of God’s Word and Sacraments in the context of the Divine Service. Here is where we receive Jesus in all the ways He wants us to have Him – in His Gospel rightly preached (which basically is Christ died for your sins) and His Sacraments rightly administered for forgiveness, life, salvation, and to keep you ion the one true faith.

Let us pray: O God, you have commanded us to remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Grant that we may fear and love You so that we do not despise preaching and your Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Exodus 30:22-38 NKJV ²² Moreover the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ²³ “Also take for yourself quality spices—five hundred shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much sweet-smelling cinnamon (two hundred and fifty shekels), two hundred and fifty shekels of sweet-smelling cane, ²⁴ five hundred shekels of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hin of olive oil. ²⁵ And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil. ²⁶ With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony; ²⁷ the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; ²⁸ the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base. ²⁹ You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them must be holy. ³⁰ And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to Me as priests.

³¹ “And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. ³² It shall not be poured on man’s flesh; nor shall you make any other like it, according to its composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. ³³ Whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on an outsider, shall be cut off from his people.’ ”

³⁴ And the Lord said to Moses: “Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices; there shall be equal amounts of each. ³⁵ You shall make of these an incense, a compound according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. ³⁶ And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tabernacle of meeting where I will meet with you. It shall be most holy to you. ³⁷ But as for the incense which you shall make, you shall not make any for yourselves, according to its composition. It shall be to you holy for the Lord. ³⁸ Whoever makes any like it, to smell it, he shall be cut off from his people.”

In today’s reading God gives Moses specific instructions about the anointing oil – where it was to be used and who was and was not to use it.  This anointing oil was holy simply because God declared this kind of mixture and preparation holy and forbade for all time, on pain of death, not only the use of ointment so prepared for any ordinary anointings, but even an imitation of it. “It shall not be poured on man’s flesh.” It is not to be used for the ordinary practice of anointing the human body. This oil was to be poured upon the tabernacle of meeting, the ark of the Testimony, all the utensils and appointments on and around the altar, and upon the priests, Aaron and his sons. This anointing serves to set aside for sacred use all the things and people upon which it is poured.

The specific incense was not to be used or burnt for any other purpose than for the priests; in this case, Aaron and his sons, the first of the Old Testament priests, in essence, the model and beginning of the Office of the Holy Ministry. Only those whom God chose were to serve as His priests and ministers. If only general Christianity today would adhere to this model and teaching.

Many “Christian” denominations today have no problem allowing a woman to play pastor. This, however, directly defies God’s clear Word, specifically given through St. Paul when he wrote by inspiration of the holy Spirit these words: “And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man” (I Tim 2:12). There are many other specific biblical citations that speak to the Office of the Ministry as being only for some men. Just because someone – a woman – may be able to preach doesn’t mean it has been given to women to preach.

God’s Church today must honor and obey God in respect to the Holy Ministry, lest those who defy it come under eternal judgment and God’s people be led astray. Let us thank God and pray for His ministers, the men whom He has called and placed in His Church to preach the Gospel rightly and administer the Sacraments according to Christ’s institution.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, keep Your Church faithful to You and Your Word alone. Amen.

Exodus 30:1-21 NKJV

30 “You shall make an altar to burn incense on; you shall make it of acacia wood. ² A cubit shall be its length and a cubit its width—it shall be square—and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. ³ And you shall overlay its top, its sides all around, and its horns with pure gold; and you shall make for it a molding of gold all around. ⁴ Two gold rings you shall make for it, under the molding on both its sides. You shall place them on its two sides, and they will be holders for the poles with which to bear it. ⁵ You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. ⁶ And you shall put it before the veil that is before the ark of the Testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the Testimony, where I will meet with you.

⁷ “Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. ⁸ And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations. ⁹ You shall not offer strange incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering; nor shall you pour a drink offering on it. ¹⁰ And Aaron shall make atonement upon its horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement; once a year he shall make atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.”

¹¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ¹² “When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the Lord, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them. ¹³ This is what everyone among those who are numbered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (a shekel is twenty gerahs). The half-shekel shall be an offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ Everyone included among those who are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering to the Lord. ¹⁵ The rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when you give an offering to the Lord, to make atonement for yourselves. ¹⁶ And you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of meeting, that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before the Lord, to make atonement for yourselves.”

¹⁷ Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ¹⁸ “You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base also of bronze, for washing. You shall put it between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. And you shall put water in it, ¹⁹ for Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in water from it. ²⁰ When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die. ²¹ So they shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die. And it shall be a statute forever to them—to him and his descendants throughout their generations.”

