Tonight, I invite you to turn to the second book of the Bible. We conclude chapter 30 tonight, and just a few sermons in chapter 31, and then we will be in the Golden Calf event. So chapter 30 tonight is a series of things that I thought, I don't know if it's helpful to take them separately, I do see a connection between them. So we're going to take these three things that are emphasized here that don't seem to relate, but I believe do when we look at the big picture. So we'll read verses 11 to the end of the chapter. This is the word of the Lord, Exodus 30, verse 11. The Lord said to Moses, when you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary the shekel is 20 geras half a shekel as an offering to the lord everyone who has numbered who is numbered in the census from 20 years old and upward shall give the lord's offering the rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less than the half shekel when you give the lord's offering to make atonement for your lives you shall take the atonement money from the people of israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives. The Lord said to Moses, you shall also make a basin of bronze, with it stand a bronze for washing. You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, with which Aaron and his son shall wash their hands and their feet. When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister to burn a food offering to the Lord. They shall wash with water so that they may not die. They shall wash their hands and their feet so that they may not die. It shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations. The Lord said to Moses, take the finest spices of liquid myrrh, 500 shekels, and of sweet smelling cinnamon half as much, that is 250 and 250 of aromatic cane, and 500 of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary and a hint of olive oil. And you shall make of these a sacred anointing oil blended as by the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil. With it you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony and the table and all its utensils and the lampstand and its utensils and the altar of incense and the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils and the basin and its stand. You shall consecrate them that they may be most holy. Whoever touches them will become holy. You shall anoint Aaron and his sons and shall consecrate them that they may serve me as priests. And you shall say to the people of Israel, this shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations. It shall not be poured on the body of an ordinary person and you shall make no other like it in composition. It is holy and it shall be holy to you. Whoever compounds any like it or whoever puts any of it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people. The Lord says to Moses, take sweet spices, stacte and onicha and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense. Of each there shall be an equal part and make an incense blended as by the perfumer seasoned with salt, pure and holy. You shall beat some of it very small and put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with you. It shall be most holy for you. And the incense that you shall make according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves. It shall be for you holy to the Lord. Whoever makes any like it to use as perfume shall be cut off from his people. May the Lord bless tonight the hearing of his word. Well, one of my great frustrations with the Christian life is often forgetting what I've learned and what I've been taught. And I do that so easily. I'm really good at that. And I'm sure that you've experienced that struggle. When we come to Sunday, we have this sort of washing of water experience by the Word. It renews us. It refreshes us. We are given grace. We are strengthened. Light is given to our paths, and we feel energized. We feel renewed by the Word. And then, of course, we look back maybe over the week, or then we come back to the house of the Lord, and we're perplexed by how careless we were throughout the course of the week. And careless we were in the walk, careless we were in taking seriously, if we had had this sort of sense of joy that we had coming up to the house of the Lord, if that had seemed to be in front of us the whole time during the course of the week, well, maybe we wouldn't have stumbled as we had. Maybe you understand this problem. It's a problem of forgetting who we are. It's a problem of forgetting what our new identity is. It's a problem when discouragements happen in the course of the week of forgetfulness. And we go on easily in sin because we forget that ultimately, just in the first question and answer of the Heidelberg, we're no longer our own. We live this life like we still are. That's a hardship that we have, a struggle that we have. And that's why it's so important to understand that the Lord has put things in place to remind us and to help us. We've seen this in our study of Exodus. It was the same gospel that was given to Israel. It was not a different message. There was not a different message. The book of Hebrews, the New Testament makes clear they were saved in the same way. Anyone who was saved in the old was saved by grace through faith, and this gospel was preached to them. It was preached to them in the wilderness. The tabernacle structure proclaimed it. All these pieces were proclaiming it. I mean, What have we been studying the whole time with the altar and the provisions that have been