Thursday, January 26, 2012

Exodus 25-27

Daily Reading
Daily Thought

1) I am the Lord your God.  You shall have no other gods before Me.  2) You shall not make for yourself an idol.  3) You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.  4) Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.  5) Honor your father and your mother.  6) You shall not murder.  7) You shall not commit adultery.  8) You shall not steal.  9) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.  10) You shall not covet.

The Commandments of God were placed in the Ark of the Covenant, God's covenant with the people of Israel.  I will make you a great people, and I will be your God, and You shall be my people.  Except there was no way the people could hold up their end.  The rich young man claimed to Jesus that he had obeyed all of the commandments since he was a child.  Well, I haven't!  And neither had he, to be honest.  And neither could the Israelites.  The Law does not make us holy; it exposes our sin.

The Ark would have been a reminder of our hopelessness, if God had not covered it with the mercy seat.  God put his mercy in place as he gave us his Law.   You shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you. ~Exodus 25:21-22

If we meet God with the Law, we can not face him.  But we meet God at the mercy seat.  We are covered with the blood of Christ, his death paying the penalty of our sin, his mercy lifting the burden of the Law and setting us free.   

Daily Prayer

Holy God, You made this world and You planned from the beginning to display the glory of Your love, Your mercy, and Your grace in it.  It is displayed on the cross.  Even while we are sinners, You died for us.  What an amazing grace, what a wonderful salvation.  

I live in a continuous state of thankfulness.  It fills me with joy, knowing I am loved unconditionally by so great a God.  How can I not say "Yes" to the life You set before me.  I will follow You, walk in Your ways, and display Your love to others.  

Amen

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