While reading the first ten verses of Exodus 30, one might wonder why God was so picky about how the incense was to be burned, the size and shape of the incense altar, the gold overlay (seems so lavish!), and the placement of it all. In fact, the entire set of instructions from God about His temple – what goes on there, who was and was not to offer incense, where the priests and the people could and could not go – all seems to be so much overkill…to some.

But God gives Moses these intricate instructions to show, at the very least, that He means business when it comes to how His people are to worship Him. It is to be orderly, reverent, respectful, and according to God’s institution and not man’s whim and will. The basic framework of Old Testament worship is still in place today in the Divine Service, for everything the Church does should most definitely reflect the holiness of God and especially what He gives and does in the Divine Service.  While all these specific Old Testament instructions are not necessarily in play anymore, an overall awareness of the fact of Who it is we are worshiping, and that God Himself has given us the promise of eternal life through faith in His crucified and risen Son, must rein in any and all foolishness in church.

In verse 11 the word “ransom” takes us immediately to Christ who gave His life to as a ransom price to atone for all sin in order that, through faith in His work for us, we have forgiveness and the promise of eternal life.

The basin, or laver, mentioned in vv. 17ff teach us that the priests should wash and be clean as they approach the altar to conduct God’s Divine Service. In some churches today, the pastor will wash his hands before the liturgy of Holy Communion to reflect this Old Testament practice. It is more than “washing before you eat;” it exudes a reverent and respectful approach to the conduct of the liturgy.

Let us pray: Let the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before You, O Lord, and let Your lovingkindness descend on us that, with purified minds, we may sing Your praises with the Church on earth and the whole heavenly host and may glorify You forever. Amen.

Psalm 75:1-10 NKJV

75 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.

² “When I choose the proper time,
I will judge uprightly.
³ The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved;
I set up its pillars firmly. Selah

⁴ “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’
And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn.
⁵ Do not lift up your horn on high;
Do not speak with a stiff neck.’ ”

⁶ For exaltation comes neither from the east
Nor from the west nor from the south.
⁷ But God is the Judge:
He puts down one,
And exalts another.
⁸ For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup,
And the wine is red;
It is fully mixed, and He pours it out;
Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth
Drain and drink down.

⁹ But I will declare forever,
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

¹⁰ “All the horns of the wicked I will also cut off,
But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.”

“The 75^th psalm,” says Luther, “is a psalm of comfort against the stiff-necked, proud, godless teachers who are self-secure and presume on their office, as if they fear nothing, neither threat nor punishment” (Reading the Psalms with Luther, p. 177); he is referring to verses 2-5.

And Luther is right, for throughout the world, both in his time and in ours, there is an arrogance that exudes from many who are in positions of power and authority that causes them to focus only on themselves and the power they hold over others. In Luther’s day it was largely the Romanists and their extra-biblical rules, regulations, and false teachings. But the same can be said today, also against many in political positions who arrogate themselves a belief that they are above the law and superior to most everyone. They, too, are stiff-necked and boastful.

You, dear saint, are to be untroubled by these things. Those in positions of power are there by God’s allowance and knowledge, as St. Paul writes in Rom 13:1 – “For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” God allows certain power-hungry and despotic people to rule over you so that you would cry out to Him even more, trusting that He is in control and will ultimately deliver you. He will also judge those who abuse their power and persecute his Church, and they will have their ultimate comeuppance. As Asaph wrote in today’s psalm, “God is the judge…all the horns of the wicked I will also cut off” (vv. 7 and 10). Be comforted by the biblical fact that all the godless shall be judged and will pass away. The Scriptures are replete with accounts of God’s people being delivered and protected, and you are among them.  Trust by God-given faith that He is in control, that He will ultimately deliver you, and that all these things are for your good. Be strengthened by His Word and Sacraments until He takes you Home.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, grant me daily strength to trust in You alone and not to be dissuaded or distracted by earthly things. Amen.

Psalm 74:1-23 NKJV

74 O God, why have You cast us off forever?
Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?
² Remember Your congregation, which You have purchased of old,
The tribe of Your inheritance, which You have redeemed—
This Mount Zion where You have dwelt.
³ Lift up Your feet to the perpetual desolations.
The enemy has damaged everything in the sanctuary.
⁴ Your enemies roar in the midst of Your meeting place;
They set up their banners for signs.
⁵ They seem like men who lift up
Axes among the thick trees.
⁶ And now they break down its carved work, all at once,
With axes and hammers.
⁷ They have set fire to Your sanctuary;
They have defiled the dwelling place of Your name to the ground.
⁸ They said in their hearts,
“Let us destroy them altogether.”
They have burned up all the meeting places of God in the land.

