New Creation and Sabbath Rest

Good morning, everyone.

It's good to see you, good to worship with you.

Please turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus chapter 31.

Exodus 31 · chapter mention

If you don't have a Bible, please raise your hand

and we will have one of our members bring a copy of the Bible over to you

that you can use while you're here.

We've been in a sermon series through the book of Exodus

for the last year or so, and we're actually almost done.

We're in Exodus chapter 31.

Exodus 31 · chapter mention

I'm going to read in the beginning verses 1 to 18.

I'm also going to preach on chapter 35 verses 1 to 3

and verse 32, chapter 36, verse 7.

But that second half is a repetition.

God speaks to Moses, and then Moses later relays the same information

to the Israelites, so a lot of it is word for word repeated,

so I'm not going to read that at the beginning,

but I will read chapter 31 verses 1 to 18.

Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's word.

Heavenly Father, everything is ultimately from you and to you.

We are creatures of dust, made alive by your breath,

made new again by your spirit.

We can do nothing apart from you.

I cannot stand here and speak apart from you.

We cannot sit here and listen apart from you.

We cannot have the faith to believe and to obey you without your help.

So, Lord, from the beginning to the end, you deserve all the glory.

And we ask that you would be glorified and you'd be pleased by this time.

Lord, I stand here not as an author, but as a messenger.

Speak your word.

Help me to say only what you would have me say.

And incline our hearts to accept your word

and to live in accordance with it

so that Christ may be exalted in our lives.

It's in his precious name we pray.

Amen.

Please stand for the reading of God's word if you are able.

I will read Exodus 31 verses 1 to 18.

Exodus 31 · chapter mention

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

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Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Bye.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Speak to the people of Israel and say,

Above all, you shall keep my Sabbaths.

For this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations

that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you.

You shall keep the Sabbath because it is holy for you.

Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death.

Whoever does any work on it,

that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

Six days shall work be done,

but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest,

holy to the Lord.

Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death.

Therefore, the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath,

observing the Sabbath throughout their generations

as a covenant forever.

It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel

that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth,

and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.

And he gave to Moses,

when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai,

the two tablets of the testimony,

tablets of stone,

written with the finger of God.

This is God's holy and authoritative word.

You may be seated.

Twice a year or so,

our denomination,

Sovereign Grace Churches,

publishes a journal whose articles are written by various pastors

within our denomination.

You can buy a hard copy of it

or download a free PDF of it

at sovereigngrace.com slash journal.

In the latest issue,

whose theme was a passion for the church,

there was an excellent article by my friend,

Mark Alderton,

who pastors Sovereign Grace Church of Aurora, Colorado.

And I got the idea for my sermon introduction from his article,

so I wanted to make sure I give him credit

and encourage you to read the article.

So think for a moment

about what a typical Sunday morning looks like

in our ordinary church.

And if you have been part of other local churches in the past,

feel free to think back to what Sunday mornings look like

in those local churches as well.

People from various walks of life gather together

in the same place at the same time,

or at least mostly at the same time.

Some come early,

some trickle in late.

There are men and women,

young and old,

singles and families.

There are empty nesters,

young professionals,

as well as retired,

gray-haired saints.

They're all sinners and sufferers in their own ways.

Each carries his or her own burdens.

Sometimes they're standing during worship,

sometimes they're seated,

sometimes the auditorium

or wherever they're meeting is packed,

but more often than not,

there are many empty seats.

There are some people singing.

Some are in tune.

Some are not.

They clap in different rhythms.

The PowerPoint malfunctions

from time to time.

The pastor preaches a sermon.

Sometimes it's good,

sometimes not so good,

but it can always be improved.

Sometimes the battery dies in his microphone

at the most climactic moment.

Other times there's distracting feedback

on the speakers.

A young man gets up to walk around

to stop from dozing off.

And a young mother takes her crying child

outside to comfort her.

A typical Sunday morning.

Now contrast that

with what's happening

in our big,

fast world.

The advancement of artificial intelligence

and chat GPT

are shaking up industries

and schools.

There are wars

and rumors of wars

in Ukraine,

Russia,

Taiwan,

China,

Afghanistan,

and South Sudan.

There are mass shootings

in Texas

and Serbia.

Natural disasters

all across the world.

There are CEOs

becoming billionaires

and CEOs

going to jail.

There are athletes

winning MVPs

and vying for championships.

There are autocrats

up for election

and presidential hopefuls

making their case

and kings

being coronated.

