This transcript was generated by whisper.ai.

[Music] This is day two of week six of our look together through the book of
Exodus. We're in chapter 27 today. And in this chapter, Exodus 27, there is a
word that shows up later in this chapter that is good for you and I to
understand as believers because it has to do with who you are now that you're a
follower of Jesus.

Remember, as we said yesterday, part of living the life of freedom is living by
faith in who God says you are and what God has done in your life. Instead of
living by doubt or living by fear based on what the world around you is saying
or what your emotions within you are saying. No, you live by faith based on what
God has said.

We live by faith and not by sight. And this is a chapter, we're heading toward
this word later in the chapter, but it's a chapter that actually begins by
talking about how to build the altars and the courtyards. The altars, 27 verse
one and two, let me read those verses.

Build an altar of acacia wood, three cubits high, it's to be square, five cubits
long and five cubits wide. Make a horn at each of the four corners so that the
horns and the altar are of one piece and overlay the altar with bronze. This
altar and all the directions for how it was to be made, this is where the
sacrifices of sins would be made.

So there's directions in this chapter of how to make that. And then there's
directions for how to make the courtyards, verses nine to 11, some of those
directions. Make a courtyard for the tabernacle.

The south side shall be 100 cubits long and is to have curtains of finely
twisted linen with 20 posts and 20 bronze bases and with silver hooks and bands
on the posts. The north side shall also be 100 cubits long and is to have
curtains with 20 posts and 20 bronze bases and with silver hooks and bands on
the posts. And it goes on to talk about each of the courtyards.

Now the important thing about this is, for all but the priests, the courtyard
would be the closest they would ever get to the tabernacle. They couldn't get
into the tabernacle. They couldn't go into the holy place, and they certainly
couldn't go into the holy of holies, but they could get to the courtyard.

And in these courtyards they would stand and they would worship God. This would
be the place where, if you happen to be one of those who lived in ancient
Israel, where you and I, most of us, would be in worshiping God. It's the place
that they went to worship.

Not all the time, but maybe once a year in a pilgrimage. Maybe once a year to
recognize who God is. Now there's the courtyard and there's the altar in these
verses, but I wanted to focus on one last thing in this chapter.

I wanted to focus on what happens with the lamps that were lit in this
tabernacle. Listen to verses 20 and 21. "Command the Israelites to bring you
clear oil of pressed olives for the light so that the lamps may be kept burning.

In the tent of meeting," which is another name for the tabernacle, "the tent of
meeting, outside the curtain that is front of the testimony, Aaron and his sons
are to keep the lamps burning before the Lord from evening till morning. This is
to be a lasting ordinance among the Israelites for the generations to come. "
Now first, it's in the tent of meeting.

That's another name for the tabernacle. "Outside the curtain that's in front of
the testimony," this is the curtain between the holy place and the holy of
holies, "there are lamps that are to be kept burning from evening until morning.
" So there's always light.

There's always light in the temple of God, in the tabernacle of God. There's
always light because God is light. And this is to be, listen to this phrase, "a
lasting ordinance among the Israelites for the generations to come.

" What is an ordinance? You may have heard this if you're involved in local
government at some time. It's a word we don't very often use.

A local ordinance is a law or a statute that tells you what to do when you cross
the crosswalk or what to do in the case of this corner and how it's to be used.
But there's obviously something more than a law here. This is a lasting
ordinance among the Israelites for generations to come.

There's a sense of holiness, of importance here. What is an ordinance? It is
something that God commands us to do regularly, habitually, continually.

And it's almost always a part of how we worship Him. So in this ordinance that
they were celebrating, regularly, habitually, continually is a part of their
worship. They were keeping the lights burning because God is light.

So there was always light in the temple, always light in the tabernacle. We do
it in obedience to Him. An ordinance is something that God said, "Here's what
you do.

You do this regularly, habitually, continually in obedience to Me to recognize
who I really am. " It reminds us of the truth of who God is in our lives. Now
their ordinances were the sacrifices in the temple and here keeping the oil
burning in the lamps of the temple.

So the question is, do we have any of these today? Any ordinances today in the
church? Not in the temple, but in the church?

Are there things that Jesus commanded us to do continually to remember who He is
in our lives? And the answer is, yes, there are. There are two specific
ordinances that we celebrate today as believers.

The ordinances of the church are the Lord's Supper and baptism. These are things
that Jesus commanded us to do. Jesus commanded us, "Be baptized.

" Jesus said when it came to the Lord's Supper, "This do in remembrance of Me. "
He commanded us to do these things, and we do them regularly, habitually,
continually, and when we do them, we recognize who He is. It's true in both the
Lord's Supper and baptism.

Baptism, you're only baptized once, obviously, but then you see other people
baptized again and again and again. You're baptized in recognition of what Jesus
has done for you, and baptism is a recognition of what Jesus did for you on the
cross and in the resurrection. That's why you're baptized by immersion like
Jesus was because it's a picture of what Jesus did.

When you put under the water, it's a picture of burial. When you come up out of
the water, it's a picture of resurrection. And why do we baptize by immersion,
for instance, in our church?

Why do we put people under the water and bring them up out of the water? It's an
ordinance. It's a recognition of who God is and what Jesus did for us.

It keeps us centered on what's really important. In that temple, in that
tabernacle, they needed to keep centered on the fact that God is light. It never
was dark there.

And you and I, as believers today, we need to keep centered on the fact that
there is a cross, and Jesus died on that cross, and there is a resurrection, and
there is life only through Jesus. And any time we wander from that center, we
lose the light that we need in our lives. We see it in baptism.

We also see it in the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper picture
is the same thing. When you take the symbol of the bread and you eat it, Jesus
said, "You do this to remember that my body was given for you.

" When you take the symbol of the juice and you drink it, you are remembering
that His blood was shed for you. It's a reminder of the fact that Jesus gave His
life for us, of who He is. Now, here's the interesting thing.

Their ordinances look forward to Jesus. Our ordinances look back to Jesus, but
they look at the same person. They're all looking at Jesus Christ.

They look forward to the fact that Jesus was going to come some day. When Jesus
came, He said, "I am the light. I'm the light of the world.

" He fulfilled this continual light that was in the tabernacle, that was in the
temple. And then Jesus says to us, "You are the light of the world. " He's put
His light into our lives so that we can be a light to the world that's around
us.

It's His light. It's not our light. But it shines for the people that are around
us so that they can see that there is good news in life.

It's not just bad news. Their ordinances look forward. Our ordinances look back,
but it all focuses on Jesus.

That's who it's all about. So today, as we think about this word that we don't
use very much, "ordinance," I'd like to end by praying together. And in prayer,
taking some time to remember who Jesus really is in our lives.

Jesus, thank you. Thank you for who you are. We see who you are in the cross.

We see who you are in the resurrection. Oh, we could see it before then. We
could see it in the way that you served and ministered and the things that you
taught.

You taught that you're the resurrection and the life. You taught that you're the
light of the world. But Jesus, by dying on the cross for us, giving your life
when you did not have to, choosing to give your life, by showing your power in
the resurrection, we see who you are, God in human flesh.

And so today, I pray that my focus, that our focus, would be on you. It's so
easy to focus on the other people that are around us, on the other circumstances
that are around us, and we have to love those people and we have to live through
those circumstances. But we need you today.

So let the focus be on you. Let that be the lasting ordinance in our lives, that
we focus, Jesus, on you and who you really are. Let that light shine in our
lives today.

We pray this in your name, Jesus. Amen. Tomorrow, we're going to get an
opportunity to look at the clothes that we wear as believers today.

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