Introduction: Read Exodus30

Several of the items dealt with in Exodus 30 could have been introduced earlier when the furnishings of the Tabernacle and courtyard were described. They should have something in common to be grouped together in the way they are. It is not easy to see what this might be! They all have to do with respecting and pleasing God.

(1) The altar of incense. See v1to10 and v34to38.

The altar was a pedestal one and a half feet square and three feet tall. The top of the pedestal had a horn in each corner and between the horns was an ornamental rim. It was made of acacia wood covered in gold and placed in the outer compartment of the Tabernacle with the golden lampstand.

Every morning and evening when Aaron tended the lamps he had also to burn incense on the golden altar. The formula for this incense is given and its use, other than by the priests, was prohibited.

What was the purpose of the incense? There are two possibilities:

(a) Perhaps it helped to put the priest in the right mood for carrying out his duties. It was a bit like the organ playing that precedes a church service today. The tunes of familiar hymns prepare the heart and mind for worship.

(b) The sweet aroma of the burning preparation of expensive spices was something pleasurable offered to God. It was something done to please God.

This prompts a different question. What can we offer to God that can be likened to a delightful perfume? The Bible makes four suggestions:

• Prayer. Psalm141v2: May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.

  We need to heed the words of John Burton:

  I often say my prayers,
  But do I ever pray?
  And do the wishes of my heart
  Go with the words I say?

  For words without the heart
  The Lord will never hear;
  Nor will he to those lips attend
  Whose prayers are not sincere.

• Praise. Hebrews13v15: Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice - the fruit of lips that confess his name. We need to add some passion and some praise to our prayers.

• Witness. 2Cor2v14: But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ ..... .

• Generosity. Phil4v8: I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice pleasing to God. See also 2Cor2v14and15 and Jn12v1to8.

• The incense was brought to the altar. We should give in God's name.

• It was set on fire. We need the Holy Spirit to take what we give and ensure it achieves God's purpose.

• The incense was costly. The spices were hard to get and very expensive. Our generosity should cost us something. This applies to generosity of spirit. I had a teacher come to me once and ask if I could take a Geography class off her hands. It meant I had to swop classes with her! It cost me something. Still, in her farewell speech to staff on leaving the school, the lady said how fortunate she had been to have such a wonderful head of department. The only downside was the number of incredulous gasps that greeted this announcement.

• It was reserved just for God. Some of our income should be put aside just for God.

• The incense was burned regularly and persistently. Some people's generosity waxes and wanes. It is a bit like the correspondence I have with Victoria. I have a flurry of emails and then a year might pass before I hear from her again. There needs to be a regularity and dependability about our generosity. Charities know the value of this. That is why they are very keen for you to make a standing order of so much per month. God did not want the incense burned now and again on impulse.

• The fragrance of the incense lingered on the clothing of the priest. Generosity and the other qualities above, produce a fragrant life. Some Christians just smell as if they have been with God.

(2) The atonement money. See v11to16.

Whenever a census was taken, like the one described in Numbers 1, the male Israelites over 20 had to pay a ransom or atonement money. Why was this? There may be two reasons:

(a) When the men were counted (and how little women feature in the Exodus story!) they were being numbered among the chosen people of God. This was a privilege that was not merited. It was an honour quite undeserved. So the men needed to atone for failings that should have disqualified them from belonging to God's people. So they were asked to make a token payment - half a sanctuary shekel - approximately five grams of silver - to make atonement for their sins. All were in some degree unworthy and so all had to pay. Anyone refusing to pay out of pride or presumption was liable to die of the plague!

(b) A second reason for the poll tax was to raise money for the upkeep of the Tabernacle and later the Temple. The half shekels raised from the census of Numbers 1 were used to make the silver bases for the Tabernacle framework and the bands and hooks for the courtyard screening.

LESSONS:

(a) The atonement money was required of all. Paul wrote to the Romans: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Rom3v23. Every single one of us needs pardoning and cleansing.

(b) The same atonement money was required of all irrespective of the nature and content of their sin. The true atonement money, the true redemption, the real ransome for souls, is the death of Christ - one and the same for all - necessary for all - not too much for the least, not too little for the most guilty; but a full, perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. It saves all that trust in it - saves them from wrath and death - saves them from sin - atones for them - puts them at one with the Father. Quote from the Pulpit Commentary.

(c) The act of atonement was commemorated by the items the donated silver was used to make - the silver foundation blocks and the hooks for the courtyard screens. They were a reminder to the Israelites of the need for atonement and God's grace in accepting a paltry sum of silver to pass over their sin.

Christians need frequent reminders of the price Jesus paid to atone for our sin. We should never forget - much less be half ashamed of it.