⁹ We do not see our signs;
There is no longer any prophet;
Nor is there any among us who knows how long.
¹⁰ O God, how long will the adversary reproach?
Will the enemy blaspheme Your name forever?
¹¹ Why do You withdraw Your hand, even Your right hand?
Take it out of Your bosom and destroy them.
¹² For God is my King from of old,
Working salvation in the midst of the earth.
¹³ You divided the sea by Your strength;
You broke the heads of the sea serpents in the waters.
¹⁴ You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces,
And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
¹⁵ You broke open the fountain and the flood;
You dried up mighty rivers.
¹⁶ The day is Yours, the night also is Yours;
You have prepared the light and the sun.
¹⁷ You have set all the borders of the earth;
You have made summer and winter.

¹⁸ Remember this, that the enemy has reproached, O Lord,
And that a foolish people has blasphemed Your name.
¹⁹ Oh, do not deliver the life of Your turtledove to the wild beast!
Do not forget the life of Your poor forever.
²⁰ Have respect to the covenant;
For the dark places of the earth are full of the haunts of cruelty.
²¹ Oh, do not let the oppressed return ashamed!
Let the poor and needy praise Your name.

²² Arise, O God, plead Your own cause;
Remember how the foolish man reproaches You daily.
²³ Do not forget the voice of Your enemies;
The tumult of those who rise up against You increases continually.

One would think that when Charles Darwin’s ‘Origin of Species’ appeared in 1859 that it was shocking or took the world by surprise. In fact, however, his theory of radical randomness did not land on entirely unfavorable (or even neutral) eyes and ears. On the contrary, a lot of thinkers were ready (if not itching) for the notion and fully prepared to receive it favorably.

Psalm 74 testifies to the God who structures the world and divides it from the chaos and randomness that is so worshipped by unbelievers (and, sadly, some so-called believers as well):

      “You divided the sea by Your strength;

      You broke the heads of the sea serpents in the waters.

      You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces,

      And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the 

                  wilderness.

      You broke open the fountain and the flood;

      You dried up mighty rivers. 

      The day is Yours, the night also is Yours;

      You have prepared the light and the sun. 

      You have set all the borders of the earth.”

The God who inspired the words of Psalm 74 is ‘the’ Creator, and His act of creation implies the imposition of limits: “You have set all the borders of the earth.” God has already attached meaning and truth to and in the world, so that now it awaits man’s discovery.

Yes, man is inclined, by his very fallen nature, to rebel and question the limits that God has set. But as the ages upon ages, through century after century, of man’s doubts and questions have tarried on — the Word of the Lord, that ever-points to Christ’s fully atoning merits, endures forever!

Let us pray: O Lord, thank You for Your inspired Word that keeps us aware of our rebellious flesh, yet also reveals You as the Creator and Sustainer of all — and brings us to repentance and belief in the forgiveness, life and salvation that only comes through Christ Jesus.  Amen.

Exodus 29:22-46 NKJV

²² “Also you shall take the fat of the ram, the fat tail, the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, the two kidneys and the fat on them, the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration), ²³ one loaf of bread, one cake made with oil, and one wafer from the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the Lord; ²⁴ and you shall put all these in the hands of Aaron and in the hands of his sons, and you shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. ²⁵ You shall receive them back from their hands and burn them on the altar as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma before the Lord. It is an offering made by fire to the Lord.

²⁶ “Then you shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron’s consecration and wave it as a wave offering before the Lord; and it shall be your portion. ²⁷ And from the ram of the consecration you shall consecrate the breast of the wave offering which is waved, and the thigh of the heave offering which is raised, of that which is for Aaron and of that which is for his sons. ²⁸ It shall be from the children of Israel for Aaron and his sons by a statute forever. For it is a heave offering; it shall be a heave offering from the children of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, that is, their heave offering to the Lord.

²⁹ “And the holy garments of Aaron shall be his sons’ after him, to be anointed in them and to be consecrated in them. ³⁰ That son who becomes priest in his place shall put them on for seven days, when he enters the tabernacle of meeting to minister in the holy place.

³¹ “And you shall take the ram of the consecration and boil its flesh in the holy place. ³² Then Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. ³³ They shall eat those things with which the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them; but an outsider shall not eat them, because they are holy. ³⁴ And if any of the flesh of the consecration offerings, or of the bread, remains until the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire. It shall not be eaten, because it is holy.

