May the mumbling commence!
The covenant of blood is set, and the future is foreshadowed. After reading off all the commands and decrees of the Lord, Moses approached the people of Israel. Would Israel accept the conditions? Well, they committed to accept the laws and commands and decrees of the Lord. So, Moses got up early the next morning and set up twelve stone pillars (one for each tribe of Israel) and built an altar. A sacrifice of young bulls ensued. Half of the blood was sprinkled on the altar.
After this was done, Moses read the entire Book of the Covenant. (Talk about a long Scripture reading!) And the people renewed their pledge to enter into the covenant with God. They said, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.” Then, the other half of the blood was sprinkled on the people. The covenant was sealed in the blood of bulls.
These endless sacrifices foreshadow the ultimate sacrifice of Christ Jesus, who initiated a new covenant in his own blood. And the new covenant calls us to love – to love God and neighbor with all we have. In Exodus chapter 24, there is another foreshadowing that would reach fruition much sooner. Moses set off to return to the mountain of the Lord with Joshua, who would eventually pick up the leadership baton from Moses.
So, what were some of the commands and laws and decrees of the Lord that Israel committed to? And how do they speak to the love of the second covenant in which we take part? Knowing that the love of God and the love of neighbor cannot be separated, let’s look at the part of the covenant that deals primarily with the love of the Lord. God commanded the Israelites not to bow down and worship the gods of the countries in which they find themselves in.
What gods are there in American culture? Yes, we do have a collection of our own. How about the gods of money, influence, and power? What about the god of the American dream? You know, lift yourself up by your own bootstraps. Start with only a dime to your name, and with hard work and ingenuity, you become a millionaire. These gods put relationships in subordination to the god of me – looking out for number one. May I not bow down and worship these gods. And that’s not all. What about the celebrities? Do I fawn over every step that a celebrity makes? You know, the lives of actors, musicians, and athletes. May I not bow down and worship these gods. What about democratic ideals? What about capitalism? The list could go on and on. God calls us away from these false gods. He called Israel numerous times to leave these gods and idols behind them. May we do the same with our own gods and idols.
Then, we might come to the Lord with something much better than empty hands and hearts. And we wouldn’t just come with something. As Exodus 23:19 tells us, we would come with the best of our first fruits. Though our first fruits look different, the concept is no different. We have the fruit of our labors. Some might bring the first fruits of their money – taking at least ten percent off the top, not giving to God the leftovers. Some might bring actual fruit of their art – be it wood working or ceramics or poetry or paintings or stain glass windows. And we bring only the best.
And, what about loving our neighbors? There is a general theme in Exodus 22-23 that asked Israel to look after the vulnerable in their communities – to look after the alien, the widows and the orphans. Who are the vulnerable in our communities? How about the single mother or the “illegal” immigrant? How can we protect these vulnerable ones in our society? You know, the working poor that we benefit from. We benefit every time we frequent stores and restaurants that are open on Sunday. Those people who serve us rarely get paid above minimum wage, and the waiters and waitresses get less than that. Restaurant servers depend upon our tips. How well did I tip my last server at a restaurant – regardless of perceived service?
Yes, we return to the principle of Sabbath. It is a command that our society, that goes 24/7, needs to hear. Though Jesus railed against the Sabbath legalism of the religious leaders of his day, we need a different message. The leaders of Jesus’ day held legalism over love. We hold profit and creature comforts over love on the Sabbath. Am I willing to leave these things behind, because love is what I am called to do. I give thanks for God's patience with me and with my society.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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