Exodus 36:6-7 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.
Have you ever been in the middle of a journey and had to stop to accomplish some other seemingly unrelated task? All you energies and hopes are toward arriving at your goal and the transmission in your vehicle quits working! Now you have to go through the hassle of tow trucks and mechanics and waiting for parts and swiping your credit card. And, by the way, there went your trip! Out the window!
These types of interruptions rarely happen in places where there are many exciting things to do within walking distance of the repair shop. And even if you get a rental car to continue your trip, that pall of the financial burden weighs heavy on your heart. Interruptions!
Our text lands right in the middle of the Exodus narrative. The people are on their way to the Promised Land. They have been freed from Egypt and slavery. They have rebelled and shown their fannies to the LORD. They are a disgrace.
The LORD has given instructions for the building of a mobile meeting place where He will show up and be connected to His people through their obedience to some simple commands. Their whole calendar revolves around the events of the exodus from Egypt and the cycle of sevens. And the Tabernacle, the fancy tent they are constructing, is the center of those events.
But these instructions seem out of place to me. Right in the middle of the journey they stop and construct this tent. Doesn’t that seem weird to you?
The recorder of these events isn’t just telling us what happened. He is forming his narrative in a way that informs us about the “why” of the events. This isn’t only about slaves being set free. It is more importantly about the LORD giving humanity another fresh start, another opportunity for obedience and return of the blessing of the Garden.
So spending the rest of this book detailing their obedience in making this tent serves a profound purpose. It centers this new community on the presence of the LORD in their midst in this tent. It sets up the readers for the following book of Leviticus which details the activities that are to take place in this tent.
So when our text tells us that the obedience of the people in bringing and making materials for this tent, it signals a flash of hope. Maybe this time the people will be obedient. Their hearts were moved to bring so much that Moses had to stop the offering! Can you imagine taking and offering in church and having to stop because the baskets were overflowing with cash and checks!
But this text is in contrast to the events of the Golden Calf, the complaints about food and water, about the leadership of Moses. This people was a rebellious people. So this act of obedience stands out. If only they could have sustained their obedience!
But that is so often like us. We are often able to start well, but then along the way we loose focus and get sidetracked. Our hearts are in the right direction, but our hands, feet and mouths seem to have a different idea all together. They lead us astray. (But aren’t our hands, feet and mouths part of us!) Our actions betray the divided nature of our hearts, don’t they.
Oh for the joy of living in the blessing of the LORD. One day! One day!
The Arnold Journey 