Tag Archives: talents

Invest His assets (Luke 12:35-40) November 18, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Zechariah 8-14

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 12:35-40
Jesus: I’m not just talking theory. There is urgency in all this. If you’re apathetic and complacent, then you’ll miss the moment of opportunity. You should be wide awake and on your toes like servants who are waiting for their master to return from a big wedding reception. They’ll have their shoes on and their lamps lit so they can open the door for him as soon as he arrives home. How fortunate those servants will be when the master knocks and they open the door immediately! You know what the master will do? He’ll put on an apron, sit them down at the kitchen table, and he’ll serve them a midnight snack. The later he comes home—whether it’s at midnight or even later, just before dawn—the more fortunate the alert servants will be.
In contrast, imagine a complacent, apathetic household manager whose house gets robbed. If he had been aware that thieves were waiting in the bushes and what hour they were coming, he would have watched and he never would have left the house! I’m trying to tell you that these are times for alertness, times requiring a sense of urgency and intensity, because like the master in the first story or the thief in the second, the Son of Man shows up by surprise.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

I do a lot of my shopping online. I admit it. It’s not that I’m an online shopping junky. I’m not. It’s just that I don’t like crowds much and I don’t particularly like walking all over stores and malls trying to find what I’m looking for when I can sit in my comfortable recliner and find the same thing for the same price and have it delivered to my door, often with no shipping cost. So I save gas, I save the frustration of rude people in stores, I save my aversion to large crowded places, I save my sanity and shop online.

One of the downsides of shopping online, though, is I sometimes forget to order things through a private browser so those companies get a hook into my email. Then I get the endless junk mail ads that tell me the next thing I obviously must have to make my life perfect. And always I need to buy it in the next four hours to get the best price or to ensure it is still in stock because the item is going fast. If I don’t get it now, it might not be available tomorrow.

The same thing happens on television. Get it now while they last. Call in the next hour for this special price. Of course, the same ad runs five times a day, every day for six months, so I think the one hour time limit is probably a little bogus. And the hook I really like, but can’t even remember the product, our phone lines are very busy so, if your name starts with A through N call today, if your name starts with O through Z, call tomorrow. But the next day, the same commercial runs with the same instructions. I guess if you’re name starts with O through Z, you’re just out of luck and can never buy the product or you ignore the instructions and call whenever you want.

Urgency. Jesus talks about urgency. But it’s not about gaining material things here. He doesn’t care much about the material things. He knows we need certain things to survive and wants more than that for us. I think He wants us to live above a subsistence level and lets us enjoy some of the comforts of life, but to chase material things just to chase material things is not in His game plan. We are to be caretakers, not owners of the stuff He lets us use. When we forget our position and begin to think we are owners of all the stuff around us, we are in trouble.

Remember, we are not citizens of this world. We won’t take any of it with us. It belongs here, but we do not. We are only stewards of the assets God puts in our hands and He wants us to use those assets for His glory and the good of others. So when He returns as the true owner of everything He created, He’ll want to see how we did in the use of His resources.

Just like 401Ks, the early you invest His resources in His work, which means making yourself available to Him, the better the return on His investments. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Besides, we don’t know when He might come back. It could be tonight or tomorrow or next week or on Inauguration Day or in another 2,000 years. We just don’t know when Jesus will return to check out what we’ve done in His physical absence. But a day of reckoning is coming and we will all be held to account for how we used His resources.

So, are you ready for His return? Have you been investing the assets He has put at your disposal? Not just the material things, but your talents, your experiences, your opportunities? You? He’s coming soon. Be ready.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

How many disciples would that be? (Matthew 25:14-30) June 13, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Leviticus 1-3

