Tag: God’s holiness

Digging in Deeper: Exodus 28:31-35

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“You are to make the robe of the ephod entirely of blue yarn. There should be an opening at its top in the center of it. Around the opening, there should be a woven collar with an opening like that of body armor so that it does not tear. Make pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn on its lower hem and all around it. Put gold bells between them all the way around, so that gold bells and pomegranates alternate around the lower hem of the robe. The robe will be worn by Aaron whenever he ministers, and its sound will be heard when he enters the sanctuary before the Lord and when he exists, so that he does not die.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

We often speak of God as holy, but through the lens of Jesus, we also tend to think of Him as friendly. I don’t mean that to say God isn’t interested in a personal relationship with us – He most emphatically is – but to attempt to describe the very familiar way we tend to think about HIm. Again, we’re fine with holy. We like holy. But we also like familiar. If we’re not careful, though, we can get so familiar that in spite of regularly reminding ourselves of it, we forget about His holiness and just what that means. This is not a good thing. The next part of the priestly garments described here – the robe – reminds us some of why that is.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 22:31

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“Be my holy people. You must not eat the meat of a mauled animal found in the field; throw it to the dogs.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I remember visiting Yellowstone National Park when I was growing up. It was pretty incredible. I look forward to being able to take my own family back there someday. Everywhere you looked there was an almost overwhelming natural beauty. We saw so many amazing things that by the end of the trip we had actually started to get tired of it. My parents would announce something from the front seat, and we would hardly look up from our books in the back. At one point on the trip, we took a short hike to see a small waterfall. I had a bottle of water with me that I finished on the hike. When we got to the falls it was empty and I was still thirsty. So, I filled it in the beautiful river in the pristine-looking wilderness and took a nice, long drink. It was satisfying in the moment, but it could have also been deadly if there had been in bacteria in it from further upriver. I got lucky, but I should not have done that. Knowing how to get along in nature and not die from something foolish like drinking in the wrong place is important. Sometimes Israel’s laws had an obvious religious bent to them; sometimes they were really just about good hygiene. Let’s talk here about one of the latter kind.

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Digging in Deeper: Exodus 19:9-15

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“The Lord said to Moses, ‘I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear when I speak with you and will always believe you.’ Moses reported the people’s words to the Lord, and the Lord told Moses, ‘Go to the people and consecrate them tomorrow. They must wash their clothes and be prepared by the third day, for on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. Put boundaries for the people all around the mountain and say: Be careful that you don’t go up on the mountain or touch its base. Anyone who touches the mountain must be put to death. No hand may touch him; instead he will be stoned or shot with arrows and not live, whether animal or human. When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they may go up the mountain.’ Then Moses came down from the mountain to the people and consecrated them, and they washed their clothes. He said to the people, ‘Be prepared by the third day. Do not have sexual relations with women.'” (CSB – Read the chapter)

As a parent, one of the things you learn pretty naturally (mostly because you experienced it with your own parents) is that different circumstances require a different tone of voice in order to communicate their relative seriousness. If you’re playing a game or having a casual conversation, you’ll choose a tone of voice that is light and gentle. If your kid is about to run into the street, you are going to use a loud and stern tone. It is vital that they understand how important it is to not run into the road. As God prepared to deliver some incredibly important commands to the people of Israel, He used the equivalent of a really stern voice. Let’s talk about what’s going on here.

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