Bible Study: Exodus 19-24

How can a cookbook, Shakespeare's plays, and operating deadly machinery help you understand the law?

Welcome everyone for glad that you are with us. We are on Week six of the Bible study podcast. What? We're looking at Exodus 19 through 24 we're moving out of the action and into the well, it's not quite right. All right, so and we're moving into a new section in Exodus and from Exodus 19 all the way till numbers 10. We're gonna be a Mount Sinai. So there's been a lot of action up until this point, and the pace is going to slow and we're gonna be at Sinai. And it's really important to understand if you're gonna appreciate, because our goal is to delight in the law. Wanna love it? We want to experience and see the God we love and worship through it. But if you're going to do that, you have to understand the type of in essence book you're now reading. So it's no longer fast paced action novel. It's there's different John, So I'm gonna give you three genres that might help you think about what you're reading. So let's talk about recipe books. Let's talk about dangerous machinery operating manuals and let's talk about Shakespeare Place. Okay, we'll get to number three. Okay, All right. So let's talk about those three. So but there's still lots going on, though. It's just different type of correct. There's a lot going on. It's just a different type of action, as our question is, how do you engage with different types of reading material? So let's talk about recipe books, Okay, One of your favorites. I know so most people don't have taken on guys. I'm not. I'm not the world's best pick. OK, most people don't have recipe books just on their nightstand, where they'll read just for enjoyment. But, I mean, some people do like I bet. I bet you don't have that Bama does that. She's got some rich, sweet Bama, and, um, so when you have a recipe like, how do you know your faithfully engaging with the recipe book? If you're making what's in it for you? Yeah, uh, yeah, if you're making what's in it wth the faithful engagement means your practicing practicing the rest of your you're following the recipes is in the eating. You know you're following it by eating the recipe, and so is literally in the pudding. That's where that lovely phrase comes from. And now one way, you know, let's see. This is Ah, not a marital dispute that's too dramatic. But 11 conversation we have often is, especially when you're making things like cinnamon rolls. What is my admonition to you? Don't skimp on the butter. Follow the recipe followed because you will see how much like you know it requires eight cups of butter. On that, you'll be morally offended by how much butter is actually ends. You'll try and substitute it with, like, apple sauce or something, and most of the time it just doesn't work. Followed the recipe. So you know you're faithfully engaging with the tax by following the recipe. So, uh, this section that's one metaphor that can help you think about this section. The Lord is giving us the recipe for a just and holy society, and the way we know we're faithfully engaging with is, how are we living it out? Um, same thing with I think Shakespeare plays. You know you're in 10th grade, and it's the most dreadful thing imaginable is we have to send just read these things and this language. You have no idea even what they're saying and have no conduct. You don't know what's going on. But then when you actually go and watch a Shakespeare play performed by skilled actors, it comes alive in a way you couldn't imagine by just reading it on the page. I mean, the way it comes alive is in the live performance. Same thing here. The way this section comes alive is in the live performance. It needs to be performed, not just read. And I think about an operations manual for dangerous machinery. Have you ever operated any dangerous machinery in your life? I don't think so. Other than a car. Yeah, I don't know if I have either. I mean, it is something that I thought about how odd it is that we entrust our life to this two toned hunk of metal that's being propelled forward by an internal explosion. What could go wrong? Yeah, but I would imagine if part of your job was to operate like dangerous machinery for a living. You would be very intentional and careful and following along the proper procedure because life's at stake. And so, like when we get to Leviticus, remember, one of my goals is to rehabilitate a love for a little Leviticus. And when we get the Leviticus, remember word. Well, you hang on and say because this is the priestly operating manual for how the priests are supposed to conduct their business. And remember, they're dealing with holy, dangerous things. Uh, the first priest a dab know by who? When they first offer the seconds, they don't pay attention to the manual right off the beginning and they die. Or you think about youse, Iot and David when he's gonna bring the ark from its location to establish it in Jerusalem and then use IA reaches, it wobbles, he reaches out and touches and he dies. And you read and chronicles why it's because they did not obey the vehicle command for how the ark was two going to be handled. And so when we read this, um, these things might sound boring to us because we don't have the risk of dying if we don't follow them. Exactly. And part of that's God's mercy. I mean, someone else died in our place because we can't follow them exactly. But as you're reading, remember, you know, these things are like a recipe. They have to be or a Shakespeare play. They have to be performed, have to be lived. And there's three things you need to keep in mind. To really have the law come alive, you need to keep in mind God's desire and then his core principles to achieve the desire and in specific