February 6 :: Exodus 39-40; Matthew 23:23-39

February 5: Exodus 36-38; Matthew 23:1-22

February 4 :: Exodus 34-35; Matthew 22:23-46

February 3 :: Exodus 31-33; Matthew 22:1-22

Matthew 22:37-40 is entitled in the NIV version of the bible "The Greatest Commandment." Whoa! Well let's check it out:

Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

 

February 2 :: Exodus 29-30; Matthew 21:23-46

February 1 :: Exodus 27-28; Matthew 21:1-22

God uses really specific materials in the sanctuary. It must be rich with meaning. But what does it mean? Here is some info, website listed below on meaning of colors ::

Scarlet (used for curtains/veils in the sanctuary) :: Jesus was obedient in giving up His life for the forgiveness of our sins...through His blood.

Purple (curtains) :: royalty.

Blue (curtains) :: to remind Israel of the 10 commandments.

White (curtains) :: Jesus' sacrifice made our sins white as snow.

Check out Lynda Peterson's article for more interpretations & info of the meaning of colors used in the sanctuary :: http://www.hisgloryringministries.com/tn-colorssanctuary-1.html

This is perhaps what the sanctuary might have looked like ::

January 31 :: Exodus 25-26; Matthew 20:17-34

Consider the perfect chronology of this scripture:

Matthew 20: 29-34

1) As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him.

2) Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!"

3) The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!"

4) Jesus stopped and called them. "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked.

5) "Lord," they answered, "we want our sight."

6) Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes.

7) Immediately they received their sight and followed him."

What was it like the first time you "saw" so to speak...God? The first few lines of "Amazing Grace" catch this sweet moment I suspect. Check it out if you'd like below:

 

"Amazing Grace" By: Chris Tomlin

January 30 :: Exodus 23-24; Matthew 20:1-16

January 29 :: Exodus 21-22; Matthew 19

Exodus 22: 22-24

"Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry.  My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless."

The Lord is extremely protective over His people in this passage. What does that say about what we mean to Him?

January 28 :: Exodus 19-20; Matthew 18:21-35

January 27 :: Exodus 16-18; Matthew 18:1-20

January 26 :: Exodus 14-15; Matthew 17

When the Israelites were being chased by the Egyptians near the Red Sea, they were so frightened by their circumstance that they actually wished God would have left them alone. Moses said in response:

Exodus 14:14

"The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."

And what did the God do next? He told Moses to raise his staff and the seas were caused to divide leaving a path of dry ground on which to escape.

Next time trials come our way...will we speak like the crowd of the Israelites (out of fear), or will we act like their leader (out of faith)?

January 25 :: Exodus 12-13; Matthew 16

Exodus 12: 26-27

And when your children ask you, 'What does this ceremony mean to you?' then tell them, 'It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.' Then the people bowed down and worshiped.

January 24 :: Exodus 9-11; Matthew 15:21-39

January 23 :: Exodus 7-8; Matthew 15:1-20

The beginning of Matthew 15 is a very special message! Have you heard of the Hebrew word Korban? It means to "sacrifice" or to "draw near to God." The Pharisees used to use this term for the money gift they would give to the church instead of helping their parents. They would claim that the Korban would have cleansed their hands - and that they were exempt from helping their parents.

When the Pharisees accuse Jesus' disciples in Matthew 15 of not washing their hands before they eat bread, Jesus rebuts (and very effectively!) by exposing their man-made tradition of Korban.

Matthew 15:3-6

And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? "For God said, 'HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER,' and, 'HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH.' "But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever I have that would help you has been given to God," he is not to honor his father or his mother.' And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 

Korban inscription. Many thanks to Bible History Online.

January 22 :: Exodus 4-6; Matthew 14:22-36

Exodus 4: 14-17

"Then the LORD's anger burned against Moses and he said, "What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. But take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it."

Look how the Lord reacts when He burns with anger! He not only 1) puts His loved one's fears aside by giving him a solution, but 2) comforts and pushes him forward onto the plans He has.

I want to try this next time I get mad - ask myself: "What are they doing that's making me angry? Where does that originate in them?" For if I ask, I may find out - and can then help put their fears aside and then encourage them to do His Will!

Pretty cool, huh?

January 21 :: Exodus 1-3; Matthew 14:1-21

Let's organize our brains and gage the timing of the book of Exodus (greek for "way out") ::

Joseph's death, end of book of Genesis = 1804 b.c.
Start of slavery in Egypt, start of Exodus = 1875 b.c.
Moses born = 1525 b.c.
Moses' exile in Midian = 1485 b.c.
Jews delivered from Egypt = 1445 b.c.
End of wanderings in the wilderness = 1405 b.c.


The deliverance in Exodus fulfills the promise found in Genesis 15:13-14 ::

"Then the LORD said to him, 'Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions.'"