With all of these things

going on

in the backdrop

in our world,

does the ordinary

local church

really matter?

Mark Alderton writes

in his article,

most of the world

has already answered

no to that question.

But the one

who created the world

and the church

tells us differently.

The ordinary,

imperfect,

gospel-believing

local church

as an embodiment

of the universal church

is the most important

gathering in the world.

Why?

Because it is

the blueprint

of a broken world

remade.

Continues,

the hope

for fallen humanity

is to have

God, our creator,

dwell with us

in peace

and unending joy.

And as we survey

the scriptures,

we find that God's

glorious plan

has always been

to do exactly that.

The local church

is the focal point

of that plan

being fulfilled.

There is nothing else

like it on earth

because the local church

with all its limitations

and flaws

is nothing less

than the lived out

realization

of God's glorious plan

to dwell among

his people.

The church

is not merely

the instrument

or the means

that God uses

to fulfill

his salvation purposes.

She is herself

the embodiment

and fulfillment

of God's

saving purposes.

The church

is God's

dwelling place

on earth.

As Ephesians

1.23 puts it,

the church

is Christ's

body,

the fullness

of God

who fills

all in all.

1 Corinthians 3.16

says that we

are God's temple

and that God's

spirit dwells

in us.

with the apostle

as the foundation

and Christ Jesus

himself as the

cornerstone.

It says in Ephesians

2.20-22

that we are being

built together

into a dwelling

place for God

by the spirit.

It's this

glorious reality

that our passage

this morning

about the tabernacle

points to.

It teaches us

that we are filled

with the Holy Spirit

to build God's house

and to rest

from our work

in remembrance

and anticipation

of God's

Sabbath.

So we're going to

first talk about

spirit-filled work

and then we're going

to talk about

Sabbath rest.

Chapter 31

verses 1-11

is the last section

of God's instructions

to Moses

regarding the tabernacle.

God has already

given Moses instructions

on what to make,

why,

and how to make them.

But now he gives

him instructions

about who is actually

to make those things,

those furnishings,

the tabernacle.

And God chooses

two skilled craftsmen

to lead the whole

construction project.

The first name

is Bezalel

and the second

is Oholiab.

The name Bezalel

means under the shadow

or under the protection

or under the shelter

of God,

which is quite fitting

for a man in charge

of building the literal

shelter of God

where the shadow

or the glory of God

will rest.

The name Oholiab

means protection

of the Father

or more literally

tent of the Father.

Again,

a very fitting name

for someone

who's going to be

in charge

of building the tent

or the tabernacle

for God.

So these men,

handpicked

by God himself,

were destined

for the work

that they are about

to embark on.

We're not given

many details

about Oholiab,

however we do know

that both men

are exceptionally

skilled in their craft.

Later in 3535,

when Moses is relaying

the Lord's instructions

to the Israelites,

he says,

the Lord has filled

both Bezalel

and Oholiab

with skill

to do every sort

of work done

by an engraver

or by a designer

or by an embroiderer

in blue and purple

and scarlet yarns

in fine twine linen

or by a weaver,

by any sort of workman

or skilled designer.

So they're like

Renaissance men.

They're very skilled

in all artistic designs

and crafts

related to the tabernacle.

And the Hebrew word

translated skill here

is the word

that is most often

translated as wisdom.

And in Exodus 28.3,

when it spoke

of recruiting

all the skillful

whom the Lord

has filled

with the spirit of skill

to make priestly garments,

the word skillful

there literally meant

wise of heart.

Just as wisdom

comes from applying

the knowledge

of God's word

to one's life,

self.

So skill

comes from applying

one's technical knowledge

to repeated practice.

So God recruits,

calls the skillful,

the wise of heart

who have much experience

in their craft,

not novice craftsmen,

but these skilled craftsmen

to build the tabernacle

and its furnishings.

And the reason for that,

of course,

is what we talked about

a few weeks ago,

Exodus 28.2,

because these furnishings

and tabernacle

are meant for glory

and for beauty.

And a clumsy,

novice craftsman

cannot make that.

It has to be beautiful,

it has to be glorious

because our God

is the God of glory

and beauty.

There's something

to be said here

for doing our work

that we do

with skill

and excellence.

Colossians 3.23-24

commends us,

whatever you do,

work heartily

as for the Lord

and not for men,

knowing that

from the Lord

you will receive

the inheritance

as a reward.

You are serving

the Lord Christ.