applications. So what we'll see is we go through what's desire, core principle, specific application and something else to think about as we move through the law. You know the law is God's law and even the best translation. Torre's instruction fatherly instruction to his Children and his desire is to, for us tohave the fullness of life, a relationship of loving obedience to him. And this is him teaching us his will for our lives. And in doing so, he's revealing his character. What he cares about, what he loves. I love J. R. Packer puts it this way, says in God's law, are God's law is distilled to us in the 10 Commandments, and then it's displayed to us in the life of Christ. And both of those demonstrate for us, Um, what it means to love and to live out the law. So let's hit a couple of the highlights that can help people appreciate this section of Scripture. Okay, so start in verse, Chapter 19. We're moving to a new section notice in verse One. It says on the third new moon, after the people of Israel had gone out. So three months have been traveling. And then you come look at verse six, start in verse five. Okay, Now, therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples for all the earth is mine. And you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel. You could really chart a course through the whole Bible through about 8 to 12. Just seminal vs. So, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth tells the whole story. Then, um, God called Abraham and blessed him and said through you, all the nations of the earth, they're gonna be blessed. That's key verse. Actually, Exodus 19 verse five and six is another one of those. Key versus this is the in essence, the Great Commission for Israel. And so you actually could put that as a banner over the whole Old Testament and ask, How are they doing? This is their commission, and they're calling. But notice it begins that God's desire is that they will be his treasured possession. I want I want you to be my treasured possession in an order for you to do that, you have to love me with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. That's the distillation of the law. That's how Jesus sums it up. But then notice Way says, you're going to be a kingdom of priest and a holy nation. That's a little jarring. So, uh, you're the grammar expert, but know that there's two now. So priest and nations, it's almost like the adjectives don't go with the noun DS like you have a kingdom that's a nation that makes sense. Nation is a kingdom, and you have priests who could be holy. But sometimes it seems like, did they get jumbled like was God just confused and well, actually, you can mix mixed up those words, Uh, are they just jumbled and as he confused or it's a kingdom of Priest. So kingdom you have a King rule reign realm, but then there to be a priest. So it's really important. This whole section are This whole section of Scripture is about the establishment of the priesthood, but formal and informal, the formal priesthood or the people who usher us into God's presence. The informal precept is what it means to be God's people in his world, where people of the presence we enter his presence. And then we bring others into his presence and we bring his presence where we go Kingdom a priest. But in a nation that's holy set apart different a unique people with a unique calling. So that's a banner you can wave of the whole Old Testament. How are they doing living up to this calling now? Then they move into the mountain and noticed they've come to Mount Sinai. But this is not the first time we've been here at Mount Sinai in Exodus. Remember when else we've been here? The burning bus? Yeah. What's what cause Mount Horeb. The same location. Remember? Moses comes to Mount Horeb. And how does he encounter God? They're burning bus. Yeah, correct. And then now the whole night. Now we won't read the whole thing that some definitely read because now the whole nation encounters God. But it's not through a burning bush. Now the whole mountain is on fire. Their natural response is one of terror terror. They're terrified and, um, and so notice as you read through the requirements for the Lord to the whole goals that they enter into his presence. So you're asking yourself what is required for us to enter into his presence. They have to be consecrated, have to be set apart. They have to be clean. Then they have to come in. I've been in Chapter 20 you're moving in, and here's the 10 Commandments now. What's interesting is that here's a little if y I Bible trivia. They're not actually ever called the 10 Commandments in the Bible. They're just called the words and then, given the 10 words these air 10 words. Now it's interesting. These are unmediated words from God to the people. So almost every other time that God speaks throughout the Old Testament comes mediated, meaning there's someone or something that mediates the word. Do you think I like the word media all media are different mediums that messages come to us. So newspaper is a media where the news comes through the medium of newspaper, television, you know, all social media. It's all messages come to a type of media, and it's really important to think about how the media effects and shapes the message. And so, all throughout, there's the message of the Lord comes through certain media. So it comes through. Dreams sometimes comes through. Profits sometimes comes through. Moses comes through these different things. Here's one the few places that it comes directly from the speech of the Lord himself. I don't quite know what to make of this, but it sure is interesting. This isn't the first time that 10 direct words have come from the Lord himself cared offer a guess or when the last time 10 words came directly from the Lord with