THE MYSTERY OF THE BROKEN TABLETS
The 17th of Tammuz
(Gregorian – July 6th, 2023)
Exodus 32:19 (MSG)
“And that’s what it was. When Moses came near to the camp and saw the calf and the people dancing, his anger flared. He threw down the tablets and smashed them to pieces at the foot of the mountain.”
Would Moses discard the broken pieces of a tablet etched in stone by the very finger of God?
Exodus 34:1-7 (NKJV)
THE MYSTERY OF THE BROKEN TABLETS
GOD IN A BOX
Perhaps God never intended for His people to bear the weight of the ministry alone!
The Weight of this Terrible Box
The Weight of His Presence
Glory (kabod) – honor, dignity, reputation; weightiness of personality
Since the day man put God in a box the weight of His presence has often proven to be too heavy!
The Weight of the Ministry
Leviticus 16:4 (NIV)
“He (Aaron) is to put on the sacred linen tunic, with linen undergarments next to his body; these are sacred garments.”
Perhaps, God was sending us the message that anointed ministry should involve no sweat.
The Weight of the People
Exodus 32 (NKJV)
Verse 7, 10
“And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Go, get down! 1) For your people whom you brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupted themselves. Now therefore, 2) let me alone, and I will consume them and make of you a great nation. So, Moses said, ‘If You will not forgive their sin, 3) blot me out of Your book.”
A True Intercessor:
Identification
Insistent
Intercede
God is looking for a man/woman with chutzpah!
Chutzpah (huspah) – audacity
Verses 11, 14
“Then Moses pleaded with the Lord and so, the LORD relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.”
When you carry the presence of the Lord you bear the burden of His people!
OUT OF BROKENNESS A NATION IS BORN
Deuteronomy 10:1-2 (NKJV)
1. “At that time the LORD said to me, ‘Hew for yourself two tablets of stone like the first and come up to Me on the mountain and make yourself an Ark of wood.”
2. “And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke; and you shall put them in the ark.”
Two Sets of Stone Tablets
(Torah)
1st – Chiseled and Written by the Lord God (Exodus 24:12)
2nd – Chiseled by Moses and Written by the Lord God (Exodus 34:1)
The first set was only constructed by God, the second set was constructed by God and Moses, a partnership in proclaiming the word of the Lord.
Two Sets of Stone Tablets Stored
(Talmud)
Brokenness and wholeness coexist side by side in the human heart!
Romans 7:25 (NIV)
“So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.”
We each carry two sets of stone tablets with us always, one broken and one whole.
The Mystery of the Broken Tablets
First Set – there is nothing more whole than a broken heart where true ministry flows from.
Second Set – Moses chiseled the stone, and God wrote the word.
Weight of Ark – when we carry the presence of the Lord, we bear the burden of His people.
Galatians 6:2 (NIV)
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
Contents of the Ark:
Jar of Manna or Provision
Aaron’s Rod that Budded or Power
Whole Set of Tablets or Protection
Broken Set of Tablets or Purpose
Exodus 25:22
“There (Ark), I will meet with you.”
According to Talmudic tradition, God insisted the Levites bear the burden of a nation for out of that brokenness God would build a nation!
Today’s Take Away”
When you carry the presence of the Lord you bear the burden of His people!
Out of brokenness a nation was born!
Deuteronomy 10:2 (NKJV)
“And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke; and you shall put them in the ark.”
R. Feldschau – 3/31/23
Ministered
OCC (BMT) Sunday 4/2/23
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