Whatever your work might be,

not only if you're

a pastor

or a theologian,

but also if you're

a mom,

an academic,

a nurse,

a doctor,

a software engineer,

architect,

designer,

analyst,

lawyer,

artist,

musician,

scientist,

administrator,

sales rep,

or accountant,

accountant,

you are to work

heartily

as unto God

and not unto men.

We should do our work

heartily,

not half-heartedly.

A person who is

working directly

for a prominent CEO

is going to work

harder than someone

who is working

for a lowly manager.

How much more so

than if we are

working directly

for the Lord?

How much more

if we are serving

the Lord Jesus

who is seated up

above in the heavenly

places at the right

hand of God the Father?

We should not work

lackadaisically.

We should work

heartily with skill

and excellence

like Bezalel

and Aholiab

unto God

and not unto men.

Other than his skill,

we're not given

much information

about Aholiab,

but we do know

more about Bezalel.

Bezalel is the son

of Uri,

son of Hur,

of the tribe of Judah.

Hur, you might remember

from earlier

in Exodus 17,

is a man who,

along with Aaron,

held up Moses' arms

when he was raising

his arm

when they were battling

against the Amalekites

in Exodus 17.

It's when Moses

raised his arms

with the staff of God

in his hand

that the Israelites

were winning the battle

and so they held

his hand up

and Hur,

Jewish tradition has it,

even though Scripture

doesn't tell us explicitly

that he was the husband

of Miriam,

Moses' sister,

which would make him

Moses' brother-in-law.

Whether that's true or not,

Bezalel is Hur's grandson.

Between Bezalel

and Aholiab,

Bezalel was the more

important figure

of the two.

We know this

because of a number

of clues in Scripture.

One is that he is

always the one

that's mentioned first

and we are also given

much more information,

description of him

compared to Aholiab.

And according to

Exodus 37,

1-6,

Bezalel alone

is involved

in the construction

of the Ark

of the Testimony

and its atonement cover,

the two holiest items

in the entire

tabernacle structure.

So while both

Bezalel and Aholiab

are the craftsmen

and the craftsmen

who worked under them

and their supervision

were all filled

with the spirit of skill,

Bezalel in particular

is filled with

something more

than skill.

We're told twice,

once in chapter 31,

verse 3,

and again in 35-30

that God has filled

Bezalel

not merely

with the spirit of skill

but with the spirit

of God himself.

The Lord says

in 31-3,

I have filled him

with the spirit of God,

with ability

and intelligence,

with knowledge

and all craftsmanship,

to devise artistic designs,

to work in gold,

silver and bronze,

in cutting stones

for setting

and in carving wood,

to work in every craft.

Of course,

this is not the same

as the Holy Spirit

dwelling in the new

covenant people of God.

We have the fullness

of the spirit

in the way that

old covenant saints

never knew.

But this is still

an exceptional statement.

The only other time

previously in scripture

in the Old Testament

prior to this

that anyone has been said

to be filled

with the spirit of God

was in Genesis 41-38

when Joseph

was described

as a man

in whom

is the spirit of God.

Just as Joseph

was directed

by the spirit of God

and given his wisdom

to interpret Pharaoh's

dreams prophetically

and then to administer

the land.

So here,

Bezalel is filled

with the spirit of God

to provide prophetic

and creative vision

and practical management

for the construction

of the temple.

The mention of the spirit

of God also recalls

Genesis 1-2

when at the time

God was creating

the world

it said the spirit

of God was hovering

over the face

of the water.

In fact,

the Hebrew word

that is translated

variously throughout

Exodus 31,

35,

and 36

as craftsmanship

or craft

or task

or work

to refer to the work

of building

the tabernacle

is the exact same word

that is used

to describe God's work

of creating the universe

in Genesis 2-3

when it says that

on the seventh day

God rested

from all his work.

God rested

from all his craftsmanship

that he had done

in creation.

So then the work

that Bezalel is doing

in building the tabernacle

is modeled

after the work

that God did

in creating the cosmos.

The tabernacle

is a kind of

a microcosmos,

a microcosm

of the world

that God has created.

This parallel

is confirmed further

by the four attributes

that the Spirit of God

has specifically

endowed Bezalel with

in 31-3.

Ability,

intelligence,

knowledge,

and craftsmanship.

I already mentioned

to you that the word

craftsmanship

is the same word

that refers to

God's creative work

in creation.

But the other three words

have an even more

suggestive parallel

in Proverbs 3-19-20

which describes

how God created

the world.