the creation. Yeah, Genesis is one, and the Lord said 10 different times. Lord said. It was interesting creation, the 10 words here establishing the covenant. Or maybe this is a type of new creation where 10 new words now they come directly from the Lord to the people and doesn't tend symbolize completion, Completion, whole total. Yep. I'm a couple of just unique things about the 10 Commandments or the 10 words. They're often joke that if you really want to understand portions of the New Testament, you need a Southern translation. You need to get the y'all There's so much you just don't get if you ain't got the y'all and cause so many of the use our you all you plural their community. Um now hear, The entire nation is at the foot of the mountain and the Lord is speaking directly to the entire nation. And then all of the year, the King James gives us that thou thou shalt not. But all of those vows use are not you alls their use Cingular's there, you and why do you think that matters, Or what do you think the Lord is trying to tell us with that speaking personally to his people? Yeah, it's It's a personal word for every single person. You can't advocate your responsibility. You can't say what Well, not married. That doesn't apply to me or up. Well, you know I'm not a priest. I don't have to worry. I'm not an image carver I don't sculpt things, so that doesn't apply to me. Every single one is and the only way that you can have a holy society as you have holy people. So you're saying you have to take ownership and responsibility for all of these every single individual in the Hebrew. If you were to be reading this or if they were listening to this be spoken, that would be clear to them. This is the personal you, not the plural. Okay. And then, as you're reading through the commandments, really note what commandments get the most about to say ink. But remember, they were ink. So how does God deliver these? They get chiseled on stone. Now, I have a tendency to talk kind of fast, but I type terribly slow. How fast can you type? How? Actually, I used to know this. I used to know how many words per minute typed. I took a class. Did you take Marvis Beacon one that her name? You know that late? She's actually not a real person to completely fabricated, but all the type way. Well, we'll let the listener understand, But there's, you know, some people like I don't know I type like 12 words of minutes from the time 100. I don't know, but how fast you can type. But this is not so. The media, the medium that is coming God is chiseling these on stone and I don't know how quick you can chisel, but I imagine you only chisel the things that are most important to you. And so you're looking. And why? Why did these certain commands get a whole lot of chisel time? And what I remember all the commands reveals something about the heart of the father. So what is it revealing about his heart? It's over example like number two. Why so much chiseled time on Don't make images. What does that mean? No images of false gods? Well, they've just come from Egypt. I'm sure that there are graven images of pharaoh everywhere, Pharaoh in the different gods. These images so tempting to, um, look at those longingly. It's kind of like you don't really have to tell somebody. Don't put up pictures of your ex boyfriend friends throughout your house. You know, we don't have any pictures of our ex boyfriends girlfriends throughout our house, just us. What would you think if you walked into somebody's house and had all these pictures of their think some things are Something's a little off here and that's exactly don't don't create these images of these All Scots are these gods that you used to worship that pressed you right? Um and then the Sabbath gets a lot of chiseled time because that matters. And then notice how intentional God is to reiterate that it's not just for you is for your sons, your daughters, your servants, your male servants, female servants, even your animals. Everybody gets the Sabbath. I care about all of them. You can't just a suit You, as the head of the household, can't just take on this responsibility. So I'm obeying. But I'm gonna dictate that everybody else under me has just keep slaving away. It's It's about a total. He cares about the dependent. That's one of the things we'll see over and over. He cares about the vulnerable, um, a lot of chisel time on coveting. And so that's really important. Um, I think it's important when you're looking at the commands to keep in mind the way Jesus um summarises them that you love the Lord your God, with all your heart, mind, soul, strength. Love your neighbor as yourself. And then the commands are actually gonna unpack and start to put principles or flesh on those realities. Um, there's some historical debate about how you break him up. Everybody sees the 10 Commandments as two tables. Love, God, I love your neighbor. And how? How? Those work. Um, there is some debate about whether command the 1st 4 are love God, and then neighbor start five and on or because I like things symmetrical. I'm of the persuasion that the 1st 5 are love God vertically oriented. And then the 2nd 5 or horizontally oriented and that honor your father and your mother, Is it under the category of honoring and loving the Lord with all your heart mind soul straight to honoring these social and authority structures that he's placed you in, but almost like a hinge commandment that's connecting its staff in the second. Yeah, I think it is. I think it is. That hinges. It's getting into both and showing. Um, remember, the 10 commandments are universal, so they come. Actually, that's an interesting point to think about why God gave them these laws now, before they entered into the land and the ancient Jewish rabbinical