Class Notes, Ex 35:1-40:38

Ex 35:4-5, 10 (NIV) Moses said to the whole Israelite community, "This is what the Lord has commanded: 5 From what you have, take an offering for the Lord. Everyone who is willing is to bring to the Lord an offering of gold, silver and bronze; …

10 "All who are skilled among you are to come and make everything the Lord has commanded:

• There are two key aspects of ministry mentioned here
  
  • Willing offerings. This is not the tithe (the tithe is a required offering of the OT law). This is much closer to the NT concept of giving
    
    • 2 Cor 9:6-7 (NIV) Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
      
    • Gal 6:7-10 (NIV) Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
      
    • True ministry is a heartfelt action, and one of the spirit -- not of rule or law
      
  • Skilled and gifted people serving
    
    • 1 Cor 12:7 (NIV) Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
      
    • Each person is given a manifestation of the Spirit
      
    • The gift is not for the individual, but for the common good
      

  Ex 35:20-29 (NIV) Then the whole Israelite community withdrew from Moses' presence, 21 and everyone who was willing and whose heart moved him came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments. 22 All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord. 23 Everyone who had blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen, or goat hair, ram skins dyed red or hides of sea cows brought them. 24 Those presenting an offering of silver or bronze brought it as an offering to the Lord, and everyone who had acacia wood for any part of the work brought it. 25 Every skilled woman spun with her hands and brought what she had spun — blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen. 26 And all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair. 27 The leaders brought onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece. 28 They also brought spices and olive oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. 29 All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the Lord freewill offerings for all the work the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do.
  

• What are the key words in this passage, and what is God trying to communicate?
  
  • Willing -- chose to give
    
  • Heart -- response of the heart not based on rule
    
  • To the Lord -- it was given to God not to people
    
  • Many different and unique types of gifts were given. Some created their own gifts (those who spun), others gave from what they owned
    
• Why do some people prefer living to a rule, like 10 percent (which is really not 10 percent but much higher), than a heart response?
  
  • We want to feel we have met our obligation
    
  • It is easier the more you have to give 10 percent. As God gives more, while 10 percent represents a larger amount, it represents less than what is needed when you had less
    
• APPLICATION: Why do we give? Do we give grudgingly? We are no longer under the law?
  

  Ex 35:30-36:5 (NIV) Then Moses said to the Israelites, "See, the Lord has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 31 and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts — 32 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 33 to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship. 34 And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. 35 He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers — all of them master craftsmen and designers.36 So Bezalel, Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the Lord has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the Lord has commanded."
  

  2 Then Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the Lord had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work. 3 They received from Moses all the offerings the Israelites had brought to carry out the work of constructing the sanctuary. And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning. 4 So all the skilled craftsmen who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left their work 5 and said to Moses, "The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the Lord commanded to be done."
  

• What do you note about the skilled men that is different from the offering, and also what is the same?
  
  • Same: Both are willing (36:2)
    
  • Same/Different: God had given the ability
    
  • Different: God has chosen
    
• APPLICATION: What has God chosen you to do? What are you doing for the body of Christ, the common good?
  

  Ex 36:6-7 (NIV) Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: "No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary." And so the people were restrained from bringing more, 7 because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.
  

• What is the principle from this passage?
  
  • When God's people are obedient, there is no need to ask for more giving, or to run any giving promotions -- the real problem is telling people to stop giving
    
• APPLICATION: I will be honest. I did not pledge any amount for the church debt repayment. I am always pushing my giving to support more and more missionaries. Consequently, I just don't have any more money for long-term things. I can find money for short term things at times, but I've already committed resources to long term things. I'm not saying I am right and everyone else is wrong, but the question that goes through my mind is, if I have more money to give long-term, why haven't I already committed it to something?
  

  Ex 38:1 (NIV) They built the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood, three cubits high; it was square, five cubits long and five cubits wide.
  

  Ex 38:9 (NIV) Next they made the courtyard. The south side was a hundred cubits long and had curtains of finely twisted linen,
  

  Ex 38:21-23 (NIV) These are the amounts of the materials used for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which were recorded at Moses' command by the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron, the priest. 22 (Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made everything the Lord commanded Moses; 23 with him was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan — a craftsman and designer, and an embroiderer in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen.)
  

  Ex 38:24-26 (NIV) The total amount of the gold from the wave offering used for all the work on the sanctuary was 29 talents and 730 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel. 25 The silver obtained from those of the community who were counted in the census was 100 talents and 1,775 shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel — 26 one beka per person, that is, half a shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, from everyone who had crossed over to those counted, twenty years old or more, a total of 603,550 men
  

  Ex 39:42-43 (NIV) The Israelites had done all the work just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 Moses inspected the work and saw that they had done it just as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.
  

• The bible says that we walk by faith and not by sight, but that doesn't mean you don't use your brain. What are some of the specific things that these leaders did in the building process?
  
  • They used plans, specific measurements
    
  • There was order -- "next," verse 38:9
    
  • There was leadership and direction, "Ithimar"
    
  • There was accounting
    
  • There was inspection, and the inspector was not the leader
    

  Ex 39:7 (NIV) Then they fastened them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, as the Lord commanded Moses. ...
  

  Ex 39:21 (NIV) They tied the rings of the breastpiece to the rings of the ephod with blue cord, connecting it to the waistband so that the breastpiece would not swing out from the ephod — as the Lord commanded Moses.
  

  Ex 40:17 (NIV) So the tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month in the second year.
  

  Ex 40:36-38 (NIV) In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; 37 but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out — until the day it lifted. 38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel during all their travels.
  

• Phrase, "as the Lord commanded" occurs 8 times in Exodus 39. Phrase occurs 33 times in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers
  
• The result was (39:43) blessing, success, timely completion, and further leading
  
• APPLICATION: Sometimes we won't get the next step, until we have completed what God has commanded