Daily Bread

Appear Before the Sovereign Lord

Date: Jun. 4, 2021

Passage

Exodus 23:1-19

23:1 “You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. 2 You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, 3 nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit.

4 “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall bring it back to him. 5 If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying down under its burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it; you shall rescue it with him.

6 “You shall not pervert the justice due to your poor in his lawsuit. 7 Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and righteous, for I will not acquit the wicked. 8 And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and subverts the cause of those who are in the right.

9 “You shall not oppress a sojourner. You know the heart of a sojourner, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

Laws About the Sabbath and Festivals

10 “For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.

12 “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, may be refreshed.

13 “Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips.

14 “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. 15 You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-handed. 16 You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the firstfruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor. 17 Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord GOD.

18 “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the fat of my feast remain until the morning.

19 “The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the LORD your God.

“You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

Key Verse: Exodus 23:17

Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord GOD.

1. Justice and mindfulness (1-13)

God's people are to reflect God's character in society. Here God focuses on justice. Justice should not be perverted based on personal or majority preference, economic or social position, bribes, or immigration status. Instead, truth is the standard of justice. God gave the Sabbath in keeping with holiness. But verses 10-13 focus on mindfulness. Religious observance must not neglect the poor, the foreigner, slaves, and even animals.

2. Celebrate a festival to me (14-19)

God's people were given three festivals to celebrate God: The Festival of Unleavened Bread commemorates the Passover. The Middle East has two harvest seasons: Firstfruits in the spring, and the ingathering of all the crops in the fall. By keeping these festivals, God's people remember God's grace and sovereignty. Giving thanks to God in an appropriate way is to appear before God, preparing the best gift to give to him.

Prayer: Father, thank you that you are just and mindful, and pour out your blessings yearly. Help me remember your sovereign grace.

One Word: Remember God's grace in Jesus

We Are Your Sheep, Lord

Psalm 79:1-13

Key Verse: 79:13

But we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
will give thanks to you forever;
from generation to generation we will recount your praise.

Today's Question

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