Sreedhar's Journey

Chick-fil-A is a popular American fast food chain serving, you guessed it, fried chicken. They are the only known chain that can afford to close on Sundays, even in busy shopping malls. The owners are followers of Jesus Christ and they continue to grow. The chose to honor the Sabbath by closing on Sundays. The people of Israel were instructed to do the same. Exodus 31:15, Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. The consequences of working on the Sabbath was plainly dire. The Jews and some followers of Jesus treat Saturday as the Sabbath, while majority, even non followers, take Sunday. Whatever the day, it is important that one day a week is set aside for God. This is something I must reevaluate in my own life. I need that solitude time and spend the day communing with God and resting. Father, help me to reevaluate my priorities and time. I need to learn to ...

Ever been to a Hindu temple? It has a sweet smelling aroma because of the incense that is being burned. There is also the sweet smelling water or holy water. All this is not original to the Indian people. In the same way Thomas the Apostle brought the gospel to India, years before that the ways taught to Moses was brought to India and mixed in with local spiritual practices. Incense and holy anointing oil were all instituted by God for worship. Exodus 30:7, “Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. Exodus 30:25, And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil. This is so much similar to what we see with peoples of many regions today where the Christian faith is mixed in with local religious practices. We need the real and original faith in God! No more playing with fire. God made it clear not just to the people of Isr...

I have been reflecting on the practice in many cultures of having human sacrifices for any significant event or endeavor. Children and sometimes adults go missing. Later you find them dead with evidence of them being used for some kind of ritual killing. The approach of using blood sacrifice is not new and existed in old testament times. It was to be used to make atonement for the sins of the people of Israel. God instituted it starting with the consecration of Aaron and his sons. This would allow for God to dwell in their midst. Exodus 29:45-46, I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God. However, since Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection, blood sacrifices are no longer needed. Jesus' sacrifice was the perfect sacrifice. It was literally the Holy God of the Universe, the Judge, coming down to di...

Guys, ever bought a custom made dress for your wife without her being around? I did that once when I went to Bangkok for a meeting. I went to the shop and chose the material, and found a lady that was about the size of Lee Yen, and made a risky plunge of ordering the dress for overnight delivery. It was fast for a beautiful Thai dress. Aaron and his sons got a more intricate set of garments, where every part of the garment had a significance. Exodus 28:4, And these are the garments which they shall make: a breastplate, an ephod, a robe, a skillfully woven tunic, a turban, and a sash. So they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons, that he may minister to Me as priest. Every aspect represented the sins of the people of Israel that the priest carried into the presence of God for His forgiveness. There was a need to have a priest represent the whole nation before God. When the Messiah Jesus came, He became the chief priest and those who followed Him joined His pri...

Through the research of scientists the earth is said to have gone through the ice, bronze and iron ages. There are also ancient writings that give a glimpse of these ages. Noah for the ice age and Moses in the bronze age (my guess and requires research). Much bronze was used in the tabernacle that God instructed the people of Israel to build, and no iron was mentioned. Exodus 27:19, All the utensils of the tabernacle for all its service, all its pegs, and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze. They could have used iron as the base for the altar if it was the iron age. Instead, they used bronze. Whether this coincides with the various ages the scientists are talking about is unclear. But, what is clear is that God started the process of teaching the people of Israel about sin and the need for sacrifice to cleanse them. For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Many civilisations recognized this and they had their own forms of sacrifice as well. Father, thank y...

I have written before that all cultures or civilisations of the world have had an encounter with God. See my earlier post here. But over the years they have lost their true devotion and replaced God with other things. This is the reason the Hindus worship in temples built with Jewish design as being described in this chapter in Exodus. Exodus 26:33, And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy. The same veil is there in the Hindu temple. The biggest difference is that the most holy place is occupied by a statue depicting a Hindu god. This significant similarity begs a question. When did the Indians receive this temple construction information? This requires further research. God made it clear that He and not an image will meet with His people. He is there personally. He wants to meet us directly and not through an intermediary. Jesus ...

Are you a generous person? Do you give willingly and cheerfully? Are you ready to see the needs around you and fulfill them? The people of Israel were now being challenged to give from what they plundered from the Egyptians. Exodus 25:2, “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering. One of the things I have realized over the years is that giving is such a blessing. When you give, something supernatural happens. It is hard to explain. God recognizes it and gives back many folds, not just monetarily but in other ways. The people of Israel may be learning this for the first time in the desert where they have little. Father, help me to give generously as you would require of me.