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10-16-15. Exodus 27:1-21. The Altar Reveals God’s Love and Mercy-my devotional

10-16-15. Exodus 27:1-21. The Altar Reveals God’s Love and Mercy-my devotional

Exodus 27:1-21                                                                                   Kevin E. Jesmer

Key Verse: 27:1-2                                                                                10-16-15

BRAZEN_ALTAR_OF_THE_TABERNACLE

“Build an altar of acacia wood, three cubits  high; it is to be square, five cubits long and five cubits wide. 2 Make a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar are of one piece, and overlay the altar with bronze.”

We finally made it to the details of the tabernacle that allows for public access. We see the courtyard that allows for public interaction at the altar of burnt offing. The pictures of the tabernacle always peaked my interest. It revealed a God who was with the people, a God who protects his people and a God whom people could approach.

The courtyard is the first thing people take notice of when they see artist’s rendering of thje tabernacle. Part of the sanctuary includes the curtain that encloses the courtyard of the tabernacle. The courtyard was about 150′ x 75′ in area.  It opened to the east. It looked like a royal courtyard, or a fine movie theater with its scarlet and blue curtains. The whole tabernacle was filled with bronze, gold, and silver, along with blue, scarlet and purple tapestries. What a royal enclosure it was! Truly a fitting place for the people to meet with their King and their Lord.

The tabernacle would inspire awe for their God is the King of kings and Lord of lords. Within the walls the people are protected from the desert winds. They are surrounded in the warmth. The pleasing aroma of the offerings filled the air. There is a sense of safety and inclusiveness and peace. How cool it would be to enter the enclosure with such expectation in the hearts of the people. Te east end was towards the sunrise. The people were able to see the see the sun rising as they worshipped in the morning. The sun would illuminate the precious metals and the royal tapestries.

 

But the first thing people saw, as they entered the courtyard, was the bronze altar…

 

Part 1: God Provided A Means To Dwell With His People (1-19)

 

It was through the sacrifices made upon a bronze altar. Verses 1-19 read, “Build an altar of acacia wood, three cubits  high; it is to be square, five cubits long and five cubits wide. 2 Make a horn at each of the four corners, so that the horns and the altar are of one piece, and overlay the altar with bronze. 3 Make all its utensils of bronze—its pots to remove the ashes, and its shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks and firepans. 4 Make a grating for it, a bronze network, and make a bronze ring at each of the four corners of the network. 5 Put it under the ledge of the altar so that it is halfway up the altar. 6 Make poles of acacia wood for the altar and overlay them with bronze. 7 The poles are to be inserted into the rings so they will be on two sides of the altar when it is carried. 8 Make the altar hollow, out of boards. It is to be made just as you were shown on the mountain. 9 “Make a courtyard for the tabernacle. The south side shall be a hundred cubits long and is to have curtains of finely twisted linen, 10 with twenty posts and twenty bronze bases and with silver hooks and bands on the posts. 11 The north side shall also be a hundred cubits long and is to have curtains, with twenty posts and twenty bronze bases and with silver hooks and bands on the posts. 12 “The west end of the courtyard shall be fifty cubits wide and have curtains, with ten posts and ten bases. 13 On the east end, toward the sunrise, the courtyard shall also be fifty cubits wide. 14 Curtains fifteen cubits long are to be on one side of the entrance, with three posts and three bases, 15 and curtains fifteen cubits long are to be on the other side, with three posts and three bases. 16 “For the entrance to the courtyard, provide a curtain twenty cubits long, of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen—the work of an embroiderer—with four posts and four bases. 17 All the posts around the courtyard are to have silver bands and hooks, and bronze bases. 18 The courtyard shall be a hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide, with curtains of finely twisted linen five cubits high, and with bronze bases. 19 All the other articles used in the service of the tabernacle, whatever their function, including all the tent pegs for it and those for the courtyard, are to be of bronze.” (NIV)

 

The altar must have looked very majestic. It had bronze overlay over acacia wood. The bronze plates protected the wood and kept the altar light. The rings were placed on the altar so that it can be moved around.

 

The altar was the first thing the Israelites saw as they entered the tabernacle through the courtyard. The bronze altar was for burnt offerings. Here sacrifices were constantly made. Blood sacrifices were offered there to atone for sin (Lev 17:11). Thank offerings of grain were also offered. Priests would accept the offering placed at the altar. Other priests would be keeping the fires stoked. Others would be cleaning up the ashes. There was a lot going on around the altar. Its vivid presence constantly reminded the people that they could only come to God by means of the sacrifice. It was the only way their sins to be forgiven. People would bring their meat and grain offerings seeking reconciliation with God, The crowds came to pray. Some had tears of repentance and other tears of receiving God’s wonderful grace.
The altar had bronze horns where people could hold onto the horns of the altar to seek mercy and forgiveness. There must have been so many dramatic scenes at the horns of the altar over the years. Here is one Biblical account in the time of King Solomon. 1 Kings 1:50-53 reads,

 

But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar. 51 Then Solomon was told, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the horns of the altar. He says, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’” 52 Solomon replied, “If he shows himself to be worthy, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground; but if evil is found in him, he will die.” 53 Then King Solomon sent men, and they brought him down from the altar. And Adonijah came and bowed down to King Solomon, and Solomon said, “Go to your home.”

 

The presence and the placement of the bronze altar shows us that God takes sin seriously. This was the place where blood was shed to atone for sin. The Book of Hebrews says, “In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed by blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Heb 9:22).  There is no way for a person to dwell in the presence of God, on their own, for our sins separate us from our holy God.

 

But God himself provided a way for sinful people to come to him. They must come by the way of the altar, where blood sacrifices are made to atone for sin. There is no other way to come to the throne of God. Through the blood we were cleansed and forgiven. Leviticus 17:11 says, “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” The sacrificial system teaches us how much the holy God hates our sins and how much God wanted to provide a way for sinful people to be forgiven and to come into his holy presence. Although the wages of sin is death, (Romans 6:23a), the altar and blood of the sacrifice provided forgiveness at that time in history.

 

The blood of the sacrifice also helps us understand more deeply the meaning of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins. These sacrifices point to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. In Hebrews 10:1-18, Jesus is portrayed as the ultimate sacrifice. Indeed, Jesus is the perfect sacrifice. Jesus is the way provided by God for sin to be forgiven.  It is through faith in his blood that we can receive complete forgiveness and he can dwell in our hearts, by his Holy Spirit. Heb 9:14 says, “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

 

Part 2: God Watches Over His People Day And Night (20-21)

 

Verse 20-21, “Command the Israelites to bring you clear oil of pressed olives for the light so that the lamps may be kept burning. 21 In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law, Aaron and his sons are to keep the lamps burning before the Lord from evening till morning. This is to be a lasting ordinance among the Israelites for the generations to come.” (NIV)

 

At the end of chapter Exodus 27 is a command to keep the lamp in the tent of meeting burning continually from evening to morning. Twice a day Aaron and his sons, and those who would come after him, would refill the oil in the Golden lamp stand and trim the wicks as commanded by God. That would be done day after day. The lamps kept burning throughout the night. God is always awake and keeping watch over his people. He comes to dwell with his people and he hears and answers their prayers day and night. The Psalmist said, “My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip–he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep…. The LORD will keep you from all harm–he will watch over your life; the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Ps 121:2-8) As long as the lamp of God is burning, there is light and hope in the world.

 

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your strong desire to dwell with your people. You opened the way through the blood sacrifice. Thank you for Jesus the all sufficient Lamb of God who takes away the sins of any who have faith in the Gospel.

 

One Word: God opened the way to dwell among his people.

 

 




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