interpretation was to show Israel that these air Command's not just for their specific location that their universal for the whole world. Um, now also note, as you're reading through, the only they're not all in the negative. So it's not all thou shall not there to that are positive. And the two that are positive our Sabbath and honoring your your father, mother. And so both of those get an extended treatment. Um, and, you know, think about just the advantage of commands of negation can clear up a whole lot of confusion and just eliminate all types of decisions. So, for example, if you are a vegetarian, you don't eat meat. So then you sell. What do you eat? Hot dogs. You chicken wings? Do you eat bacon? Do you eat in an Internet? You don't eat meat that covers all of the questions. And so a lot of these, you know where these people are. We allowed to worship bail can. We were Some are duke and we worship, you know, raw and no idols. And so it could covers the whole gamut. So a couple things that are really important to keep in mind as you're reading both the 10 Commandments and then the whole rest of the section all the way through do Deuteronomy. Um, remember God's desire. Top desire is that you will be my treasured people, My treasured possession and Jesus sums it up. Did God's desires that we love him with all our heart, mind and soul string we worship and then we love our neighbors as ourselves, and that creates a kingdom of priest, a holy nation. And then the principles he's going to give to how we do that is to love him with all the our heart is worship. And the way we do that as we worship in the way that he tells us that he prescribes, he's gonna tell us how we are to worship him. And then the way we love our neighbors ourself is we express the same grace we've experienced so and so that, um and so if you can keep those things in mind, it will really help you unravel so many of the specific applications as we're reading through. That could be a little little jarring, so as you're reading through this section with their anything that just kind of jumped out at you as you're reading, You think Wow, that's kind of odd. Yes, I was. I was reflecting upon it. He's out of the 10 Commandments were going straight in tow, all of these laws. And so and I know that the Bible is intentional, and some of these just seemed kind of bizarre. And so help us make sense of, um, just yet, what's going on with these laws? Uh, well, often when you hear some that are just kind of strange, you want to look out and your first distant disposition should be of that strange. I wonder what I don't understand, how this content. And now we're operating in such a different time. Such a different culture, things they're gonna seem bizarre that I might not have been bizarre at all in that culture. So but the things you want to remember you want, remember, you're the law is constantly oscillating between the two tables, constantly weaving back and forth between loving the Lord your God and worship. So they'll be things about sacrifice, idolatry, Canaanite worship. Don't do that. And then loving your neighbor as yourself. So how you create a society that's just and righteous and all of these things, Um, and what you'll see. Actually, there's a lot of scholars who have spent a lot of work trying to show, especially in Deuteronomy, but also in Exodus. How all the laws they unpacked with specific applications are a progression from the 10 Commandments. So it starts with one moves two and three, and I would love it if it was so much neater. It's there, you can see it. It's it's unpacking all of these. Tenet's putting them in specific, um, applications. But it's so messy, so the laws don't follow neatly. Commandment, one community commandment three No, they intermingle, all of them. And I think the reason why the Lord does that is not because he can't write orderly, but it's because life is messy. And you can't just dissect these, like right on month, January, we're gonna focus on commitment one, and then we're gonna nail it. And then in February, we're gonna move the commandment to, and we're gonna nail it. And I know they all intermingle. Your constant, everything you're doing. That is God. Word also effects how you treat others and vice versa. So it's always intermingling. Yeah, and so is your reading through and some of the things like even as you're reading like and it goes right into Chapter 21 he talks about laws about slaves that can really disorient us there. Say what's at the heart here and actually what there's things here that reveal a tremendous care and concern for the vulnerable. So when you're reading laws about, um, how other people are to be treated like one of the things I would recommend marking every time you come across the phrase for you were once slaves in Egypt for you were once sojourners in Egypt because that's giving you that principal. That's to shape all the different applications. So the principle is that you should treat others the way God has treated you. You express what you've experienced and remember you are a slave in Egypt. This is why you don't do these things because you remember what it was like to be oppressed. And to be in this situation was tryingto foster heart of compassion and remembrance. In them. I love how these laws they really d'oh reveal God's character, and he's a compassionate, loving father. And so I love how he ride. After giving us the 10 Commandments, he goes right in tow, laws about worshipping him and then directly into these laws about slaves and laws about restitution he cares about. He cares about protecting the vulnerable on the weakest of the society. Our God brings up the lowly and it's hard for us because we have over 3000 years of this seeping into the soil of our society. And