Exodus 31

Good morning, Saylorville. If you’ve got a copy of scripture with you, you can turn with me to Exodus chapter 31. While you’re turning there, I want to say thank you to those of you joining us today whether you’re new and this is your first time or you’re here every week. We’re excited you’re here. I’m excited you’re here. My name’s Kyhl. I’m one of the pastors here at Saylorville, and It’s a privilege to open up God’s word with you this morning.

This morning we get to continue in our series Unsung – in Praise of Everyday Faithfulness. We get to look at those individuals in Scripture that when you read your Bible, you read about them and then you close your Bible, you go away and it’s like they weren’t there. The names that don’t stick, the little guys. We have learned this summer, we have learned about Barnabas, Ananias, Hannah, and Elihu. I don’t know about you, but I have been convicted and challenged by the lives and faithfulness of these individuals, these unsung servants of the most high God. Who will remember them?

Today, we get to continue that journey together and look at maybe one of the more obscure characters in this series. But before we get to that, I’m curious how many of y’all work blue- collar jobs? Like a handful. That’s awesome! Anybody in the trades? Sparkies? Chippies? Drips? Mud slingers? While I was not a tradesman per se. I did work a a blue collar job for about 10 years. I serviced copy machines. A lot… A lot… a lot. A lot of copy machines and a lot of toner. I was around so much toner that for 10 years, I never knew when I blew my nose what color was going to be inside the Kleenex. Every week I thought I had some new disease that made my, my snot cyan or magenta or yellow or black.

But if you’re like me, blue collar job or not, there are probably days where you love what you do. Everything is awesome! But then again, if you’re like me, there are probably days where even when the things are going right, you can’t stand what you do. You struggle to see the point and the purpose behind the tasks that are assigned to you. If that’s you, If you’ve ever been burnt out, discontent, or completely apathetic about your work, my prayer is that today through this un-sung individual in scripture, that things will be brought back into perspective so that we can learn to return to worshiping while we work.

Today we’re looking at blue-collar Christianity. We’re gonna look at an individual by the name of Bezalel. Anybody ever heard that name before? Sweet! None of you have read the book of Exodus, so we’re off to a good start. Bezalel, often accompanied with Oholiab, these are two guys that are called by God to build the Tabernacle. And the Tabernacle is this temporary dwelling place of the Lord amongst his people. They’ve been called out of the slavery of Egypt and they’re told to build this place of worship. Now the tabernacle, which is a foreshadowing of the temple, which is a foreshadowing of what’s gonna happen when Jesus comes, it’s a really big deal. The tabernacle would represent to the nation of Israel their unity, their election as God’s chosen people. The fact that they are called and set apart to be a holy nation, it would be the reminder that they have sins. They are not perfect. And those sins need atoned for, and the entire sacrificial system would revolve around this place. But my favorite part about the tabernacle is the tabernacle was God’s dwelling place with His people. He desires not only to be with His people, but to be known by them.

And so with that in mind this morning, let’s dive in. Exodus chapter 31, starting in verse 1.

Exodus 31:1-5

1 “The Lord said to Moses,

2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,

3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship,

4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze,

5 in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft.”

Today as we look at blue-collar Christianity and we look at the life of Bezalel, we need to see that blue-collar Christians are obedient to the call. In chapter 31 verse 2, it says:

Exodus 31:2

2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah…”

Now, we didn’t read the rest of chapter 31 and we don’t have time, unfortunately, to read chapters 31 to 38 together. But there is a lot of description of the work that Bezalel did in those seven chapters. While not talking specifically about Bezalel and his characteristics, there is a lot about the plans and the blueprints and everything that needed to be made and how it needed to be made for the glory of God. And all of this is culminated in Exodus 38 verse 22 when it says:

Exodus 38:22

22 “Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD commanded Moses;”

Bezalel was obedient in his work. The specific plans and designs are a lot. There’s a lot there. And Bezalel did it. Throughout these seven chapters, there is no hint, no inclination, no whiff of complaining, arguing, grumbling, murmuring, slacking off, or waiting out the clock. Do you work that way?