made? The visible gospel. But the Lord knew along the way that they would be very forgetful. And the whole history of Israel was what? Well, this is why we study being under the law and the implications of that and what was different from the old and the new. And we've done quite a bit of that in our study. But what is in front of us tonight is that the Lord was concerned to remind Israel the ultimate intention of His gospel and the plan of redemption that would come in fulfillment, that would come in the fullness of time. And that He had put things in place to tell them this, to remind them that they are His people, that they are separate. He was putting things in place to prevent them from, if you will, going back to Egypt. Never going back to the situation that it was before their deliverance. The way they lived in Egypt, the way they lived in the world, they were not. Notice how many times holy was said in this passage tonight. Separate, holy. There's the sacred, we'll look at, and then there's the common. He's making distinctions for us in this passage, and He wants them to grasp this. So, notice the structure tonight that we had been looking at since Exodus 20, the Lord now in this arrangement of putting them under the law. But now he's instituted things that again illustrate the promises of the gospel. So you see the law and the gospel put right side by side here again. He keeps doing this, doesn't he? And this is really powerful tonight as he has these gospel ordinances set in front of us. And we see these things that were ordained to teach Israel this, that they would understand this, that they would understand Christ, that they would understand their need, and then you get to study these things and fulfill them. I want to consider these three and apply them so that you now understand what you enjoy in full. The first provision had to do with reminding them that they needed to be ransomed. Did you notice that there? It's a really interesting section. In verse 11, we read, Then the Lord said to Moses, When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, and there shall be no plague among them when you number them. This is what everyone among those who are numbered shall give, a half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary. Very interesting command here that the Lord gave. What we find in verse 14 is that only those were numbered who were males 20 years old and above. So this was essentially, as has been noted, a military numbering. Those who were numbered for battle. The Lord's men for battle. This would always happen, and every time that there was a battle to occur, there would be a numbering of those who would fight so that the commanders of Israel's army knew how many men they were taking into battle. This was the numbering of the men. So the men would gather, 20 years and older, and they would number off one by one. And as they were numbered, they would take a shekel, and they would cross over a line, and they would present it as an offering to the Lord that would then go for the service of the tabernacle. Remember that the bases were silver. So you saw silver in the tabernacle that was given as the lives atonement was made for these lives, which is interesting. Verse 16, you shall take the atonement money of the children of Israel, people of Israel, and give it for the service of the tent of meeting that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord so as to make atonement for your lives. It was a ransom price. They were being taught that to be in the Lord's army, a ransom had to be paid. The Lord wanted them to understand this, didn't He? They were redeemed from Egypt and they were brought into the Lord's army. They were brought into His place. So every time they went out, they'd pay this ransom price. And I can't imagine thinking about that. Here I'm going out to battle. they'd go out to battle, and they would put in the price. Imagine thinking to themselves, I'm not my own. I was bought. I was bought at a price. Silver. Every time, all the silver, all the silver. So God put this in place. Now we get to the meaning of this somewhat, I believe, when you understand Israel's struggle. What would later happen with this particular problem with Israel? Well, it would be that the massive armies of Canaan and the massive armies of the people would come up to war against Israel. And Israel's great failure would be that they would not look to the Lord for deliverance, but that they would look to the size of the other armies, wouldn't they? Or they would try to make and then think about the size of their armies and how to fight the battle. And remember, the Lord was constantly dealing with this. I don't, Gideon, just give me 300 that lap like dogs. I'll win with them. So they would be worried about the size of armies and then they would make alliances with all the more powerful armies with which they were in conflict, other armies, and they would align with these and go up to battle. There was always the cry against Israel for this problem in the Old Testament. It's all over the place. I mean, just think of something like Isaiah 31. Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots and in the great strength of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or seek help from the Lord. This will help you understand why David got into trouble. Remember David's census. It's a big issue in the Old Testament when David wanted to number the troops and Joab says, don't do it, David, don't do it. He knew what was in David's heart. May the Lord your God multiply the troops It's a hundred times over. May the eyes of the Lord, the king, see it. But why does my Lord want to do such a thing? David wanted to know how great his army was and how powerful. And guess what he didn't do? They didn't pay the ransom. And the plague fell. That's from Exodus 31, 30 here. No ransom was paid. And the plague fell on Israel. So this was really important. The purpose for the census was for paying the ransom. God wanted Israel never to forget something very basic in all of this when they headed out to war. It's my kingdom. I do the fighting. I build the armies. The battle is mine, just as the Lord told through Moses. This battle is the Lord's. That's the distinct thing that he never wanted Israel to forget. Mine. My kingdom. My battle. By victory. And they would surrender then that symbolic act. There had to be a ransom paid that all of their strength and power in life belonged to him. You'll see that in verse 15, which is really interesting, that the rich shall not give more and the poor shall not give less. Why? Because God wanted it understood when it came to the ransom price, there's no distinctions in greatness. They were always to be reminded they were bought. Bought with a price. and that it never resulted from their greatness or their power, ever, ever. As a matter of fact, you'll see next time in Mark's gospel, it's so fascinating that when Jesus finally gives his question, you know what it says right after that? The common people heard him gladly. And in the next breath, Jesus says, oh, stop looking at their great robes. It's really fascinating. Not the stupid people. The common people. This is so important tonight and we'll come back to apply this in just a minute. Let's move on to the next thing here. What's put in place next? Verse 17. The Lord spoke to Moses and said, you shall make this also a basin of bronze. It's a bronze laver, right? It stands for bronze for washing. And you put it between the tent of meeting and the altar and you put water in it, which Aaron and his son shall wash their hands and their feet. When they go to the tent of meeting or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn food, a food offering to the Lord, they shall wash with water so that they may not die. They shall wash their hands and their feet so that they may not die. It shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations. It's the last piece of furniture that's really being rehearsed here in Exodus and being explained to us. This one went, as last time we looked at the altar of incense and the importance of prayers the smoke went up this one's right in front of the in the courtyard right in front of the door to the holy place was this big bronze laver and it was filled with water and so if you were walking to the courtyard you'd pass by the altar and then you'd come to this bronze laver and then you'd enter into the holy place and then you had the most holy place remember it was full of water and every time the priests had to wash their hands and they had to wash their feet the people would bring their sacrifices so they would see that their own priests needed to be washed and if they didn't wash the penalty was death now we have studied how clean they needed to be when they put on their garments and they already had a big washing at the ordination you remember but something else was needed and that's why that bronze altar was there it was a symbolic act very plainly declaring that as they went in their lives had the need and this is important for applying it the continued washing continued washing in the service of the lord continued it did not stop that's the second thing and then the third is the anointing oil you'll notice here they were to take all these quality spices and to make this holy anointing oil and two things were anointed everything of the tabernacle its structure notice that in verse 26 all these pieces were anointed with this special oil and then they would anoint the priests themselves with this oil and they wanted everyone to understand that something was set apart to be very sacred, very special. Something was set apart for them to be very specially set apart in the service that was holy. It was set apart from all that was common and profane. Verses 31-33 specify this compound of oil. It could not be reproduced. The Lord was very concerned that this stuff and people would try to wear it and then go out and try to sell it. How much of that stuff has happened in history, by the way? Anyone who marketed it was cut off. Well, it wasn't the oil itself that made things holy. He was setting apart and making distinctions for them and noticed that every part of the ministry they were involved in was radically set apart from everything else that they knew to be common. That is so important tonight to think about. What was Israel realizing? I'll come back to that. Now, how does all this work together? I know that's the jet tour through all of this and very, how do you go through all these details tonight? You're thankful I'm not, I'm sure. But getting the big picture is helpful, isn't it? Think of this. With these practices, he taught them three things. You put it together. Ransomed, washed, and anointed. Ransomed, washed, and anointed. I thought that is really a beautiful picture when you think of everything that he had been teaching them about their need. Don't forget, you're bought. I don't ever want you to forget you're bought. You don't own