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 25:14-30
Jesus: This is how it will be. It will be like a landowner who is going on a trip. He instructed his slaves about caring for his property. He gave five talents to one slave, two to the next, and then one talent to the last slave—each according to his ability. Then the man left.
Promptly the man who had been given five talents went out and bartered and sold and turned his five talents into ten. And the one who had received two talents went to the market and turned his two into four. And the slave who had received just one talent? He dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money there.
Eventually the master came back from his travels, found his slaves, and settled up with them. The slave who had been given five talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned five into ten; then he handed the whole lot over to his master.
Master: Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
Then the slave who had been given two talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned two into four, and he handed all four talents to his master.
Master: Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
Finally the man who had been given one talent came forward.
Servant: Master, I know you are a hard man, difficult in every way. You can make a healthy sum when others would fail. You profit when other people are doing the work. You grow rich on the backs of others. So I was afraid, dug a hole, and hid the talent in the ground. Here it is. You can have it.
The master was furious.
Master: You are a pathetic excuse for a servant! You have disproved my trust in you and squandered my generosity. You know I always make a profit! You could have at least put this talent in the bank; then I could have earned a little interest on it! Take that one talent away, and give it to the servant who doubled my money from five to ten.
You see, everything was taken away from the man who had nothing, but the man who had something got even more. And as for the slave who made no profit but buried his talent in the ground? His master ordered his slaves to tie him up and throw him outside into the utter darkness where there is miserable mourning and great fear.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

The story Jesus tells us about heaven in today’s lesson fits our society much better than some of the previous stories He’s told the crowd around Him. In our capitalistic, materialistic world, we understand using money to make money. We understand in our country how much easier it is to get the second million once you get the first million. You’ve learned the rules. You know the ropes. After the first million, you know how to use the right people and how to avoid others so that money multiplies.

The world’s economy makes it easy to multiply riches once you have them. We see it around us everywhere. The old euphemism that the rich get richer and the poor get poorer really happens in a lot of places. And it is at least relatively true in most of the world today. Those with wealth know how they got that way and they know how to continue to build on it.

So the master comes home from his trip and rewards those who doubled the funds he entrusted to them and punished the one who did not use the funds entrusted to him. How should we interpret that in our spiritual lives and in terms of the end times Jesus has been talking to His disciples about?

God gives each of us gifts, talents, skills, experiences that He expects us to use in service to Him and others. What talents, gifts has He given you to serve and edify His church? Is it preaching, teaching, hospitality? Is it one in the long list of spiritual gifts that Paul gives us in his writings? Maybe it’s the gift of math that you can use to help the treasurer of your church or to help others understand budgeting to help them out of or to avoid the stranglehold of debt. Maybe you are gifted as a mechanic and can serve some that need transportation but cannot afford to get their car fixed right because of their current situation.

What talents, gifts, skills, experiences has God given you that you can share with someone around you that can help them see the love of God. Can you use those gifts and multiple the disciples in His kingdom? That’s our task, after all, to make disciples in every nation. Are you using the gifts God has given you to double the disciples in your neighborhood? It’s an interesting question to ponder. How many disciples would that be? 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Use your gifts well (Romans 12:1-8) December 2, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Romans 12:1-8

Set – Romans 11-12

Go! – Romans 9-12

Romans 12:1-8
1 Brothers and sisters, in light of all I have shared with you about God’s mercies, I urge you to offer your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice to God, a sacred offering that brings Him pleasure; this is your reasonable, essential worship. 2 Do not allow this world to mold you in its own image. Instead, be transformed from the inside out by renewing your mind. As a result, you will be able to discern what God wills and whatever God finds good, pleasing, and complete.
3 Because of the grace allotted to me, I can respectfully tell you not to think of yourselves as being more important than you are; devote your minds to sound judgment since God has assigned to each of us a measure of faith. 4 For in the same way that one body has so many different parts, each with different functions; 5 we, too—the many—are different parts that form one body in the Anointed One. Each one of us is joined with one another, and we become together what we could not be alone. 6 Since our gifts vary depending on the grace poured out on each of us, it is important that we exercise the gifts we have been given. If prophecy is your gift, then speak as a prophet according to your proportion of faith. 7 If service is your gift, then serve well. If teaching is your gift, then teach well. 8 If you have been given a voice of encouragement, then use it often. If giving is your gift, then be generous. If leading, then be eager to get started. If sharing God’s mercy, then be cheerful in sharing it.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

The words I gave Paul to share with you tell you so much about how I want you to live. Today everyone wants to think they are independent and can do everything themselves. But you can’t. Just admit it. You can’t do everything. In fact, you can’t do most things. I gave you a few gifts and talents that I want you to share with the world. I gave others skills and talents you need.

I separated the talents and skills necessary for successful living to different people for a reason. I want you to need each other. I want you to become interdependent just as the parts of your body are interdependent. Your brain cannot operate outside your body, nor can your body operate without your brain. You can live without your limbs, but considered handicapped when you do because your body can’t do the things it is designed to do. Each of your internal organs serve vital functions that when they cease to function, you cease to function well and often you die.