it's really hard for us. Tow conceptualize how radical these things were in this world. Just and I think, a mistake that we can do as such a Western culture. We don't like laws because they're so restricting, and they they put boundaries around us. But, um, I'm just trying to put myself in their place like they've just been under such a an oppressive dictator that's been unjust and unloving to them and you know it in Pharaoh, in Egypt. Um, but then they're given this God, who cares about the vulnerable, and so all of these laws are actually to protect and lift up and to care for them. And so he's probably endearing them to himself, not like pushing them away by giving them all these laws, that they're probably receiving these and they're blown away, that these laws are actually protecting them and loving them well. And this is a good point, and it's important to think about the context of how so the 10 Commandments come directly from the Lord to the people. And then, But then that experience of the direct voice of the Lord terrifies them, and they're afraid that they're going to die. And so they didn't send Moses up. And then now the progression becomes remember. That's why Chapter 18 so important because Moses established the elders and his job is to teach them. And so God's going to speak to Moses. Moses will tell these things to the elders, and then it's their job to then execute them. So this is God gives the recipe to Moses. Moses passes on to the elders, and then the elders job is to cook the meal so that people can experience the fellowship with the Lord and one another. And so it's their job to engage in internalizes, and so many of these are illustrations that they're supposed to internalize the fundamental principles so they can live out. So, I mean, the idea is not when. So when he starts talking about how important it is, like if you're if somebody has an ox and they don't take care of it and it goat someone, and then here's the things you're supposed to the elders. If it happens that somebody has a bore and the board doesn't and they say, Well, it was a board, not a Knox doesn't apply. Well, no, you're But they're supposed to do the hard work of internalizing the principal so they can have wise application, right? Right. Another thing I love about the laws that are being laid out. The next kind of section of laws is laws about restitution. And so just again points to God's character and how he loves to be reconciled with his people and his people to one another. And so, as you're moving three through these laws, think about how what is the Lord trying to establish with in the culture in the society? I mean, you move like in chapter 23 moves into laws and how you use your time and, um six years and then the seventh years of Sabbath and then six days and then the seventh day of the Sabbath, and then three times a year, full week where you come and you experience thes festivals to the Lord. And so it's establishing rhythms of time of work and key in on the dynamic. But between what the Lord will do and what he commands is people to do. Yeah, I notice how often he says, Pay attention to all that I've said to you. Listen, And then you will obey my voice and you will do this. And then I will do that. Yeah, So I converse our Chapter 23. You know, you will enter into there into Canaan, and you will not bow down to them. You do not do as they do, or I will overthrow them. And then you do not worship them this way. And then here's what I will do. Yeah, I love that. Just like you were saying with God establishing new creations like new laws, he's establishing these new patterns for his people in this new relationship between him and his people. There's over and over again in this lacks in this last section of Chapter 23 there's this back and forth of what God will d'oh! And how the Israel lights are to obey In response to that, so he's setting up This pattern in the Old Testament is gonna be carried out throughout the Old Testament into the New Testament. When we have Christ, he's this fulfillment of what God is going to dio. And so in the New Testament, we can say God did, um, all of this and he said, I will do And then Christ did it. And so in the New Testament, we can almost replaced this pattern with, um God God did. And now I will obey in response to that. So in the Old Testament, God will got, will got will. And then it's fulfilled in Christ. And the natural response is always to just burst worth and joyful obedience because of what God has done on our behalf. So I love this pattern that's established here of God Will d'oh! And the Israel lights are to obey. In response to that, yes, you see, the law is God's will distilled 10 commandments distilled and then in crisis displayed, so those are a couple things that can help you appreciate and love the law you're looking for, how it reveals the heart of the father, his desire and these different principles. Um, as they are worked out in both worship and then and in a loving society. And then you come across it when you come across things that are strange, like, uh, thou shalt not boil a young goat in its mother's milk you're looking at What context is that in? It's actually in the context that's actually in the worship context you're going into Canaan. Don't worship the way they do. This is a common worship practice, and there's reasons you don't worship your God that way. So it's It's like the recipe. Don't boil the young goat in its mother's milk. And don't leave the butter out of the cinnamon rolls. If it says eight cups of butter, follow the recipe. Boom! Full circle. We've come full, sir. Good closure. So with that, we will sign off and we will head upstairs and go make some cinnamon rolls. All right, with lots of butter, you'll have a great week!