When I worked for that office equipment repair company at one point in time, I became the service manager, and there was a day where the techs that worked for me productivity seemed to stop. Unfortunately, it wasn’t at 5:00 or later when they were paid to work ’til. Usually that time was about 3:30 in the afternoon. They were hired, trained, and paid to work ’til 5. But after 3:30, it was like pulling teeth to get them to go out and do the work that they were called to do. Can you relate? — you get to a point in the day where you just wait out the clock? I can raise my hand at that. I can raise my hand at that, because there are times in my life where I have a poor theology of work. And I’ve worded it that way specifically. Present tense, there are times in my life where I have a poor theology of work, because there are times that I do. There are times where even in the ministry, even as a pastor, I can put too much focus on me and not on the work of the Lord and think that it all depends on me, and I can’t make any difference in the world to why even try. You felt like that? Does God even care about what I do? He does! Paul tells the church in Colossians 3 to work hardily as for the Lord and not for men.

[Colossians 3:23-24

23 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”]

Doing our best because He is worth it and worthy of it. Do you work hard? — heartily as to the Lord? Bezalel was called and he obeyed in his work. But not only was he obedient in his work, he was obedient in his rest. Immediately after being called, the Lord expounds on the importance of Sabbath. Look at verses 13 and 14 of chapter 31 with me.

Exodus 31:13-14

13 … ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you.

14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death…”

Spoiler alert… Bezalel finished the job. He didn’t get put to death. He obeyed the Sabbath. But here we see another ditch, right? We either slack off in our work or we work too much. I heard this delightful quote a couple months ago. Some of you have heard me say it. I’ve kind of adopted it as a personal mantra over the last several months. It goes something like this:

“Work as if it all depends on you. Pray knowing it doesn’t.”

Rest and prayer point us to the same thing, dependence on the Lord. We need Him for rest, for rejuvenation, for direction, for hope, for peace, and if you’re like me, which I’m guessing most of you are, I need Him to sustain the very breath in my lungs, because when I try to control that… I screw it up. We can’t add to His creation by working ourselves to the bone. All we do when we do that is fool ourselves into thinking we can do it on our own and we don’t need Him. And this has been something that mankind has struggled with since the fall. These guys, Bezalel, Oholiab who partners with him, the tribe of Judah, the nation of Israel… they tend to work really hard. In Exodus chapter 16, as they are called into the wilderness, they are given manna from heaven every day except on the Sabbath. But the day before the Sabbath they are given enough so that they have enough for the Sabbath, a reminder that they need to rest, and that they don’t provide the very food on their plates. The Lord does. And He showed up faithfully providing food day in and day out for more years than I have been alive on this planet. And he still does today.

At Saylorville, we have a core value of obedience. And outside the Gospel, it’s probably my favorite core value that we have, not because of the word “obedience,” but because of the little tagline that we put next to it. We will see little as big. This means celebrating the little steps of obedience in your life and the lives of those around you as you strive to follow the Lord.

And so as we talk about being obedient to the call this morning, maybe some of you this week, maybe your first step needs to be that you need to work a full day. Maybe you’re on the other side, and you need to take a step back and you need to rest, rest in the One who not only sustains the breath in your lungs but puts the food on the table, because He provides. Not you.

How’s your obedience this morning? Maybe you’re sitting here thinking, ‘Kyhl, I read the passage, “Bezalel was called by name.” My phone didn’t ring. I didn’t get a call from the Lord. How do I even know that what I’m doing is what God has for me?’ If that’s you this morning, I hear you. I relate with that struggle. I relate with that struggle because I stared at the back of copy machines for 10 years… 10 years of asking the Lord, “Why? Why am I here? This is dumb.” That’s how I felt sometimes. 10 years of asking the Lord, “I went to Bible college. I have a Master’s degree from a seminary. I love Your people, I love Your church, and I love You. Why do you have me here?” But like Pastor Colton reminded us last week, I needed to stop asking ‘Why,’ and I needed to start asking ‘What?’ ‘Lord, what do You have for me here? What do you have for me to learn? What do you have for me to do?’ And about the same time that I started asking that question, I re-read Matthew 11 for the umpteen million time, when Jesus says:

Matthew 11:28-30

28 “Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

And I started thinking about that. And I started thinking about work, and I started thinking about other passages of scripture where it talks about the Lord is the one who changes our hearts. And I don’t think, I genuinely do not believe that Jesus is saying that work is going to be easy with Him. But in Ezekiel he says:

Ezekiel 36:26, ‘I will take your heart of stone and I will give you a heart of flesh.’