³⁵ “Thus you shall do to Aaron and his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Seven days you shall consecrate them. ³⁶ And you shall offer a bull every day as a sin offering for atonement. You shall cleanse the altar when you make atonement for it, and you shall anoint it to sanctify it. ³⁷ Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it. And the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar must be holy.

³⁸ “Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs of the first year, day by day continually. ³⁹ One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. ⁴⁰ With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. ⁴¹ And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord. ⁴² This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you. ⁴³ And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. ⁴⁴ So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and his sons to minister to Me as priests. ⁴⁵ I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. ⁴⁶ And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

As we read these ordinances that God put into place — all meant to point forward to Christ — there’s a lot going on! Each day, the priests sacrificed animals and grain offerings. On feast days, they made even more extensive sacrifices based upon the laws God gave Moses. And when the people brought their own personal sacrifices to the Lord, the priests offered those as well. For our modern brains, imagine the combination of a church, a slaughterhouse, and an open-air kitchen and you will begin to form a picture of the environment of the tabernacle.

It’s important to point out that the demand for holiness did not end with the Old Testament. Christian sanctification is clearly proclaimed in the new covenant as well: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” (Rom. 12:1) “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2 Cor. 7:1) “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,” (Eph. 1:4)

Now, remaining in sinful flesh, since unholiness awaits God’s people, we (like Israel) must be Justified (accounted holy) only through faith alone: “For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, …And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciledin the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard,” (Col. 1:19-23) What a blessed rescue is God’s Gospel! Let us pray: O Lord Jesus, as all believing men from the first to the last benefit from Your death — for You are the comfort of men “yesterday, today, and forever” — we give You thanks for being the only God-pleasing sacrifice for us. Amen.

Exodus 29:1-21 NKJV 29 “And this is what you shall do to them to hallow them for ministering to Me as priests: Take one young bull and two rams without blemish, ² and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil (you shall make them of wheat flour). ³ You shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams.

⁴ “And Aaron and his sons you shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall wash them with water. ⁵ Then you shall take the garments, put the tunic on Aaron, and the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the intricately woven band of the ephod. ⁶ You shall put the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban. ⁷ And you shall take the anointing oil, pour it on his head, and anoint him. ⁸ Then you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them. ⁹ And you shall gird them with sashes, Aaron and his sons, and put the hats on them. The priesthood shall be theirs for a perpetual statute. So you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.

¹⁰ “You shall also have the bull brought before the tabernacle of meeting, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the bull. ¹¹ Then you shall kill the bull before the Lord, by the door of the tabernacle of meeting. ¹² You shall take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger, and pour all the blood beside the base of the altar. ¹³ And you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails, the fatty lobe attached to the liver, and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar. ¹⁴ But the flesh of the bull, with its skin and its offal, you shall burn with fire outside the camp. It is a sin offering.

¹⁵ “You shall also take one ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram; ¹⁶ and you shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood and sprinkle it all around on the altar. ¹⁷ Then you shall cut the ram in pieces, wash its entrails and its legs, and put them with its pieces and with its head. ¹⁸ And you shall burn the whole ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the Lord; it is a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord.

¹⁹ “You shall also take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall put their hands on the head of the ram. ²⁰ Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar. ²¹ And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him.

Yet, again, just like the vestments, these Old Testament practices of purification and consecration, instituted by God, had their meanings. “Blood… on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and his sons… on the thumb of their right hand… and on the big toe of their right foot” (v 20) The right ear emphasized hearing and obeying the Word of God. The right thumb signified that the priests were now pure to handle the holy things of God. The big toe on the right foot allowed the priests to walk on holy ground, pure before the Lord.

Oh, how relieved we New Testament pastors and lay people should be, in that our Ordinations and Installations do not have these bloody sacrifices to go through any longer. These are not necessary in the New Testament of Christ’s blood. For we have no such command as the Jews had long ago. “Christ is the end of the Law” (Rom 10:4). “The Law and Prophets prophesied until John,” Jesus said (Matt. 11:13). “The Law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ,” says John the Baptist (John 1:17).

God consecrates the Aaronic priesthood to consecrate His people, who would be a kingdom of priests (19:6). Our High Priest, Jesus, set aside this older order of sacrifice to offer Himself once for all. “For He [Jesus] says “Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God.” He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Heb. 10:9-10) To this, we can respond: Thank You, Jesus!

Rejoice! For Christ’s perfect righteousness gets declared (accounted) unto us through faith alone. His blood now cleanses God’s believing baptized children. Through faith in Jesus, we can “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Heb. 10:22)

Let us pray: O Lord, ever-keep us believing in Your gracious promises of Holy Baptism through which You cover us with the forgiving blood of Your Son. Amen.