Not all the blood of beasts,
On Jewish altars slain,
Could give the guilty conscience peace,
Or wash away the stain.

But Christ, the heavenly Lamb,
Takes all our guilt away;
The Sacrifice of nobler name,
And richer blood than they.

The bronze basin for washing was made from the mirrors donated by women who served at the entrance to the Tabernacle. It is possible that the women took water from the basin in smaller bowls for the priests to wash their hands and feet. They may have provided towels and ensured that there was always sufficient water in the bronze basin. A lot of water was used in preparing the sacrifices. Perhaps, too, they were perfumerers and prepared the spices for the altar of incense. It is good that women were involved at all - even if there is little acknowledgment of their role. The basin of washing was placed between the brazen altar and the Tabernacle.

The priests had to wash their hands and feet before entering the Tabernacle or approaching the brazen altar. It was easy for the priests to get grubby: walking barefoot, handling meat and blood, shifting burning coals, raking out ash from the altar and replacing sooty wicks. It would have been disrespectful to God and his service for the priests to go about the LORD's business with filthy hands and feet.

I am grateful for the phrase in the Lord's Prayer which says, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us." When we put our faith in Jesus we benefit from his atoning death. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. However, a day does not pass without us continuing to sin. I feel the need to confess this sin and to be washed clean again and again in the same way that Jesus washed his disciples' feet. He told Peter, "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash is feet." This, like many of Jesus' remarks, is rather enigmatic. He may be referring - not to a repetition of the conversion experience - but the desire for daily cleansing from the sin that clings to us.

I feel the need to confess my sin and ask for forgiveness when I engage in Christian service, particularly preaching and teaching. This does show some respect for the Lord. We need to be in the right frame of mind before preaching to others.

I like this poem by Kathleen Wheeler:

He came to my desk with quivering lip; the lesson was done ....
"Have you a new leaf(sheet) for me, dear Teacher? I have spoiled this one!"
I took his leaf, all soiled and blotted and gave him a new one, all unspotted.
Then into his tired heart I smiled: "Do better now my child!"
I went to the Throne with trembling heart; the day was done.
"Have you a new day for me dear Master? I have spoiled this one!"
He took my day, all soiled and blotted, and gave me a new one, all unspotted;
Then into my tired heart He smiled: "Do better now, my child!"

The anointing oil was used to designate what was holy or set apart for God's special use. So the Tabernacle, all the objects in it and the courtyard plus, finally, the priests were all anointed.

The function of the oil made it sacred, unique and reserved for God's use only.

What sets Christians apart for God's service? The obvious answer is, the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament the Spirit equipped selected men and women for God's work. In the early years of Christianity the Holy Spirit provided believers with gifts for building up the church. Today, we are not going to achieve much for Jesus without help from the Spirit.

Perhaps, the olive oil constituent in the formula for the anointing oil represents the Holy Spirit. But what about the other ingredients? What do they teach us about being set apart for God's service?

(a) Myrrh is associated with death. Jesus taught the necessity of dieing to self in order to bear fruit. See Jn12v23to26. Selflessness makes a person holy - setting them apart for God's special service.

(b) Sweet cinnamon. The Lord Jesus Christ will sweeten our nature if we remain in him as a branch is in the vine. There are many whose sweet disposition sets them apart for supporting, counselling and encouraging.

(c) Calamus or sweet flag. This is a relatively common plant. It was widely used in the Middle Ages as a floor covering. When stood on, it yielded its sweet fragrance.

This speaks to us of the importance of humility - of being prepared to be trampled underfoot. Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven." Peter wrote: All of you, clothe yourselves with humility towards one another, because, 'God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.' 1Pet5v5.

A church that contains several humble servants of Jesus is fortunate indeed. Nothing sweetens the atmosphere more than the genuinely poor in spirit. They don't complain, grumble, push themselves forward or need constant thanks and reassurance. The humble quietly, unobtrusively, happily and conscientiously get on with the work God calls them to.

(d) Cassia. This is bark that comes from trees growing in China, Indonesia and Vietnam. There are several different types! The Chinese cassia consists of very, very, tough bark that is extremely difficult to grind down into a powder. Sometimes people are set apart for service through suffering. It was no easy task for God to prepare Joseph to be the saviour of his people. He had to spend time as a slave and in prison before he became prime minister of Egypt. The apostle Paul suffered immensely. If anyone was ground fine it was him. But Paul, writing out of his experience, left a legacy that has inspired the church for 2000 years.

We need more than the anointing of the Spirit. We also need to be set apart by selflessness, sweetness of disposition, humility and suffering.