Are your bells ringing?

Been reading my way through Exodus lately. I'm past the plagues-and-escape part, past the giving of the 10 Commandments, and working my way through the instructions for the temple. A few nights ago, I read the instructions for creating the prestly garments (Exodus 28). Now, let's be honest. This is one of those chapters that when, or maybe I should say if, we read it, we just blow through it at warp speed because it seems useless today. Why should I care? I doubt I'll ever wear an ephod (v6) - probably woudln't recognize one if I saw it - so what possible relevance could this have?

And yet, according to 2 Tim 3:16, "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in riteousness." As I finished reading the chapter, and was reading through the sideline notes in my Bible, I was remined of something I'd heard before.

Going back to Exodus 28, down in verses 31-35, there is a discussion about the hem of the robe of the ephod. And while I still have no real clue what an ephod is, I do know what the hem of a robe is. And this particular one has bells on it - gold bells.

Now, let's be clear. Sideline notes and my fuzzy recollections of past events are NOT the same as scripture - one is a living document of truth and love, given by God through the Holy Spirit, while the other is... always questionable. But for me, right now, the relevance of this passage was revealed through that note and my memory. It had to do with the purpose of the bells, and both the note and my memory agreed - one purpose was so that when the High Priest was in the Holy of Holies, you could tell if he was still alive.

You see, in Old Testament times, God's Spirit didn't live in hearts like He does today. Back then, to be in God's presence meant death - people were just too sinful to stay alive in His presence. The High Priest went through a week-long purification period (see Exodus 29) before heading into God's presence to make sacrifices for the people. When they went in to perform the scarifice, others could listen from outside for the bells - if they were ringing, then everything was ok (the High Priest was still alive).

Another fact in my (often questionable) memory is that they would tie a rope to the foot of the high priest, so that if the bells stopped ringing, they could pull him out. Yikes.

Yeah, I know, none of that seems relevant yet. We're not living under the Old Covenant (i.e. in Old Testament times), we're under a New Covenant - one of grace and forgiveness because of Christ's sacrifice for all. But God still desires for us to be holy - set apart - riteous... He does NOT want us to sin, and He especially doesn't want us to fall into repetitive sin.

So, looking back at the title of this post, I ask myself the question: Are my bells ringing? And I candidly admit to you that this has been a bad month for me. Patterns of sin from my past, patterns that I have cast off (many times) only to have return (also many times) have once again reared up in my life, and my bells have been silenced often of late. I'm talking about that sin that "so easily entangles" me (see Hebrews 12:1), and I am again fighting to cast it off. Even as I write this, I am frustrated with how often it has overcome me lately, but at the same time I am not defeated - I am instead rededicating myself and trusting God to give me strength to overcome.

So what about you? Are your bells ringing?

What are you worth?

A few weeks ago, I was listening to the radio in the car when a discussion started about how valuable a person is. One of the central issues was salary. Are we what we make at our jobs? Is our contribution to society defined by how much that society is willing to pay us for what we're doing? As the discussion continued, some spiritual principles were hinted at, and a few were partially explored. I arrived at my destination before the discussion ended, so I don't know where it ultimately went, but it did get me thinking...

At the simplest (and most worldly) level, our society does define our worth by our salary. In this crazy world we live in, we value entertainment over learning, and so pay professional athletes more each year than teachers can make in a lifetime. We reward those who can turn "situational ethics" into personal gain, while sneering at the "free" but unparalleled contributions of stay-at-home moms.

As Christians, however, we are part of another (spiritual) society with its own set of rules. Here, Christ has turned the world upside down... reminding us that to be great, we must become servants (Mark 10:43). In fact, it could be argued that in our spiritual society, by ourselves we have no value at all! Consider John 15:5. Here Christ exhorts us to remain in Him, because by ourselves we can do nothing.

But this passage can weave a subtle trap for the unwary. How often the Devil has come and called us "worthless". How many times has the Evil One broken hearts and spirits, convincing people that they are of no value to God or to others? How many have fallen into a pit of darkness and despair, wanting only to be valued and to feel they are valuable?

But there is a great difference between the condemning statements from our Enemy and the redeeming plan of our God. God desire for us to be connected to Him, living in concert with His Spirit, following the path made possible by the sacrifice of His Son. God chose us (Eph 1:3-14) - chose us to be holy (1:4), chose to adopt us as His children (1:5), chose us for His praise and glory (1:11-12), and as a sign of our choosing, and He has given to us His Holy Spirit (1:13).

Going back to the worldly view, our value in society is based on what someone is willing to pay us for our work - in essence, who wants us and how badly they want us. How much does God want us? You can probably recite it with me... "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son..." (John 3:16).

And what is He willing to pay us? How about with direction, joy, and pleasure forevermore? (Psalm 16:11) In addition, part of His "pay" lets us ignore the whispered condemnation of the Enemy. "Whoever believes is not condemned... (John 3:18). So if the Devil says you're worthless, you know it's a lie. You want more? Maybe even a bonus check? How about this - one of many examples - back in Eph 1:3, we are promised "every spiritual blessing in Christ."

So what are you worth? In a nutshell, you're worth so much that the Creator of the Universe crashed through time and space to make a way for you to be with Him... forever.