And it says this,

the Lord by wisdom

founded the earth.

By understanding

he established

the heavens.

By his knowledge

the deeps broke open

and the clouds

dropped down the dew.

Those three words,

wisdom,

understanding,

knowledge,

though translated

differently in English

here,

are exactly the same

three things

that God has filled

Bezalel with

in Exodus 31-3.

In Hebrew,

they're the exact

same words.

So then all four words

used to describe

Bezalel are taken

from God's example

in creation,

his wisdom

in understanding

and knowledge.

Similarly,

later on,

when Solomon

commissions the building

of the temple,

the Jerusalem temple,

in 1 Kings 7-14,

he says that

Hiram,

who is the master builder

tasked with that,

was full of wisdom,

understanding,

and skill

for making

any work

in bronze.

Again,

the four identical

Hebrew words

are used to describe

Hiram to create

that intentional parallel.

Bezalel is constructing

the tabernacle

and Hiram is constructing

the temple

and they are both

imitating the Lord

who created

the heavens and the earth.

In fact,

we can even say

that the tabernacle

and later the temple

are models

of the created world.

For example,

we saw earlier

that the tabernacle proper

is modeled to be

a symbol,

a representation

of heaven itself.

The holy place

and the most holy place

represent heaven.

Moses was specifically

commanded to build

the tabernacle

in accordance

with the pattern

of the heavenly things

that he saw

on Mount Sinai.

And then,

the cherubim figures,

the angels,

that are on top

of the atonement

cover inside

on the ark,

or the cherubim

that's woven

on the veil

that separates

the holy place

from the most holy place,

and the cherubim

on the inner curtains

of the entire

tabernacle structure

surrounding the most holy place

and the most holy place.

They all suggest

that you are entering

into a heavenly place.

There are angels

floating all around you.

All the golden furnishings

point to the heavenly glory.

All the golden,

and where the ark of God is,

which represents

the footstool of God,

it's the very throne room

of God.

You are sitting

in his presence

in his heavenly throne.

And then,

when you descend down

the levels of holiness,

from the golden level

to the silver level,

to down to,

out into the courtyard,

the furnishings

are made of bronze,

which suggests

a more earthly character.

Because the courtyard

is a representation

of the earth,

in the same way

that the holy place,

and the most holy place,

the tabernacle

is a representation

of heaven.

The earth is where

the Israelites worship God

and make their sacrifices.

So they have

the bronze altar,

which looms large

as soon as you enter

the tabernacle

and represents

the Mount Sinai,

really,

where they worshipped God

and made sacrifices.

That's where they will

make sacrifices

and worship God.

The bronze basin,

beyond that,

the body of water,

later in the Jerusalem temple,

its equivalent

is called the bronze sea,

represents the waters

of the earth,

in particular,

the water that

Israelites crossed

in order to escape

from the Egyptians

and to enter

into the promised land.

So the tabernacle structure,

the whole thing,

is a symbol

of the heavens

and the earth

that God is bringing about.

Remember,

in the original creation,

in Genesis 1-3,

God was walking

among men.

He lived,

He dwelled among

Adam and Eve.

His presence

was not foreign

to the first human beings,

but because of their sin

and because of

their rebellion against Him,

they were exiled

from that community,

from that Garden of Eden.

And the question

that's been hovering

over humanity

ever since is,

will we ever be restored

to God's presence again?

Will God ever dwell

with His people again?

And the tabernacle

is a preview

of God's unfolding

salvation plan,

His answer to that question,

that He does intend

to dwell with His people again,

this time forever.

The tabernacle

is a temporary fulfillment,

temporary preview of that.

that promise,

what the tabernacle promised

is fulfilled

in the spirit-indwelled

church of Jesus Christ.

Remember how God

created the world

with wisdom,

understanding,

and knowledge?

And then the temple

and the tabernacle

were produced

with wisdom,

understanding,

and knowledge.

And then later

in Ephesians 1-17,

Paul prays

for the Ephesians believers

that God may give them

the spirit of wisdom

and of revelation

in the knowledge of Him.

so that they might

be built together,

quote,

into the dwelling place

for God

by the Spirit.

Paul, again,

plays on this same theme.

The church,

which is collectively

God's dwelling place,

is the final dwelling place

for God

that He is building.

And that building project

is right now going on

as we speak.

One day in the new heavens

and the new earth,

the building will be finished.

