The Sign of the Sabbath

I am reading through the Bible this year and today I read Exodus 31. Although I know that I have read this chapter over half a dozen times, today I noticed something profound in verses 12-17.
Exodus 31:12-17 says,
"The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "But as for you, speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'You shall surely observe my sabbaths; for this is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people. For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall surely be put to death. So the sons of Israel shall observe the sabbath, to celebrate the sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, but on the seventh day He ceased from labor, and was refreshed."
I had been aware of the connection between observance of the sabbath and the seventh day of creation, but I had not seen that one of the purposes of the sabbath was to show Israel that it was the Lord who sanctifies them (and not the observance of the Law or performance of sacrifices/rituals delineated in the previous chapters of Exodus). Grace is presented here in the Old Testament! This statement shows that God is the one who gives people right standing before Him, not our actions. This is huge. Yes, God gave the nation of Israel His standards and expected them to be obedient. But, He also clearly states here that it is God who sanctifies them. The sabbath was to be a weekly reminder/sign to the people of Israel that "I am the Lord who sanctifies you." What a wonderful grace God extended to them in this weekly refreshment and reminder that it is He who sanctifies (and thus He must be the object of their faith, not their observance of the Law alone).
In the New Testament Jesus taught that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. The rest we are to observe is for our benefit. In the Exodus passage it says that when the Lord rested on the seventh day of creation He was refreshed. The sabbath is also said to serve as a sign that it is the Lord who sanctifies. In New Testament practice, the church gathers on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7, 1 Cor. 16:2, etc.) and from what can be discerned from the book of Acts, communion was taken at each gathering. Communion or the Lord's Supper was given to us by Christ and in it we proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. Communion, then, serves as our reminder that it is Jesus Christ who gives us our standing before God. We are also taught that God is the One who sanctifies us throughout Scripture, such as the High Priestly prayer in John 17 Jesus prays "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth." and also throughout Romans and Hebrews. The idea of entering God's rest is taught throughout the Bible, not just in reference to the sabbath taught in Exodus. Hebrews 4, states "Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard. For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said, 'As I swore in My wrath, they shall not enter my rest,' although His works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He has said somewhere concerning the seventh day, 'And God rested on the seventh day from all His works'; and again in this passage, 'they shall not enter my rest.' Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of disobedience, He again fixes a certain day, 'Today,' saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, 'Today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.' For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that. So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."
What I have learned from this study is that I need frequent reminders that it is God who sanctifies me and that it is the finished work of Christ that makes me right with God. I need to be told often that it is by grace that I have been saved and that it is by grace that I stand and can approach God. I can draw near with confidence to the throne of grace. I have access to God through Jesus Christ, and there is help and mercy for me in my time of need. Praise the Lord! Praise His Name! Oh that all may know of His marvelous grace to us! God, through His Spirit, has been leading me to a deeper understanding of His grace in my sanctification and in my walk with Him. Oh how foolish and forgetful I am. I need to take advantage of communion and Sunday worship to refresh my memory concerning the gospel of my salvation and the finished work of Christ. These thoughts may not be very well organized, and they certainly are not as organized as I wish they were. But, I hope that these thoughts may encourage fellow believers to soak in the Word of God, to remind themselves of the Gospel of Grace, and praise our Lord Jesus Christ for His finished work.

Wonderful changes coming!

Life is so exciting for us these days. Royce took a new job with the Kentucky State Police recently and we found a beautiful townhouse in Lexington to rent. I will be finally rid of the mold, bad parking and heavy foot traffic by our window (literally 2 feet or less from the window)! Our new place is a stand alone townhouse, which means that it doesn't share a wall with any of the nearby townhouses. We will have a patio out back our own private entrance in front, and a balcony off one of the bedrooms. It will more than 25% bigger than our old apartment and will have newer carpet as well as fresh paint. The best thing about the paint job is that it is a light warm brown color with white on the trim...so much more welcoming than the typical apartment white. It has a washer/dryer hookup, so we will be getting our first full-size washer and dryer. And, a key feature, is there will be two toilets in the house (great for potty training and having guests over). Shopping is nearby, so I won't have to go far for groceries and the public library is nearby as well.
Our best change coming soon is another baby who is expected to arrive around August 4th. After hearing the little one's heartbeat yesterday I am finally relaxing and getting excited about having another baby to love. It is exciting to think of holding that warm little bundle and watching Millie Anne learn how to be the big sister! Children are such a blessing and, while they also come with crying, tantrums and sometimes difficult to discern problems, I cannot imagine going back to childlessness. By the grace of God we will outlive our children and learn to be good parents to those God places in our lives.
We will be moving to the new place next month, so I am doing my best to clear out the junk we do not want to take with us. Pretty soon I am going to need to start boxing up stuff! We plan to move the small stuff in gradually, with Royce taking a few boxes or items with him when he goes to work during the week. Then, around February 10 or 17 we will move the big stuff (along with whatever else remains). One of the families from our church has volunteered to watch Millie so that I can concentrate on getting ready to move. I am so thankful for the friends and family that we have already heard from who are willing to help us during the transition.