In Romans chapter 12, it says:

Romans 12:2b,  “… be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”

That’s what Jesus does. And so Jesus changes our perspective on work. And I know that to be true, because like some of you in this room, I know what a yoke is. And I know what a yoke feels like. Shout out to those of you who have gone on the wilderness trip. Those guys that haven’t, you should sometime. God might use it to change your perspective on your work and your life and your ministry. The Lord called. Bezalel obeyed, and the Lord doesn’t make mistakes. Whether you like it or not, He has you exactly where you are supposed to be today for His glory.

The second thing we need to learn from Bezalel about blue collar Christianity is we need to be open-handed with the supply. Look with me, Exodus chapter 36. Turn over just a couple pages. Bezalel, Oholiab, and the craftsmen, they have started work on the tabernacle. And as they have started work, it jumps in verse three.

Exodus 36:3-7

3 “And they received from Moses all the contribution that the people of Israel had brought for doing the work on the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning,

4 so that all the craftsmen who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task that he was doing,

5 and said to Moses, “The people bring much more than enough for doing the work that the LORD has commanded us to do.”

6 So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp, “Let no man or woman do anything more for the contribution for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing,

7 for the material they had was sufficient to do all the work, and more.”

And here we see the first and only Stop Giving campaign in the history of the church. (audience laughing) That’s counter-cultural, right? Have any of you heard of John Rockefeller? Anybody been to New York Rockefeller Center? It’s named after his family. In 1870, he founded the Standard Oil Trust. The Standard Oil Trust was this huge mega corporation that in 1911 was ordered by Federal Court to dissolve, and it was dissolved into upwards of 20 other companies… not little companies mind you, HUGE companies that are still around today. Some of note being ExxonMobil, BP, Chevron. All of these were one company. The dude was rolling in the dough! And somebody asked him one day, they said:

“John, how much money does it take for a man to be happy?” He responded, “Just a dollar more.” John D. Rockefeller

It’s easy to think about work that way, right? We look at our bottom line because that’s how we can quantify our time. We use terms like opportunity cost to evaluate whether or not something is worth our time or not. And if you’re anything like me, all too often I place stock in the treasures of this world, and so I find a way to make it worth my time.

Bezalel and his crew could have skimmed from the top. We could do our jobs like that, like we are entitled to something. ‘They owe me this because of my years of service.’ ‘They owe me this because they don’t pay me enough.’ ‘They don’t respect me enough.’ ‘They don’t appreciate me enough.’ ‘I’m entitled to that.’ Hear me very, very closely. Listen to me very closely. Hear me closely. It’ll be awkward. I don’t want to be like right up in your face. You don’t want that either. Listen very closely. The only thing that you and I are entitled to is hell. Scripture tells us that the wages of sin is death. [Romans 6:23] and all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. [Romans 3:23] You want fair?  You get hell. We aren’t entitled, but we act like it. And in doing so, we cheapen our Gospel witness to those that we work with and work around, and for now. Now, I realize as I say that it can appear that I’m saying the benefits of a good job are bad. That’s not what I’m saying at all. Actually, the Bible actually says the opposite of that. It says in James chapter 1 that:

James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

Promotions aren’t the devil, but you might be thinking, ‘Kyhl, doesn’t that say that, ‘Money is the root of all evil?’ It doesn’t. Actually, in 1 Timothy 6, it says:

1 Timothy 6:10, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.“

There’s a difference between greed and stewardship. But this is where we need to be careful. This is where I need to be careful, because we can be really, really, really good at hiding our greed behind a mask of stewardship. For example, strictly hypothetical… not that I have ever done this before… but have you ever done something for someone? (You all have, right?) — but then realize that you’ve done it not because you actually cared about their best interests. You did it so that other people could see you and praise you for your efforts? Does that hit close to home? It does for me. Bezalel and his subs were about the job, not what the job could do for them. They had access to tremendous amounts of wealth and materials, and they chose stewardship over ownership. How are you doing with that?