John recounts

his prophetic vision

in Revelation 21,

1-3,

when I saw a new heaven

and a new earth,

for the first heaven

and the first earth

had passed away

and the sea was no more.

And I saw the holy city,

New Jerusalem,

coming down out of heaven

from God,

prepared as a bride

adorned for her husband.

And I heard a loud voice

from the throne saying,

Behold,

the dwelling place of God

is with man.

He will dwell with them

and they will be His people.

And God Himself

will be with them

as their God.

Where will God dwell?

In the holy city,

the new Jerusalem.

And what exactly

is this new city?

It's the bride

adorned for her husband.

This is a reference

to the church,

which is referred to

throughout Scripture

as the bride of Christ,

who is our bridegroom.

We, the church,

the people of God,

are the dwelling place

for God.

And we are currently

being built together

into a dwelling place

for God by the Spirit,

as it says in Ephesians 2.22.

In the Greek translation

of the Old Testament,

the word that is used

to describe

Bezalel and Oholiab

as skilled designer

in Exodus 35.35

is the same word

that Paul uses

in 1 Corinthians 3.10

to describe himself

as the skillful,

the skilled master builder

who laid a foundation

for the Corinthian church

that others

are now building upon.

And Paul says

that he and Apollos

and others

are God's fellow workers

and that the Corinthian church

is God's building.

And by extension,

every local church

is God's building.

Bezalel and his building

of the tabernacle

are fulfilled

in the new building

of the covenant church,

the New Testament church.

And not only do Paul

and Apollos

have a role to play

as master builders,

every single one of us

as believers

who are filled

and dwelled

by the Spirit of God

have a role to play.

In the old covenant,

in Old Testament times,

the Spirit of God

only came upon

and filled

select individuals

to complete

particular God-ordained tasks

like Bezalel

who was charged

with building

in the tabernacle.

But in the New Testament period,

in the new covenant,

God had promised

through prophets Ezekiel

and prophets Joel

that he will fill

all of his people,

all flesh,

with his Spirit,

not only

some select individuals.

And that's why

Ephesians 4

says that

that day

has not been fulfilled

in Jesus

and Ephesians 4

teaches us that

grace was given

to each one of us

according to the measure

of Christ's gift

and God gave

the apostles,

the prophets,

and the evangelists,

the shepherds,

and teachers

to us

as a church

so that they might

equip the saints,

all of us,

for the work

of ministry

for building up

the body of Christ.

It means every single

one of us

is charged

with building up

the house of God,

the house of the Spirit.

And it's when we speak

the truth of the gospel

in love to one another,

it's when each part

it says in Ephesians 2

is working together

that the body grows

so that it builds

itself up in love.

Do you know this

grave task

that God's given you?

There are varieties

of service,

there are varieties

of gifts,

there are varieties

of activities

and God distributes

all of them

and entrusts all of them

to his various people

so that we would be

an interdependent whole

working together

side by side

for the sake

of the gospel

and building up

his house.

We are also,

like Paul and Apollos,

God's fellow builders.

Are you doing your part

in God's building project?

What are you doing

to build up God's house,

his church?

The church, again,

as I said before,

is not merely

a means to an end.

The church is God's end game.

The church is where God dwells

with his people again.

What gifts has God given you?

Do you share your tongues

and their interpretation

and prophecies

with the people of God

to build them up?

Do you contribute generously

to the ministry of the church

and to the poor in the church?

Do you use your biblical knowledge

and teaching ability

to share valuable insights

to people that you talk to informally

or more formally

in community groups?

Are you using your sociability

and friendliness

to draw people

into the bond

and the unity

of our church community together?

Are you sharing the gospel

with your neighbors

and friends

to convert new bricks

that can be added on

to this structure

that God is now building?

On YouTube,

there are thousands

of time-lapse videos

that show the construction

of a house

from start to finish.

Have you guys seen any of this?

Okay.

Some of you might be thinking,

well, that sounds really boring.

But actually,

it's like you watch it

and it's downright fixed,

like transfixing.

It's really hard to stop watching

once you start watching it

because,

and these videos,

these videos have millions

and millions of views

for a reason

because it's amazing

to watch the action unfold

from the beginning

to the end,

to see how something

is built from scratch,

to see skilled laborers

doing work

and seeing something appear

where there was previously

nothing before.

It's also a huge time sucker,

so don't get into it.

