Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20100509.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Exodus: God's Forming The Nation Israel For His Abrahamic Covenant
Part II: God's Forming Israel To Heed Him, Exodus 15:22-40:38
K. God's Directive Of The Tabernacle To Fellowship With His People
2. The Table Of Showbread: Feeding Man's Spirit God's Truth
(Exodus 25:23-30 et al.)
    Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

    Last Monday morning as I was driving on Route 8 and listening to my car radio, I heard a nationally-known talk show host lament the "lack of truth" in the government, big business and mainstream media.

    (1) He complained that legislators had been able to chide the Goldman Sachs CEO at a public congressional hearing for selling unwitting customers faulty mortgage products while Congress itself did much the same thing by its Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac agencies! The talk show host noted the Goldman Sachs head had not leveled such a charge back at the legislators in fear of congressional reprisals against his company! This "lack of truth" bothered the talk show host!

    (2) He then recalled the "911 truth" groups that claim the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks were "inside jobs" by the Bush Administration, and that others claim the Obama Administration caused the oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico that led to the current big oil spill, and he lamented how false these various charges were from all the very extensive information he possessed!

    (3) Then, trying to direct his large audience to live above such untruthfulness, the talk show host referred to the Bible character, Moses, and spoke of his experience at the burning bush in Exodus 3. The talk show host said the lesson behind the failure of the bush to be consumed though it was on fire (Exodus 3:2-3) was that the "fire" of the "truth" will "never hurt" us if we "surround" ourselves with it!

    (4) To be sure, it is always good to immerse ourselves in the truth -- I would have to agree with the talk show host about that! Yet, the Exodus 3 burning bush context does not address the issue of truth versus error, but speaks of God's preservation of Israel amid her fiery trial of Egyptian bondage, Exodus 2:23-25! (J. Vernon McGee, Thru The Bible, vol. 1, p. 209) I then thought to myself: "If people can't get the truth from government, business, the mainstream media or at times even from a well-meaning, nationally-known radio talk show host, where else can they turn, and how?!"

    When I later realized this subject is addressed in today's message from Exodus 25:23-30 et al., I was driven to do my Bible exposition homework not only for those who will hear it in our Church service today, but for those who will be exposed to it on our web site!

    So, for today's message, we ask, "If the REAL TRUTH is hard to get or discern today, where do we turn for it, and how?!"

    Need: "In an era in need of the truth, where can we turn, and how?"