So it is with My church. I designed you to be interdependent as people. For My church to operate effectively and efficiently, I need all My church’s members to use the skills and talents I gave them to pull together for a common purpose – to spread the good news of My salvation. I want each of you to understand the importance of bringing others into My church. Each person coming into the community of My fellowship adds to the effectiveness of the spread of My message to the world. As the right skills add to the spreading of the message, more and more will come to the saving knowledge of My sacrifice for them. But I need you.

Also, I want you to know I don’t need spectators. I didn’t give you the skills and talents you have to just sit and watch. I want you engaged in the mission I gave My church. I intend for all participate in that mission. When I made Adam, his job satisfied him, but it wasn’t easy. He cared for every plant and every creature I created. Not an easy job, but a satisfying one. Only after the fall did the job become unsatisfying to him because of his disobedience.

The mission I give you as a part of My church will satisfy you when you work at it with the skills and talents I entrusted to you when I made you. When you do the tasks I give you to do, you will wonder at the joy you experience. You will know the kind of satisfaction Adam had when he fulfilled the tasks I gave him to do at the end of My creation.

So use what I give you. Be satisfied with the gifts, skills, and talents I give you. Then use them well. As Paul says, if I give you the gift of teach, teach well. If the voice of encouragement, use it often. Use whatever I have given you to build My kingdom. You won’t be disappointed. 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Get up and get at it (Matthew 25:14-30) November 26, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Matthew 25:14-30

Set – Matthew 24-25

Go! – Matthew 23-25

Matthew 25:14-30
Jesus: 14 This is how it will be. It will be like a landowner who is going on a trip. He instructed his slaves about caring for his property. 15 He gave five talents to one slave, two to the next, and then one talent to the last slave—each according to his ability. Then the man left.
16 Promptly the man who had been given five talents went out and bartered and sold and turned his five talents into ten. 17 And the one who had received two talents went to the market and turned his two into four. 18 And the slave who had received just one talent? He dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money there.
19 Eventually the master came back from his travels, found his slaves, and settled up with them. 20 The slave who had been given five talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned five into ten; then he handed the whole lot over to his master.
Master: 21 Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
22 Then the slave who had been given two talents came forward and told his master how he’d turned two into four, and he handed all four talents to his master.
Master: 23 Excellent. You’ve proved yourself not only clever but loyal. You’ve executed a rather small task masterfully, so now I am going to put you in charge of something larger. But before you go back to work, come join my great feast and celebration.
24 Finally the man who had been given one talent came forward.
Servant: Master, I know you are a hard man, difficult in every way. You can make a healthy sum when others would fail. You profit when other people are doing the work. You grow rich on the backs of others. 25 So I was afraid, dug a hole, and hid the talent in the ground. Here it is. You can have it.
26 The master was furious.
Master: You are a pathetic excuse for a servant! You have disproved my trust in you and squandered my generosity. You know I always make a profit! 27 You could have at least put this talent in the bank; then I could have earned a little interest on it! 28 Take that one talent away, and give it to the servant who doubled my money from five to ten.
29 You see, everything was taken away from the man who had nothing, but the man who had something got even more. 30 And as for the slave who made no profit but buried his talent in the ground? His master ordered his slaves to tie him up and throw him outside into the utter darkness where there is miserable mourning and great fear.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

You can interpret the parable I gave that day many ways. Some will think the master cruel for the way he treated the one who did not multiply the talent he intrusted to him. Some will look at the parable as an encouragement toward capitalism and an indictment of socialism. Some will think the master unfair in giving the unused talent to the one who had ten and think it should go to the one with four so he could have a better chance of gain.

None of those interpretations are right. You see, the master cares about working within the servants’ capabilities. That’s all. He gave each of his servants talents within their specific capability to handle and multiply their means. He expected them to use what he gave them to do just that. Two of the three worked hard and did what he expected. The third, lazy servant, did nothing. He buried the talent and let it lay dormant in the ground.

And why did he give the extra talent to the one who already had ten? Because he knew it was easier for the one with ten to add a single talent to his portfolio and manage it than for the one who had four to add one to his. He knew the people who worked for him. He knew their skills and gave them what they could handle. Unfortunately, the one who could handle the single talent failed to do what he could and just sat by doing nothing.

