Israel, God's Treasured Possession (Ex. 19:5-6)

6/6/2008 8:23 AM

SPIRITUAL DIARY

My Worship Time Focus: Israel, God’s treasured possession; A kingdom 0f priests; A holy nation

Bible Reading & Meditation               Reference:  Exodus 19:5-6

          Message of the verse:  “5  Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6  you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.’”

            In verses five and six God continues to talk to Moses about Israel.  I learned of how God cared for Israel in the Exodus in verse four and now He goes on to tell Moses in verses five and six that Israel is His treasured possession; a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to which Peter picks up on for believers in the Church age.

            God’s treasured possession:  Israel was not chosen by God for any merit that they had, but as a treasured possession; a nation set apart to accomplish certain things that God wanted them to accomplish including having the Savior of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ born a Jew, and also the written Word of God has been written by Jews and also it has been taken care of by the Jewish nation, especially the OT.  Jesus Christ told the woman at the well in John 4:22 that “salvation is of the Jews.”

            Not with these great treasures comes great responsibility, and there were times when the nation of Israel has not lived up to her responsibilities and have had to be disciplined by the Lord, but at this time in history the nation of Israel is back in their land and to many this seems like the time of their kingdom is not to very far off where they will have their Messiah, King Jesus reigning over them and the entire world.

            In verse six God goes on to tell Moses that Israel will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.  I do not believe that God was referring to the priesthood that began with Aaron in this statement to Moses, for Israel was suppose to be a kingdom of priests so that they could be a light to the gentile nations around them influencing them for the One True God of Israel, and this will happen some day in the future, but it did not happen when God told Moses this in verse six for Israel was more influenced by the nations around her than her influencing those nations for the Lord, so much that God had to send her into captivity to Babylonian. 

            God also tells Moses that Israel is to be a Holy Nation in verse six.  I think that the word sanctified can be used to describe what a holy nation is and that word means to be set apart for the work of the Lord, something that I have been writing about in this SD, something that Israel did not do very well especially the priests that Israel had.  The trouble with the priests was one of the reasons that God had to send them into captivity.  “Because of the sins of her prophets And the iniquities of her priests, Who have shed in her midst The blood of the righteous.”  The words of the prophet Jeremiah in Lamentations 4:13.

            “In every area of life, Israel’s activities were governed by the fact that they belonged to God, and that included what they ate, what they wore, who the married, how they buried their dead, and especially how they worshiped”  This is a quote from Dr. Wiersbe.

            After Moses came down the mountain to give these Words of God to the nation of Israel they said that they would vow to keep all of these words and repeated that two more times, but it would not be too long before they would be building an idol, a golden calf to worship.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am doing this SD a bit different today in that I have combined three sections from Dr. Wiersbe’s book in one SD and now I want to use another one in this section of my SD.  1 Peter 2:1-19 are the verses that I want to look at for the spiritual meaning for my life today because Peter helps to tie up the verses that I have been looking at above and his verses have to do with me as a believer in Jesus Christ during this dispensation that I am living in namely the Church age.  “1 ¶  Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, 2  like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, 3  if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

4 ¶  And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, 5  you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6  For this is contained in Scripture: "BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER stone, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."  7  This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve, "THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER stone," 8  and, "A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE"; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.  9  But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

Sometimes I am quick to speak out how Israel failed to do the thing that God had given them to do and now as I read the things that I, a believer in the 21^st century living in the USA, am suppose to do the question arises “Am I doing all that God wants me to do to help advance His kingdom here on earth?”  I would say that the answer is NO, but that does not mean that I cannot do it in the future for as Peter writes I am a priest and am part of a chosen race, part of a holy nation, a person for God’s own possession, and therefore I have all of the tools to do the work that God has called me to do so Lord give me the grace to do the work that You called me to do, work You called me to do in eternity past:  “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”  (Eph. 2:10)

My Steps of Faith for Today: 

1. Remember the word of Peter that I am a priest from the royal priesthood of the Lord.  1 Pe. 2:9
2. Remember that I can pray as Epaphras prayed.  Col. 4:12.
3. Remember that I can be yoked with the Lord Jesus Christ.  Matthew 11:28-30.
4. Remember that God will direct my path.  Proverbs 3:5-6.
5. God will provide a way from temptation.  1 Cor. 10:13.
6. I can be conformed into the image of God and not the image of this world system.  Romans 8:29, 12:2.
7. I can learn contentment.  Philippians 4:11.

Memory verse for the week:                       Col. 4:12

12.    Epaphras, who is one of your number, a bondslave of Jesus Christ, sends you his greetings, always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in the will of God.

6/6/2008 9:31 AM