  1. Exodus 25:1-9 tells God had Israel build a tabernacle to typify how a holy God could fellowship with sinful man and meet his needs.
  2. The second tabernacle item named, the table of showbread, taught Christ would supply God's fulfilling truth to man, Ex. 25:23-30:
    1. God had Israel build a table of the "bread of the presence" [of God] of acacia wood (Christ's humanity) overlaid with gold (His deity) to typify Christ's Incarnation, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Ex. 25:23-30; John 1:1, 14. The cross is thus the basis of this ministry.
    2. The table had gold rings at its corners into which acacia wood poles covered with gold could be inserted to carry it, Exodus 25:26-28.
    3. Its serving tools were gold, so God supervised its ministry, Ex. 25:29.
    4. Though the pagan Babylonians like Israel had a table with unleavened loaves set out in multiples of 12, the Babylonians gave their loaves to their god where Israel's loaves were God's gift to her! (Z. P. E. B., v. Five, p. 420-421) The table typified God's feeding gift to His people!
    5. The table was always to be set in God's presence, so this "feeding" ministry was important and always to be performed , Exodus 25:30!
  3. Leviticus 24:5-9 reveals this table pictured God's Bible exposition "feeding" ministry for His people through His human messengers:
    1. As only the priests, God's teachers of the Law to Israel (Malachi 2:7), interacted with the table, and only in the Holy Place (Lev. 24:9), this "feeding" ministry pictured Bible exposition by God's messengers.
    2. God revealed this ministry involved hard work, Leviticus 24:5-9:
      1. The flour used was solet (Hebrew), flour "ground exclusively from the inner kernels of the wheat", T. W. O. T., vol. II, p. 628; Kittel, Bib. Heb., p. 181; B. D. B., Heb. & Eng. Lex. of the O. T., p. 701.
      2. Each loaf held nearly a gallon of flour (Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Lev. 24:5), so, to grind the grain and sift out its bran, and then knead it into 12 huge loaves and bake each one just right meant it took labor to expound God's Word well, Mal. 2:7; 2 Timothy 2:6-7, 15!
      3. [Jesus' use of Exodus 3:6 in Mark 12:18-27 shows this includes viewing Scripture in its literal, grammatical & historical contexts!]
    3. God revealed the "feeding" involved would be by the Holy Spirit's power: Leviticus 24:5b teaches the bread was baked, and Leviticus 2:4 shows this meant olive oil was used, the symbol of the Holy Spirit as teachers are to rely on Him to teach effectively, 2 Tim. 1:6-7, 13f.
    4. God revealed He would meet all of our "feeding" needs, Lev. 24:5-8:
      1. Leviticus 24:5d states each loaf would contain nearly a gallon of flour (Ryrie St. Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Lev. 24:5), making for a big loaf, and 12 such loaves were set in 2 piles of 6 loaves each for all 12 tribes (Lev. 24:5-8) as God would meet all Israel's needs!
      2. In John 21:15-17, Jesus pictured how pastor-teachers do this today:
        1. John 21:15 directs them to "feed my little lambs" (boske ta arnia mou), to give Biblical data to new Christians so they can spiritually grow, U. B. S. Grk. N. T., 1966, p. 412; 1 Pet. 2:1-3.
        2. John 21:16 directs them to "shepherd my sheep" (poimaine ta probata mou), to give Biblical data and apply it to everyday living in caring for and guiding developing believers, Ibid.
        3. John 21:17 directs them to "feed my sheep" (boske ta probata mou), to dig deeply into Scripture for its richest insights to give to mature believers to meet their spiritual needs as well, Ibid.!
    5. God revealed He would satisfy His people with such "feeding", Lev. 24:7 ESV: (1) "pure frankincense" was put by the loaves to emit a sweet odor (Ibid., Z. P. E. B., p. 421), reflecting fulfillment in the "feeding" process, Psalm 9:9b-14; Luke 24:27, 32. (2) As solet flour was served to kings, honored guests and used in sacrifices (Ibid., B. D. B.), God would give "luxurious" (Ibid.) food to satisfy our spirits!
    6. God revealed He would direct His messengers to faithful ministry so His people would always be able to "feed" , Leviticus 24:8a et al.:
      1. Even as the table of showbread was carried in Israel's wilderness journeys, God directed that its loaves stay in place as His table was always set to meet His people's needs, Numbers 4:5-7 NIV.
      2. So, O. T. priests (Mal. 2:6-8) and N. T. pastors & teachers (1 Tim. 4:13-16) were always to be "on call" to expound God's Word!
Application: For fulfilling spiritual feeding, (1) May we trust in Christ for salvation to be a child of God, John 1:11-12. (2) Then, may we follow Christ's leading to be fed by His messengers, for He holds and controls them in His right hand, Revelation 1:20! (3) If God calls us to be one of His messengers, may we heed His call out of love for Him and for His people, and diligently serve Him there!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the message . . . )

 (1) After last Sunday's morning service, four people in our body all independent of one another and from different families spoke to me of God's communication to them through the sermon: all told of "coincidences" between the sermon content and either a lesson they had heard another minister just give on the radio, or a pamphlet they had on hand, or many events last week or even events over several months! God's "feeding" table of showbread had been set for us last Sunday, as it had been for days, weeks and months prior to that!

(2) Monday night, my "day off" from pastoral duties, a believer contacted me as I sat in my living room solving a Sudoku puzzle. She wondered if I could explain a Bible passage to a party on her cell phone! I answered her, and she passed my words to the party! Though it was my "day off", I was still "on call", for as His table of showbread was set though carried, God's table was still set on Monday!

(3) After typing this illustration, I checked my office calendar and found that on Monday, May 3, when God led me in the morning to hear the talk show host's lament that supplied this sermon's opening illustration, the same day He led me at night to help a believer answer a person on her cell phone that supplies part of this closing illustration, the passage for the day had been Psalm 92:1-2 KJV: "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto Thy name, O Most High: to show forth Thy loving-kindess in the morning, and Thy faithfulness every night." God's table had been set all day Monday!

(4) Then, Thursday morning, I found a message in my e-mail box from a university student in another state named Rob, a message he had sent Wednesday night. Rob was forwarding to me a message he in turn had received Tuesday evening from another university student named David who had questions on Bible teaching. David "had been struggling with" these questions that Rob admitted "I really didn't have answers for," so, Thursday morning, I sent a message back to Rob with the answers to David's questions so he could forward it on to David!

Thursday evening, I received a final e-mail message from Rob that stated: "Thank you so much Pastor. This helps a ton!"

In all these events, God was showing how His "feeding" table of showbread is always set for every believer all over the world!

May we trust in Christ as Savior, and rely on His table of showbread ministry for fulfilling feeding of truth from His Word!