I never expect you to just sit around and do nothing. I always have a task for you. Sometimes it requires some waiting for things to happen around you, but seldom does that mean you are idle in the process of waiting. Even in waiting, I expect you to be busy doing good for others. I never expect you to just sit by and watch the grass grow and the clouds drift by. My children never retire. I may change their tasks from time to time, but they never retire from My service.

So take a few lessons from the story. Don’t find yourself in the place of the servant with one talent. He wasn’t condemned for the fact that he had only one talent. He found himself condemned because he failed to use the one talent I had given him. Use what I give you for My glory. It will multiply. Never retire. Never quit. Never sit on the side lines. I have work for you to do. Get up and get at it.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Your talents are important (1 Corinthians 12:1-11), November 12, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Set – Job 40; 1 Corinthians 12

Go! – Job 40-41; 1 Corinthians 12

1 Corinthians 12:1-11
1 Now let me turn to some issues about spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters. There’s much you need to learn.
2 Remember the way you used to live when you were pagans apart from God? You were engrossed—enchanted with voiceless idols, led astray by mere images carved by human hands. 3 With that in mind, I want you to understand that no one saying “Jesus is cursed” is operating under God’s Spirit, and no one confessing “Jesus is Lord” can do so without the Holy Spirit’s inspiration.
4 Now there are many kinds of grace gifts, but they are all from the same Spirit. 5 There are many different ways to serve, but they’re all directed by the same Lord. 6 There are many amazing working gifts in the church, but it is the same God who energizes them all in all who have the gifts.7 Each believer has received a gift that manifests the Spirit’s power and presence. That gift is given for the good of the whole community. 8 The Spirit gives one person a word of wisdom, but to the next person the same Spirit gives a word of knowledge. 9 Another will receive the gift of faith by the same Spirit, and still another gifts of healing—all from the one Spirit. 10 One person is enabled by the Spirit to perform miracles, another to prophesy, while another is enabled to distinguish those prophetic spirits. The next one speaks in various kinds of unknown languages, while another is able to interpret those languages. 11 One Spirit works all these things in each of them individually as He sees fit.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

So many people confuse the gifts I give you to carry out the tasks I have for you. Why would I give everyone the same gift? What purpose would that serve in the world? I have given a multitude of gifts to a multitude of people. I find you also envy the gifts I give to some and not to others. You wonder why you do not have particular gifts. You wonder why I give some gifts to one person and not to others or to you.

Don’t you think I know what I’m doing when I distribute My gifts among you? I have a purpose and a plan for each person and I give you the gifts and talents you need to carry out that plan. I don’t expect you to complete anyone else’s task so you don’t need the gifts meant for someone else. Does that make sense to you? If not, let Me explain it another way.

When your house was built an entire team of builders with different skills came together to make it happen. First, an architect drew the plans for the building. An engineer used his skills to mark the property and give heavy equipment operators the exact spots to dig the space for the house, pour the concrete footings, and lay in the foundation upon which others would build. Plumbers and electricians made sure pipes and conduit went into the foundation at just the right places as it was poured so everything below ground was ready.

Framers quickly erected the outer structure of the house, the skeleton on which everything else rests. Roofers covered the top and put on the shingles to keep out the rain and the framers put the sheeting on the outside. Masons came into the picture next worked on the outside putting up the bring or stone to make it begin to look like a house as plumbers connected pipes to all the places water would run throughout the house. Electricians ran wire and cables throughout the house and insulation went into the interior walls. Heat and air experts put in the vents throughout the house.

Now the sheetrock crew comes in. The interior walls go in and these experts begin to finish the walls by sealing and sanding all the seams and corners. Finish carpenters start all the door frames, cabinets, molding, and staircases. Painters cover all the walls and ceilings. Carpet layers and experts with flooring lay tile or wood in appropriate areas. Electricians finish their work connecting all the switches and plugs, putting in the stove, oven, any other appliances and light fixtures. Plumbers install sinks, showers, and tubs.

Finally the general contractor finishes his inspections and turns the house over to the realtor to sell the house to you. Dozens of people with the right skills put your house together to make it liveable for you. Each had different skills. Not one of them could have made your house like it is. None of them are skilled in all the areas needed to build your house. It took the whole team with all of their separate gifts to make the home you inhabit.

