that is contrary to these things in their daily practice. How can it be consistent for one who claims to be a follower of the God of truth, to be guilty of persist ent falsifications in business, in the schoolroom, on the playground, or in the sanctuary? Then under the law there were def inite instructions with respect to the seventh year and the seventh day (vv. 10-13). In the first instance (10, 11), the seventh year was^ for the purpose of giving rest to the land with a graci ous thought of the poor in mind. In the second instance (w . 12, 13), the seventh day was for the purpose of rest for man and remembrance of God. Eternal prin ciples are involved in these provisions. H elp s for the Children Laws to Live By Ex. 19,20,23 Memory Verse: “Teach me thy way, O Lord” (Psa. 27:11). God had wonderfully brought His people, the Jews, out of the land of Egypt; He had wonderfully delivered them at the Red Sea. Now on their journey He had to give them some rules to help them to live together safely and peacefully. He knew that not all of them would want to do certain things in the same way; not all of them would know the best way to care for their bodies. God gave to Moses many rules and laws for the Jews. The best known are the Ten Commandments; but there were hundreds of laws that God gave to His people. Sometimes the people dis obeyed God’s laws and had to be punish ed. Sometimes they complained that His laws were unfair and not good for them. Many of the people prayed as did the Psalmist, “ Teach me thy way, 0 Lord.” If you want to read some of these laws, read Exodus chapters 19, 20, and 23. These are only a few of the many chap ters which give God’s laws for His people. Sometimes boys and girls, even though they love the Lord Jesus, complain about rules on the playground or in the school room or about the laws in their homes. Rules and laws are necessary if we are to live happily with others. God tells us to obey those who are leaders over us unless obeying them means that we must disobey God. Those who carefully obey God’s laws are those whose lives are the most happy and the most useful. Can you pray truthfully, “ Teach we thy way, O Lord” ? November 25, 1951 THE PEOPLE AT WORSHIP The Christian’s first duty to God is worship. This needs to be firmly fixed in the mind of every one who claims to be a Christian. Too often substitutes are offered in the place of worship. But there is no substitute. First of all God wants man’s worship, not his service, nor his gifts, nor anything else. More than anything a parent desires the love Ex.29 : 43-46 ; 35:21-29 Pointers on the Lesson
of the child. The same is true of the faithful husband and wife with respect to each other. The're is no comparable substitute for this devotion. Neither will God accept anything in place of the love and adoration His children owe to Him. Let every teacher take the oppor tunity this lesson affords to stress the importance and character of true wor ship. The Psalmist exhorts us in these words: “ 0 worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness” (96:9). In our les son two phases of worship are set forth: communion with God and the consecra tion of His people with their possessions to the service of God. God Meets With His People Ex. 29:43-46 Just about the most important typical institution in the Old Testament was the Tabernacle. Every part of it was a blessed shadow of things yet to come (Heb. 9:8, 9, etc.). Picture if you can this marvelous structure in the wilder ness. Its plan was devised in Heaven (Ex. 24:18ff.). Around it were care fully arranged the tents of the various tribes of Israel so that the Tabernacle was the center of everything. The teach er could make this very graphic by sketching an outline of the Tabernacle on the blackboard and arranging the several tribes about it in accordance with the plan set forth in Numbers, Chapter 2 and following. At the Taber nacle God met with His people through a system of sacrifice and priestly min istry. This arrangement was wonderfully fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ of whom it is said, “ And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt [tented or taber nacled] among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). The place where God meets His people today is in the person of His beloved Son. By Him God has made it possible for sinful people and a holy God to come together. And in Him it is Man’s duty and privilege to worship deity. Man Responds With a Willing Spirit Ex. 35:21-29 After Moses finished telling the people God’s plan for the building of the Tab ernacle, it is refreshing to see how readily they responded to His desires. Would that it were always so! There would be no deficiencies in God’s work as far as its support is concerned. The giving of these people was an act of worship. Ten times in the account it is recorded that what the people brought was an offering unto the Lord (e.g. w . 21, 22, 24, 29). How does your giving compare in spirit with that of Israel? Do you give merely to discharge an obligation or is it really a part of wor ship? Moreover, the giving of Israel was prompted by zeal for God’s service. They gave “whose heart stirred him up” (w . 21, 26). It was a willing offer ing (vv. 21, 22, 29). It was an offering according to ability. Note the different
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