Wed.’s Devo - Redemption

Read: Exodus 34:1-35:9; Matthew 27:15-31; Psalm 33:12-22; Proverbs 9:1-6 God told Moses to make two more smooth tablets and he would write the same words he had written before Moses smashed them. This just tells me that there is nothing we can mess up that God can’t fix. This time he was to go alone, so Joshua stayed at the camp. God came down in a cloud and stood with him. The Lord passed in front of Moses and called out his name and his character. He called his name as Yahweh, The Lord God and his character is merciful, gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth. He forgives sin but punished the guilty. *** Moses worshipped the Lord then asked him to forgive their iniquity and take them as his inheritance. *** God answered that he would make a covenant with all the people to do miracles for them the world had never seen. He would drive out their enemies before them but they had to promise not to make peace treaties with them. God was a jealous God and if they intermarried with the heathen, they would take them down with them. *** It looks like the next few verses are random but they are all about the same subject which is being set apart to be his special people. *** They were to have gods that they molted from metal. They were to celebrate the feast of unleavened bread for seven days during the first month of their new calendar which symbolized their coming out of the womb of sin and being born again. Then he says that all who come out of the womb first will be his even if they were animals they sacrificed. We are all a sacrifice to him. *** In verse 20 he mentioned the donkey or the ass which is not an acceptable animal for sacrifice. He says that if they want to redeem someone or something that is not chosen as a sacrifice, they are going to have to offer a lamb in its place. If not then they would need to break it’s neck. The donkey is known for being stubborn, foolish and dumb. If a lamb was not given for it, it would be made to bow. At the end, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess Jesus is Lord, whether they want to or not. *** They would work for the first six thousand years, but in the seventh thousand, they would find rest in planting time and in harvest time. *** They will enjoy the feast of weeks (Feast of Pentecost) at the time of the wheat harvest which is the harvest of souls and the ingathering at the end of the year. At the end of the year was the Feast of Tabernacles which was when the fruit was harvested which is a harvest of our fruit that we demonstrated to the world for Jesus’ name. *** At the three feast times, the men would appear before the Lord… in other words, these feast are accounting times before the Lord. Are you saved, are you sanctified and are you walking in your calling? *** These were the things we were to do, then God says what he will do. He will cast out the nations before them and enlarge their borders. If they observed the three times of feasts the no one will want their land. They will live in peace. *** Twice in the Bible it talks about not seething a kid in his mother’s milk. That would mean that the kid died and the mother lived. This is always said while talking about the feasts and the firstborn. I think it means that the firstborn and the feast have to do with new life that breaks out of bondage. To boil in the past sins of the mother is the opposite of what these feasts are representing, so that was not allowed. *** Moses was up on the mountain 40 days and nights without food. When he came down with the tablets, his face shone which made people afraid to approach him so he had to wear a vail over his face when speaking to them. Moses gave them the tablets and told them all God had said to him. Jesus wore this same vail over his face just wasn’t visible. He vailed his words by speaking in parables. Only those with eyes to see and ears to hear could accept his message. 
 *** Moses began his speech with talk about the sabbath rest. He told them the end from the beginning. The rest is our goal. He told them not to kindle a fire on the Sabbath. It was to be a day of peace and rest, not disputes. *** He told them all the gifts they could give for the new tabernacle. *** All of this points to the seventh day that we are entering into. *** In Matthew, Pilate brought out the most notorious prisoner in his jail - Barabbas, and Jesus. He offered to release the one the people chose. His wife sent him a message to leave Jesus alone because he was innocent. She had had a nightmare about it that night. But, the leading priests and elders had convinced the people to ask for Barabbas. Pilate was shocked and asked them what they wanted done to Jesus and they yelled to crucify him. *** Pilate couldn’t get the crowd to say what Jesus’ crime was but was too afraid of the crowd to fight them. He washed his hands of the matter and put the responsibility back on the people. He released Barabbas to them and had Jesus flogged and turned over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified. *** Some of the soldiers took Jesus into their headquarters and put a scarlet robe on him. They wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head and knelt before him mocking him as king of the Jews. (They are the donkeys that bowed even though their hearts were not in the right place.) But, they could be redeemed by the lamb they were about to kill. *** God’s forgiveness and gift of salvation is amazing. *** Lord, we are filled with gratefulness and love for you. Thank you for what you did for us as sinners. Thank you for what you do for us as your children.