The jury is still out...

I had my second OB appointment today for our second pregnancy. It was very reassuring to hear the baby's heartbeat! I had a nightmare earlier this week that my baby had died and I have heard about a lot of women miscarrying lately. Fortunately God has mercifully spared me from having to deal with the loss of a child. The baby's heartbeat sounded strong and healthy, but a little bit slower than Millie's (we have her heartbeat recorded from her 12 week gestation date). At this point we don't know if there is more than one baby inside, but most women who have twins don't know until they see two babies on the ultrasound (which is typically done around 20 weeks or halfway through the pregnancy). Sometimes twins have distinctly different heart rhythms and the OB can hear that at 12 weeks. Not this time. We will have to wait till my ultrasound in March to find out that little piece of juicy information!
I am so thankful God has given us a second child and that this child is healthy. We have had difficuly conceiving and part of me worried that I was being greedy or ungrateful for my first baby in seeking another. If you read Elyse Fitzpatrick's Idols of the Heart she says that Rachel's desire for a second child was idolatry and thus sinful. She just about says that God took her life in giving birth to Benjamin because of her idolatry/ingratitude. (Let me just say that I disagree with Ms. Fitzpatrick on this one and do not believe the Bible indicates that she was sinning). I do agree that a desire for children can become idolatry. Many of the women that I talk to in my email group for infertility do struggle with allowing their desire to become pregnant consume their lives. God is the one who opens and closes wombs, and His decision about whether we have children or how many children we have is always the right one (no matter how difficult accepting this might be). Children are a blessing from the Lord and we should seek His face regarding our desire for them. But we must never let having children take first place in our lives. God is completely trustworthy, forever faithful and a comfort in times of trouble. What He allows or brings into my life is good and I can rest knowing that He is sovereign over all of my life and the lives of those I love. I must let go of my fears for their lives and safety and put my trust in God, who loves and is sovereign over them.

Tag? Accckkkkk....what do I say?

Heather Ruthie Roo, who writes http://adwenfluff.blogspot.com tagged me to write six weird things about me. The question is, which six wierd things should I use? Hmmmm...

According to the rules... Each player of this game starts with the "6 Weird Things about You". People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave a comment that says 'you are tagged' in their comments and tell them to read your blog!"

1. I am terrified of backing out of a parking space when it puts my car in a nose down position and I am driving our car with the manual transmission. I'm convinced I cannot get the car in gear fast enough to avoid rolling..and that I will roll into trees, buildings, other cars, that might be in front of me. I'm such a baby about this that when my husband parks the car in our complex on such an incline I beg him to back the car out for me.

2. I thoroughly enjoy pulling hairs from my body by the roots. I can't tell you just how satisfying it is to pull that unsightly (or not so unsightly) hair out of my skin.

3. When my stomach is queasy, at least when it's from pregnancy, the food I can most easily eat is Mexican food. To me, Mexican food is comfort food and always feels good in the stomach. Ahhh, Chili Burros, Sour Cream Enchiladas....Tacos!!

4. I can come up with an endless supply of nicknames for people and animals (stuffed or alive) that I love. Example: Buddy Rumples Bootie Man Mister Bu-boy buns buns Fuzzy Wuzzy was a Mister Bu-boy tushy tush....now about that fetish....

5. I HATE cooked celery! That vegetable is ONLY good raw. Cooked celery is disgusting and ruins whatever dish it is cooked in.

6. I believe any food can be improved with one of three things: garlic, cheese, or chocolate!


Unfortunately I do not know of anyone I know who currently has a blog that hasn't already been tagged... Hmmmm...could I talk someone into the blogosphere by tagging them??? Let's see! I'm tagging David and Anne W. of Ft. Wayne, Tracy A., Christi B., Holly W., and Jen F.