So it is with the work I have for you. You don’t know the final plan I have for the world I created. You get glimpses by the words I left with you, but you only see the part of the plan I have for you just as the electrician only sees the pages of the blueprint he needs to build your house. He doesn’t get the whole set. He doesn’t need the whole set. Neither do you need to see the whole picture of what I plan for the work I have in store for My people. Just be content with the gifts I’ve given you and understand that your part is necessary. Then do your tasks well. Use the gifts I’ve given you, knowing that the tasks I’ve given you are an essential part of My plan.

Just like every talent that went into the building of your house is important, so the gifts I give to every person are important in the execution of the plans I have for this world and the next. Work diligently for Me so that at the end of time, I can say to you, “Enter in, good and faithful servant.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

God has a task for you (1 Corinthians 12:12-31), Mar 27, 2015

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Today’s Podcast


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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – 1 Corinthians 12:12-31
Set – Judges 2; 1 Corinthians 12
Go! – Judges 1-3; 1 Corinthians 12

1 Corinthians 12:12-31
12 Just as a body is one whole made up of many different parts, and all the different parts comprise the one body, so it is with the Anointed One. 13 We were all ceremonially washed through baptism together into one body by one Spirit. No matter our heritage—Jew or Greek, insider or outsider—no matter our status—oppressed or free—we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Here’s what I mean: the body is not made of one large part but of many different parts. 15 Would it seem right for the foot to cry, “I am not a hand, so I couldn’t be part of this body”? Even if it did, it wouldn’t be any less joined to the body. 16 And what about an ear? If an ear started to whine, “I am not an eye; I shouldn’t be attached to this body,” in all its pouting, it is still part of the body. 17 Imagine the entire body as an eye. How would a giant eye be able to hear? And if the entire body were an ear, how would an ear be able to smell? 18 This is where God comes in. God has meticulously put this body together; He placed each part in the exact place to perform the exact function He wanted. 19 If all members were a single part, where would the body be? 20 So now, many members function within the one body. 21 The eye cannot wail at the hand, “I have no need for you,” nor could the head bellow at the feet, “I won’t go one more step with you.” 22 It’s actually the opposite. The members who seem to have the weaker functions are necessary to keep the body moving; 23 the body parts that seem less important we treat as some of the most valuable; and those unfit, untamed, unpresentable members we treat with an even greater modesty. 24 That’s something the more presentable members don’t need. But God designed the body in such a way that greater significance is given to the seemingly insignificant part. 25 That way there should be no division in the body; instead, all the parts mutually depend on and care for one another. 26 If one part is suffering, then all the members suffer alongside it. If one member is honored, then all the members celebrate alongside it. 27 You are the body of the Anointed, the Liberating King; each and every one of you is a vital member. 28 God has appointed gifts in the assembly: first emissaries, second prophets, third teachers, then miracle workers, healers, helpers, administrators, and then those who speak with various unknown languages. 29 Are all members gifted as emissaries? Are all gifted with prophetic utterance? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Or are all gifted in healing arts? Do all speak or interpret unknown languages? Of course not. 31 Pursue the greater gifts, and let me tell you of a more excellent way—love.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

I really want everyone involved in the work of My church. There are a handful of leaders in a congregation that I’ve given the skills to manage the business of the church. But I don’t expect them to do everything because I didn’t give them the skills to do everything. I gave pastors the gift of preaching My word, sharing the good news of what I can and will do for you. But I didn’t give them all the skills necessary to fulfill all the responsibilities I planned for My church.

Today, too many parishioners think they only need to warm a seat in the sanctuary and they fulfilled their responsibility to Me. That thought is so far from the truth. I gave each individual in the congregation just the right skills and talents I need to help My church complete all I want it to complete. When everyone gets involved with the skills I gave them, the very gates of hell can not hold it back from the success I have for it.

The problem most churches have is you’ve told yourselves for too long that the work is someone else’s responsibility. Since when did that work ethic become part of My plan? You may not be gifted in teaching, but if you’re not, that’s probably not the job I had in mind for you anyway. Standing in front of a crowd might make you want to faint. If so, I probably didn’t give you the gift of preaching.