Sometimes when I'm reading

a children's Bible

to my kids,

I read the story

of God's creating the world

and there are these illustrations

and I imagine to myself,

man, it would be really cool

if I could have been there,

see God bring about

the heavens and the new earth

and the cosmos.

Well, we have an opportunity

to do exactly that

with God's building of the church.

This is God's work

of new creation.

If anyone is in Christ,

as we saw in the assurance of pardon,

2 Corinthians 5.17,

he is a new creation.

Everything that is built

out there in the world,

no matter how grand

and no matter how significant,

no matter how monumental

it might seem,

will eventually pass away.

Jesus tells us repeatedly

in the Gospels

that heaven and earth

will pass away.

When the new heaven

and earth comes,

Revelation 21 tells us

that the first heaven

and the first earth

will have passed away.

It says in 2 Peter 3.10,

the day of the Lord

will come like a thief

and then the heaven

will pass away with roar,

with a roar,

and the heavenly bodies

will be burned up

and dissolved

and the earth

and the works

that are done on it

will be exposed.

The monuments we build,

the schools we build,

the governments we build,

Fortune 500 companies we build,

the Eiffel Tower,

the Taj Mahal,

the pyramids of Giza,

the Golden Gate Bridge,

the Great Wall of China,

the Colosseum,

the Empire State Building,

the Palace of Versailles,

La Sagrada Familia,

the Burj Khalifa,

all of these things

will pass away.

But the church of Christ,

built on the foundation

of apostles and prophets,

with Christ Jesus himself

being the cornerstone,

will never pass away.

Because we are being built up

as a spiritual house

with living stones,

not dead stones.

Because we are being built up,

we've been born again,

not by a perishable seed,

but by an imperishable seat

of God's abiding word,

the word that remains forever.

And when the bride of Christ,

the church of Christ,

is revealed,

fully sanctified

in all of her glory,

and we get to behold

that holy city,

we get to be a part

of that,

she's going to be

more beautiful

than anything

you have ever

laid eyes on

on this earth.

And brothers and sisters,

we get to have

front row seats

for that construction project.

More than that,

we get to partake,

be part of

that glorious,

eternal

construction project.

Dear saints,

do you really believe that?

Do you believe

that the most important thing

being built

in this world

right now

is the church

of Jesus Christ?

If you want to be

part of something

that will truly

have lasting significance,

something that will

last forever,

join God

in the building up

of his house

by putting your faith

in Jesus,

repenting of your sins,

becoming a part

of this household

of God,

that you might be

indwelled by the spirit.

It says in Exodus 36,

Exodus 36:2–6

verses 2 to 6,

Moses called

Bezalelah

and Aholiab

and every craftsman

in whose mind

the Lord had put skill,

everyone whose heart

stirred him up

to come to do the work

and they received

from Moses

all the contribution

that the people

of Israel

had brought

for doing the work

on the sanctuary.

They still

kept bringing him

freewill offerings

every morning

so that all the craftsmen

who were doing

every sort of task

on the sanctuary

came each from the task

that he was doing

and said to Moses,

the people bring

much more

than enough

for doing the work

of the Lord

that it has commanded

to do.

So Moses gave command

and the word

was proclaimed

throughout the camp,

let no man

or woman

do anything more

for the contribution

for the sanctuary.

So the people

were restrained

from bringing

for the material

they had

was sufficient

to do all the work

and more.

The Israelites

were so eager

to bring their contribution,

so eager

to take part

in this building project

of the tabernacle

that they had

to be restrained

from bringing

too much material.

If they were so eager

to be part of God's

temporary building place,

which is now gone,

how much more

should we be eager

in building God's

eternal dwelling place?

that's the tension

I feel

in pastoral ministry

all the time.

Like,

I can't believe

that I actually

have to

sell this

to people.

I don't have to

sell this

to anybody.

There should be

lines

after line

after line

of people

just thronging

to come

to be a part

of this.

We get

to be a part

of God's

eternal dwelling place.

As I mentioned

last week,

throughout the

tabernacle narrative,

we find the phrase

the Lord said

to Moses

exactly seven times,

six times,

it's connected

to the various

instructions

regarding the

construction of the

temple.

We saw the sixth

occurrence in our

chapter,

Exodus 31,

Exodus 31:1

verse 1,

when God gave

Moses instructions

about appointing

Bezalel and

Oholiad.

So this six-day

structure for the

instructions confirms

what we have already

observed,

that the tabernacle

is a kind of new

miniature creation.

And we find the

seventh occurrence

of that phrase,

the Lord said to

Moses here in

Exodus 31,

12 to 13.

