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Commentary on "Rejoicing Before the Lord: The Sanctuary and Worship"
Day 1: Sabbath, July 16, 2011 - Introduction
Overview
Today’s lesson begins with this memory text:
And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your sons and your daughters, your male servants and your female servants, and the Levite that is within your towns, since he has no portion or inheritance with you. (Deuteronomy 12:12 ESV)
The author then continues to make the point that worship needs to come from the heart and not merely be ritual. We will be looking at the sanctuary service, “the center of Israelite worship”, to see what lessons can be learned about “a deeper worship experience.”
Observations
The memory text has been yanked out of context—a detailed description of how the Israelites were to bring their sacrifices and offerings to the tabernacle after crossing the Jordan into the Promised Land in order to obey God and worship Him as He decreed they should.
Interestingly, the authors ignored one of the most unusual parts of the verse—the last phrase that states the Levites did not have any inheritance with the rest of the tribes but were supposed to join the members of the other 11 tribes in their rejoicing and thanksgiving.
The point of the passage in Deuteronomy is that God prescribed in detail how Israel was to worship Him, and the only acceptable worship was worship done according to His dictates. Israel was to rejoice because God had kept His promises to them and had delivered them into the land He promised.
This Bible text is not at all decrying “ritual” but is, instead, establishing “ritual” with regard to worship. In the old covenant, worship was done in shadows and symbols; Jesus had not yet come as the fulfillment of all promises and prophecy and types. Israel was to rejoice as they performed their rituals because God was caring for them, providing them a way to honor and know Him, and moreover, He was tabernacling among them. They were the only nation on earth with whom God dwelt!
Ritual for Israel was mandated; for us on this side of the cross, ritual has been swallowed up in Reality: the Lord Jesus. Now we honor Him and immerse ourselves in His word, submitting our minds to His revelation that stands for all time.
Summary
- Israel was to worship God as He told them to worship.
- Israel’s worship involved rituals; they foreshadowed the Lord Jesus.
- Israel was to rejoice when they worshiped because God had given them a way to approach Him, and He was dwelling in their midst.
- The only acceptable form of worship to God is the worship He has told us to do.
- On this side of the cross, worship is not the shadow of ritual but the honoring of our Lord, Jesus.
- True worship is grounded in His word and occurs as we submit our minds to Scripture and to Him for teaching.
Copyright 2011 BibleStudiesForAdventists.com. All rights reserved. Revised July 17, 2011. This website is published by Life Assurance Ministries, Glendale, Arizona, USA, the publisher of Proclamation! Magazine. Contact email: BibleStudiesForAdventists@gmail.com.
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