Perhaps, though, you have a tremendous knack for carpentry. I gave it to you for a reason. Would it hurt you to give some of that talent to support My church or the people I direct you to help? Maybe you are at the top of your league in some sport. Could you spare some time for some of the kids in your neighborhood to teach them some of your skills…for Me? I gave you those talents for a reason. I want you to use them to carry out My plan for you.

You see, it takes all kinds of talents to carry out the plans I have for your particular congregation. I have a job for every single individual there. I just need you to get on board and recognize the skills you possess came from Me for My purposes. I have plans for you, individually and collectively. When all of you work together to build My church and My kingdom, amazing things can happen. But when you try to let a few carry the load, they don’t have all the skills they need, no matter how hard they try.

It’s time for you to pitch in and do your part. Did you ever think about tithing your time to Me? Remember, I want your living sacrifice much more than I want your money or material goods. Everything in the world is Mine, so I don’t need your money. I gave you particular talents because I want you. I want your time. I want your commitment to the plans I have for you.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Did you say that was boring? (Exodus 39/32-43), Feb 5, 2015

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – Exodus 39:32-43
Set – Exodus 39; Psalms 15
Go! – Exodus 39-40; Psalms 15; Acts 12

Exodus 39:32-43
32 All the work that went into the sanctuary of the congregation tent was finally finished. The Israelites did everything exactly as the Eternal One had instructed Moses.

33 Then the Israelites brought all they made to Moses. They brought the tent and all its furnishings, including its hooks, frame panels, crossbars, posts, and bases; 34 the layers of red-dyed rams’ skins and the sea-cow skin that covered the sanctuary; the veil shrouding the most holy place; 35 the covenant chest with its poles and the seat of mercy; 36 the table, its tools, the bread of the Presence; 37 the gold lampstand, its lamps and all its tools, the lamp oil; 38 the golden altar of incense, the anointing oil and the scented incense; the fabric screen for the tent’s entrance; 39 the bronze altar for burnt offerings, the bronze grating, its poles and tools, the basin and its stand; 40 the panels that enclose the courtyard, the posts and bases, the screen that covers the court’s entrance, the cords and pegs; and all the tools used in the sanctuary of the congregation tent, 41 the finely woven clothing for priests serving in the holy place, the sacred garments worn by Aaron the high priest, and the clothes his sons are to wear when they serve as priests as well. 42 The Israelites completed each part of the project exactly as the Eternal One had instructed Moses.

43 Moses inspected every piece of work they had completed, and he saw that they had done it all with excellence according to the specifications given to Him by the Eternal One. So Moses blessed them.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

Sometimes you might wonder why I asked Moses and others to put so much detail in descriptions that can seem pretty boring to you. I know it’s been millennia since anyone stepped foot into the covenant tent that housed the articles described in these verses. Why would I want anyone to include the detail about the hooks on the poles and the sea lion skin coverings? What do you care about 4,000-year old bronze altars, screens, pans, shovels, and grates?

For one thing, the detail was important to the purity of the religion I established through Moses and Aaron. The Israelites would soon enter a land filled with pagan icons and idols, sacrifices to false gods, and abominable practices that would entice them away from the worship of Me, the only True and Living God. The preparation of the intricate handiwork required to build My tabernacle kept them focused on Me instead of the pagan gods they encountered in their wanderings.

Second, the instruments and implements noted in the building of the tabernacle showed the Israelites I am a God of order, not chaos. It showed them through the fabrication of all the things involved in the feast days, sacrifices, and worship that I had a unique plan laid out for them. Everything pointed to their past and their future and your future as you consider the placement of the furniture in the sign of a cross, the instrument of crucifixion that would later become the symbol of life.

Third, it allowed those with talents I had given them to share those talents with others and with Me. Moses inspected every item, every implement, every piece of cloth, every article that would soon find its way into its place for caring for My tabernacle and the ways I told him to carry out their means of worship. Every item he inspected he declared as excellent in workmanship. Everyone involved in the project gave their best for the project.

So, what might seem boring to you at first reading, stop and think again. Lessons can be learned there. Keep your eyes on me, not on the world’s idea of gods around you. Remember I have a plan for you just as much as I had a plan for the Israelites 4,000 years ago. And don’t forget I gave you talents to use for Me and for others. Don’t hoard them. You can do things that no one else can do. So get to it and do it with excellence.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
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