And the Lord said

to Moses,

you are to speak

to the people of

Israel and say,

above all you shall

keep my Sabbaths,

for this is a sign

between me and you

throughout your

generations that you

may know that I,

the Lord,

sanctify you.

It's no coincidence

that the seventh

word that God speaks

to Moses is about

the Sabbath,

which is about

resting on the

seventh day.

This is following

the pattern of

God's work for

six days and

resting on the

seventh day because

the tabernacle

represents God's

new creation work

where he will dwell

with his people

again.

It points to his

ultimate new

creation work in

the church.

And note how

this command is

emphasized.

He says,

above all,

you shall keep

my Sabbaths,

for this is a

sign between me

and you.

I'm not going to

speak at length

about the Sabbath

because I've already

preached twice on

the subject when

we're in Exodus

16 and Exodus

20.

I encourage you to

listen to those

sermons if you want

to find out more

about what the

Sabbath means for

us today as

Christians.

But this repetition

shows how enormously

important this command

to observe the

Sabbath was for the

old covenant people

of God.

Right after the

Exodus, as they're

embarking on their

wilderness journey

toward the promised

land, God gave

them the Sabbath

command.

He didn't wait

long to give them

that command.

He gave it to

them even before he

gave them all the

other commands in the

Ten Commandments.

And then in the

Ten Commandments,

as one of the

Ten Greatest

Commandments, God

gave the command

to keep the

Sabbath again in

Exodus 20.

And here, after

completing the

tavern, when they

are about to begin

the work of

constructing the

tabernacle, God

gives them the

command again to

observe the

Sabbath.

That's how important

this command is to

the Israelites.

God says that it

is nothing less than

a sign between me

and you.

That's why in

verses 14 to 15,

expulsion from the

community of God,

God's covenant

people, and a

death penalty are

threatened for

violating it.

When God made

his covenant with

Noah, he gave the

rainbow in Genesis

9 as a sign of the

covenant with Noah.

And in Genesis 17,

when God made the

covenant with Abraham,

he gave circumcision

as his sign of his

covenant with them.

And here, as he

makes another

covenant with Moses

and the Israelites,

God gives another

sign, and that sign

is the Sabbath.

And the Sabbath had

the function of

sanctifying or setting

apart the Israelites

for God as his

special people.

Because no other

nation on earth

kept the Sabbath, a

strict weekly day of

rest.

Right?

I've said this a few

times before.

No, you know,

week is a very

unnatural unit of

time, right?

A year is based on

the earth's rotation

around the sun.

That's natural.

Right?

The month is based on

the lunar cycle.

That's natural.

A day is based on

the earth's rotation

around its axis.

That's natural.

Anybody just observing

the heavens and the

creation can come up

with those systems.

But a week, why a

week?

It's not based on

any natural phenomenon.

It exists by divine

fiat.

Because it's intended

to set God's people

apart from the rest

of the world, rest of

the nations.

The rest of the world

takes their, take

their orders from

creation.

They follow the

patterns that they see

in creation.

But the Israelites

God's chosen people,

they take their orders

from the creator

himself.

They follow the

patterns set by the

creator.

to work six days

and rest on the

seventh day.

This is why the

Sabbath is so

important.

Breaking the

Sabbath is like an

Olympic athlete

taking off his

country's uniform and

putting on another

country's uniform,

saying, well, I don't

belong there.

It's like someone

burning your national

flag.

Because it's the sign

of their covenant,

the covenant between

God and Israel.

This is why expulsion

is the appropriate

punishment.

You're cut off from

God's people because

essentially you have

renounced God and his

covenant community by not

observing the Sabbath.

And when you're cut

off from your

relationship with God,

who is the source of

all life, death is the

only appropriate

consequence, whether that

happens immediately or

eventually after you're

cut off from the

community of God.

And this all-important

Sabbath command applies

even to the God-given,

God-honoring work of

building the very dwelling

place of God.

Isn't that amazing?

We can see this in the

fact that the word work

used in Exodus 31, 14,

31, 15, 35, 2 is the

same word that was used

earlier to refer to the

craftsmanship of Bezalel

and Aholiab and the

other craftsmen.

God's telling them in the

Sabbath command to even

rest from that work of

building the tabernacle.

Lest the Israelites think,

well, we'll rest from all

other work, but surely God

wouldn't mind if we're

building his house.

This is such wholly

important work.

God tells them explicitly,

rest from that work.

