As we surf the Sexual Tsunami, reaching out to those pummeled in its wake, I believe we have much to learn from a little-known detail in the building of the Tabernacle. It’s an insight which urges us toward simplicity of mind and purity of heart.
Instructions for building the Tabernacle were laid out for Moses 3500 years ago. God appointed Bezalel and Oholiab to be in charge of the work, filling them with his Spirit. An appeal was made to the people of God for building materials, and their response was both joyful and overwhelming: gold, silver, bronze, yarn, dyes, wood, skins . . . Moses finally said, “Whoa! Enough!” (Ex. 35 & 36)
God was doing a new thing. It was a pivotal moment in the plan of God. People sensed this and responded—especially the women who were going to serve at the entrance to that sacred place. Get this . . . They donated their bronze mirrors (Ex. 38:8).
Out of single-minded devotion, they offered the very item many women would have coveted and clutched. The mirrors with which they beautified themselves became their beautiful gift of love.
Spirit-filled and Spirit-led, Bezalel and Oholiab saved the unusual gifts for the basin that was placed between the altar and the tent of meeting. It was to be filled with water so that the priests would purify themselves.
Stick with me here . . .
Before the priests could enter the tent of meeting to offer prayers, incense or the blood of sacrifices, they had to wash their hands and feet as a ritual of purification. The same with offering sacrifices on the altar. Failure to wash, Moses warned, would bring certain death.
The mirrors were a gift of single-minded devotion. The basin: an instrument reminding priests of the need for purity. And as priests leaned over the basin to wash and purify, they would likely see their own reflections in this amazing sacred pool.
Out of worshipful devotion, the women offered what reflected their beauty. Before entering into worship, each man’s reflection would give them pause regarding purity
We find ourselves, I believe, at another pivotal moment in God’s plan of salvation. Tech totalitarianism in the West is now forcing conformity to new gender norms. Given our culture’s abandonment of Christian teaching on sexuality, we have been ripe for this moment. Foundational principles of marriage and parenting are being tossed to the trash heap.
For those of us finding our balance on tsunami surfboards, single-minded devotion and purity of heart are imperative.
Most of us did not buy into the Prosperity Gospel, but I guarantee you that most or all have bought into the culture’s obsession with beauty and status symbols. Men and women of the Kingdom ought to prayerfully consider trading in our mirrors for the work God is doing in these days.
We have equally been tainted by the incessant media drumbeat regarding sexual pleasure. What we have allowed to creep into our minds through cable, wi-fi and cell tower needs a thorough cleansing from the life-giving water flowing from Calvary.
The Spirit has been sifting my own heart and life during this season of Lent, calling me to exchange duplicity for simplicity, and distraction for focus. What is the Spirit speaking into your heart?
Model for those in your care a simplicity and purity that runs counter to the messages that have nearly drowned them. Affirm the truth that “charm is deceitful and beauty is fleeting; but the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised” (Prov. 31:30 NIV). Challenge the worldly standards for sexual behavior among the addicted. Stand firm on scriptural truth.
We who serve the Lord at this point in history would do well to regularly look into the basin, cleanse what is displeasing, and go forward in his work of healing and redemption.