yourself. Israel, everyone look at this. Look at your leaders. Look at your fighters. You don't own yourselves. The battle belongs to the Lord. You need to be continually washed. Your priests do. Look at this. Continually. And don't forget that the ministry that you are a part of is sacred. Holy to the Lord. Holy. Don't you dare make it something common. Can you put that together? Don't you have all of these things in the New Testament? Everywhere? What have you been taught your whole life? Put it together. Don't you think we go on in this life, having been brought out of Egypt, hearing the gospel, hearing Jesus died for us, hearing the great crossing over event, the death and the resurrection, we're about to celebrate and we celebrate all the time. We celebrate it every year. We talk about it all the time. Don't you think we get out there this week and forget we're not doing this in our own strength? Of course you forget that. Of course you forget that. I forget that. Let me put it this way. Don't you need to constantly be reminded you do not own yourself? Isn't that a great comfort to you? You were purchased by somebody. Don't you realize who washed you and who continues to wash you? Do you ever think you forget that you are anointed? You know you struggle with these things. Your lives were bought with a price. The apostles were often, in the way that they wrote the New Testament, Sometimes you might read them and think, well, that seems a little abstract. What is the meaning of that? They're thinking of all these things. They're working from these things. So that when Peter could say something like this, you now know what he's talking about. You were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by the tradition of your fathers. But you were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ. As of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Your whole lives, the Lord has been so carefully, and this is the great fight that goes on in the course of our lives and in the course of churches and in the course of theology and how we think and what we do. What is the great fight that we have? Don't think salvation is in your strength. we fight against that all the time. Like Israel, looking to their own strength and their other saviors, we're doing all we can in the church today if we're doing our job to say, you have no strength to enter the kingdom. You have no strength to fight the battle yourselves. A ransom was paid for you. You're in His army. And the battle is His. Your lives belong to the Lord. What is the struggle? Always. We constantly want to make names for ourselves. We constantly want to take credit for our successes. We constantly hold out our positions and our degrees and our accomplishments. This covers every facet of life. As a pastor of a church, don't you think we're constantly worried about filling up seats with people? Constantly. We number the people all the time. We're doing just what David did. You don't think we take pride in that? We're Americans too, of course. What's our motto? Bigger's better. Bigger, faster, stronger. What about our lives? Performances, incomes, children, grade point averages. Athletes. Point averages. Money portfolios, stat, stat, stat, stats, drive us. When I was a basketball player, the worst thing they ever did was buy a new scoreboard. And I remember that you'd see your number, you'd see how many points you were scoring in the game. I was looking at that thing all the time. Let me tell you, how many points I lived for that new scoreboard. We go through life and we forget all the time. I'm purchased. It's not about me. Every event, every dollar, every bit of success. He gave us as a blessing an opportunity to be a part of His kingdom and love Him. That's not all, of course. I'm glad there was a bronze laver put right in front of the door. You had the altar where sin had been forgiven. And what's the danger? That from there, we forget our constant, continual need. If you were putting it theologically, And it's been noted by others that the altar was symbolic of their justification and the lava of their sanctification. Just like the ransom money, the Lord had made a provision to teach them about justification by faith, the single great sacrifice of Christ who covers us from our sins. But then He set something before them that said, but you need to continually be washed. You're not done. You need washing. You're forgiven. All your sins have been dealt with, but your hands and your feet have problems and you know that. You're running and doing things you shouldn't do all the time. Doesn't that make John 13 mean something? Where he rises from the supper and he lays aside his garments and he takes a towel and he girds himself and he pours water into a large basin and he begins to wash the disciples' feet and and remember jesus is about to go into the sanctuary for us he's about to head right up on into through golgotha right up into the holy of holies for us to be our mediator and high priest forever but as he's going there he passes by the lava and he gets down and he washes their feet right on the way right on the way to the cross hebrews says with his blood he purged our sins that he might sit down at the right hand of the majesty on high he's the one through whom you have access right the lord of glory gets on his knees before he goes there and he washes and peter struggles with that he says no no no no no no i need to wash you jesus says unless you come to me i'm the laver and are washed you