Exodus 35, 3 says this,

you shall kindle no fire in

all your dwelling places on

the Sabbath day.

It's kind of a curious

command, right?

What's wrong with kindling

fire on the Sabbath day?

God's not saying that the

Israelites shouldn't cook on

the Sabbath day or eat only

cold food on the Sabbath day.

In the context of the

construction of the

tabernacle, the specific

prohibition is probably

referring to the work of

smelting and metalworking

that are happening day

after day to build the

gold and silver and bronze

furnishings of the

tabernacle.

God's saying you must rest

even from this special work

of building my own

dwelling place.

This is very helpful for me

personally, and I believe it

has applications for all of

us.

As a pastor, I can be

tempted to work, work, and

work, and to find my

identity in ministry rather

than in Christ.

It's work that has eternal

consequences.

It's such meaningful work.

I get to preach God's

eternal word, infallible

word, and I get to care for

God's people whom he

purchased with the price of

his only son, the blood of

his only son.

But by resting even from

this work, I'm reminded that

God is the ultimate builder,

not me.

I'm dispensable.

The church can get another

pastor.

The church can't get another

God.

I might not be a pastor

anymore one day, but I will

forever remain God's child,

adopted son of God.

There are days and seasons

of rest, even from the most

important work that we engage

in.

So no matter how important

your work might be in your

eyes, I think this could

apply to mothers as well,

Mother's Day, and fathers,

you could take your work so

seriously because you're

bringing up kids in instruction

and discipline of the Lord

and has eternal consequences.

But your identity is in

something more than that.

Whatever happens to your

kids as they grow up cannot

change your identity in

Christ, cannot alter your

standing in Christ before God's

eyes.

God is the ultimate builder, not

you.

We are not the ultimate builders

of our families.

We're not the ultimate builders

of our local church.

So even from this work, Christ

offers us rest.

The Sabbath is no longer the sign

of the covenant between us and

God because God has enacted a new

covenant.

covenant.

Hebrews 8.13 says, by saying a

new covenant, he has declared

that the first is obsolete.

We no longer, we're no longer

under the law, but we are led by

the Spirit.

He says, Galatians 5.18.

Romans 10.4 says that Christ is

the end of the law for righteousness

to everyone who believes.

And Jesus says in Matthew 5.17-20

that he has fulfilled the law.

He's brought it to its proper

fulfillment and end so that we as

Christians are no longer under its

legal demands of the old covenant

as law.

And this is why in Colossians 2.16-17

Paul says specifically about the

Sabbath, therefore let no one pass

judgment on you in questions of

food and drink or with regard to a

festival or a new moon or a

Sabbath.

These are a shadow of the things to

come, but the substance belongs to

Christ.

The Sabbath was merely a shadow

cast by the reality, the real

substance of the rest we have in

Jesus, the eternal spiritual rest

that we have in Jesus as Hebrews 4

speaks of.

However, the fact that the

Sabbath has been fulfilled and it's

not legally binding on us as law

doesn't mean that it doesn't have

anything to teach us.

It's still part of God's inspired

word.

It's still profitable for teaching

and to make us complete, equipped

for every good work.

So in its Christ-fulfilled,

transformed form, the Sabbath still

has many important things to teach

us.

I think one application is that we

shouldn't be legalistic about its

observance since Christ has already

fulfilled it.

It's not something you have to

observe.

Sometimes the Sabbath can be a cover

for selfishness, an excuse for

self-centered self-care.

Sometimes it can be an expression of

pride like it was for the Pharisees,

a way of showing other people how

mature I am compared to others.

But we also shouldn't disregard the

Sabbath principle.

As Jesus says in Mark 2, 27, the

Sabbath, or 22, 7, the Sabbath was

made for man.

In other words, for our sake, for our

benefit.

We can see this in our passage in

Exodus 31, 17.

Please look there with me.

Exodus 31, 17 says,

It is a sign forever between me and

the people of Israel that in six

days the Lord made heaven and earth,

and on the seventh day he rested and

was refreshed.

God set this pattern for us so that we

might rest and be refreshed.

God wants to refresh you.

The cure for burnout is not necessarily

less work.

Sometimes people who serve the least are

the most burnt out.

The cure for burnout is more rest in

Jesus.

Jesus said in Matthew 11, 28 to 30,

Come to me all who labor and are

heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,

for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you

will find rest for your souls.

Rest for your soul is found in the

finished work of Christ on the cross.