By: Jessika Sanders
This week we take a break from reading with our usual lens of suffering and perseverance. In Exodus 26-30 we see a rather long soliloquy from the Lord, outlining the specific details for the construction of the tabernacle (and all the things within it and relating to it).
From exact measurements,
To specific materials,
To the particular method for blood sprinkling,
Explicitly directing His people, the Lord left no stone unturned.
Exodus 30: 20-21 NLT outlines the requirements regarding the bronze basin, “They must wash with water whenever they go into the Tabernacle to appear before the Lord and when they approach the altar to burn up their special gifts to the Lord–or they will die! They must always wash their hands and feet, or they will die. This is a permanent law for Aaron and his descendants, to be observed from generation to generation.”
I wonder, did the people find the specifics for attaining holiness overwhelming?
Did they find the rules and regulations for holiness before the Lord to be an impossible standard to meet, let alone maintain?
Maybe in this season you feel like you’re falling short of what is expected of you as a Christian.
Maybe you’re struggling to read your Bible, to attend church, to worship the Lord, or even just pray to God.
Be encouraged knowing that thanks to Jesus, holiness no longer needs to be earned, it is now a free gift to receive.
Hebrews 13:11-12 NLT states, “Under the old system, the high priest brought the blood of animals into the Holy Place as a sacrifice for sin, and the bodies of the animals were burned outside the camp. So also Jesus suffered and died outside the city gates to make his people holy by means of his own blood.”
Scripture tells us when we believe in our heart and confess with our tongue that Jesus is Lord, He becomes our mediator and our Great High Priest. His righteousness is imparted to us so we no longer have to meet an impossible standard of holiness nor fear we will die when we approach God.
We pray this week’s reading reminds you of the grace and mercy given to you by our Savior and that it encourages you to boldly approach God’s throne to receive help when you need it most.
Jesus, thank you for the freedom I find in you. Thanks to your New Covenant, the one in which your body was broken and your blood was spilled, I no longer need to strive to attain holiness. When I accepted you as Lord and Savior, you credited me your righteousness and reconciled me to God. I thank you for your continued grace and mercy as I navigate this difficult season and I thank you for the promise that you’ll give me the exact help I need. In your holy name I pray, Amen.
Dig Deeper
Reflection Questions:
In what ways do you feel like you are falling short of what might be expected of you as a Christian?
Are these expectations found in Scripture or are they expectations you have placed upon yourself?
Put Your Faith Into Action:
Jesus makes us holy.
Colossians 1:22 NLT states, “Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.”
This week, we challenge you to get an index card and write the first letter of each word in this verse as a device to memorize it and write it on your heart.
ex: Y N H H R Y T H T T D O C I H P B…
Further Reading:
Reflect on the law, Christ’s perfect sacrifice, and His role as Great High Priest as you read through:
Hebrews 4:14-16,
Hebrews 8
Hebrews 9
Hebrews 10:1-18
Jessika Sanders is a published writer who has been featured in Proverbs 31 Ministries’ Hope When Your Heart is Heavy devotional (2021), Focus on the Family’s Clubhouse Jr. magazine (2023), and Tyndale’s So God Made a Mother (2023). She is also the co-author of The Good Book Company's, In His Hands: Prayers for Your Child or Baby in a Medical Crisis ( July 2024). Jessika is also the founder and president of Praying Through ministries.
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