don't have any inheritance. You have no access. Part of being identified with me is a washing that you need. Belonging to me needs that you need to be washed. And then Jesus said to him, he who is bathed needs only to wash his feet. You see what he's thinking about, in my opinion, is Exodus 30. You're already completely clean. But I need to take care of your feet. Except you have this continued washing. Feet carry you to places that you don't want to go. Jesus would say that to Peter. They symbolize the Christian walk. This is the washing. Sin has contaminating effects. You're going to go out this week and you're going to get dirty. You're going to get dirty. You're going to struggle. Penalties have already been paid. You're forgiven. But these continual disruptions have a very contaminating effect on the relationship. And as we wait for Christ to come, the whole scene is teaching us here that Christ, our high priest, is our labor and washes us with the washing of water by the Word. you have a daily need to put your feet in the labor and how special is the sabbath notice that's coming here in chapter 31 the importance of the sabbath all tied together well this is his continuing ministry to you and he is able to cleanse your conscience from evil works every time you sin he has a washing for you you need to know that. Confess your sins and he's faithful and just to forgive you your sins and do what? Cleanse you. Cleanse you from all unrighteousness. Well there's one other. See how wonderful the Lord is? There's a provision for your ongoing need for washing and that's tied to his ministry to you and you'll notice here that he mentions this anointing. The tabernacle was anointed and the priests were anointed. Well you know about that. you should you've received it and as for you the anointing which you have received from him abides in you and you have no need for anyone to teach you but as his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie just as it is taught you you abide in him you have the spirit you've been anointed he's come to dwell with us he's come to live in us he's come to sanctify us that means that your whole life now is anointed that means that not just your bodies your life is lived that this is why paul would even say when you sit down and you eat you do all things uh for his glory you can eat and drink to his glory and then he says when you pray you're doing something you're doing something very important things are sanctified by the word of god and prayer i share in that anointing you share in that anointing and he set up a sacred ministry for that and i think we really have to be challenged on that to close tonight there's something very special that we have treated as common and there is something very special that he has maintained to this day for you, to help you. The tabernacle was set up, remember, and the tabernacle is where the priests proclaimed the truth and where the Gospel was announced and where this whole section in Exodus is going to end and the glory is going to descend and the cloud is going to fill up the place because the Lord was in that place. He was with His people. It was a special ministry that He had set up to proclaim these things to them. Well, what do we call it? We call it here in the New Covenant and Fulfillment the ministry of the Spirit. The ministry of righteousness. It's a holy, sacred ministry to you. It's separate from the world. That's why no matter how hard we want to make it something else, you'll never be able to do it because it is just that, separate in every way. And we react against that. We struggle with that. But it has to be. It can't look like the world. It can't sound like the world. This was the message for Israel. You are bought. You were ransomed with the blood of Jesus. You are washed continually in the Word. And you are separate people. And I've set apart a separate ministry of the Spirit for you. This is why God was coming among Israel. And this is why Christ came to dwell among us and give Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and do what? Purify for Himself, His own special people, zealous for good works. Get it? He came to redeem us and purify us so that our lives would be set apart in His service. zealous for his good works. The whole story is told here. And I close with the words that we sang this morning. Praise my soul, the King of heaven, to his feet thy tribute bring. Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, who like me his praise should sing. Praise him, praise him, praise the everlasting King. Let's praise him. Father, thank you for encouraging us with these things. setting up things that proclaim all of your intention to show forth Christ in all of the Scriptures and righteousness and to set apart a people to yourself, saved, sanctified, that we might proclaim your praises. We might live as a separate people, a different people and receive a ministry sacred that brings glory and honor to your name. May we be a thankful people and may, Lord, we be a remembering people and understanding people and every week long to come to be washed with the washing of water by the Word and to remember so clearly having proclaimed to us that we've been purchased with a price and have been anointed and share in the anointing of Christ that we might, Lord, be a people zealous for good works and from every lawless deed purified for Christ as His own special people. Thank you for teaching us these things. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.