Blue collar Christians are not only obedient to the call and open-handed with the supply, but finally, and most importantly, they are overshadowed by the Spirit. Look back with me at Exodus 31 verse 3. We’ll start in verse 2.

Exodus 31:2-3

2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,

3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God…”

Moses then echoes this in Exodus 35, verse 30.

Exodus 35:30b,

30b “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah;

31a “and he has filled him with the Spirit of God…”

Both chapters 31 and 35 go on to outline all the things that Bezalel was uniquely equipped by the Spirit to do. He was a designer. He had ability, he could teach, he could delegate, he could communicate and instruct, and he had proven himself capable of doing the work. He’s a carpenter. He’s a stone mason. He’s an artist. He’s an architect, a designer, a teacher, an encourager, a seamstress, which I know that’s not the word for a guy that does that. Somebody told me last service it was a tailor, but I couldn’t think of that word all week. So we’re sticking with seamstress. (congregation laughing) And it’s easy to look at his resume and think, ‘Man, this guy’s got it all together. Why wouldn’t they hire him?’ But there’s a side note here, and it’s super important. Bezalel shows us through the things that he has been gifted and equipped to do that work… not blue collar work, not ministry work, not pastoral work… work is important to the Lord, because all of those things, those things happen outside of the church: stay at home moms, number crunchers, truck drivers, and anybody that works with anyone or anything, your work is important to the Lord. In Galatians 1 verse 10, which happens to be my wife’s life verse, it says:

Galatians 1:10, “For am I now seeking the approval of man? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

But here’s the thing about Bezalel. He couldn’t do those things on his own. He was filled with the Spirit of God. If you’re not giddy at this point, you should be. Bezalel, this ordinary man, is filled with the Spirit of God. And by the way, he is the first person in all of Scripture referred to by God as being filled with the Spirit of God. There are other times like with Joseph where somebody has seen Joseph and they say, “The spirit of God is upon him.” This is the first time in all of scripture where God says, “I have filled him with My spirit.” And he’s not a prophet, he’s not a priest, he’s not a king, he’s not writing scripture, he’s not preaching. He’s working with his hands. He’s building. He’s getting calluses. He’s carving stones. He’s engraving things. He is teaching. He’s using his voice to share the knowledge that the Lord has given him. He is articulating things. He is delegating things. He is encouraging people, much like many of you. Those things that we see as normal or mundane, there’s the beauty. The first person filled by the Spirit of God… by God… is called to work…. normal every day work.

Ministry isn’t confined to the walls of the church. It isn’t exclusive to those who hold the title of pastor or elder. It happens every day even in the little things. If you don’t believe me, read

1 Kings chapter 7 when it’s describing the pillars that were in the temple. These pillars 18 cubits high, roughly 30 feet around the top, they had this ring of bronze that had little chains engraved around it, and engravings of lilies and pomegranates, things that from the ground you may not even see… But God does. He cares about the little things. He cares about your work. Bezalel was called by God, filled by the Spirit, and appointed to the task, and he responded in obedience. He stewarded his role well and he let the Spirit overshadow him.

Now we get to the point of the message where we make this little transition. What does this mean for us? I’m not building a tabernacle. I’m still uncertain that God has me where He has me. But as we do this, we are gonna go through a pretty big theological concept, a big scripture narrative, and I pray that it comes across well and clearly. But because I’m not always the best with my words… I worked on copy machines… I had this graphic made and hopefully it will help you track with where we’re going and give you a little bit of a visual as we see this work that we are called to.

We have this ongoing theme throughout scripture of God wanting to be with his people and to be known by his people. Way back in Genesis 1 before the fall. In Genesis 1, the Lord calls Adam and Eve be fruitful and multiply. Fellowship with God is perfect at this point. So what He is saying is, ‘You image bearers of Me, make little image bearers of Me so that you guys can worship Me together.’ Then the fall happens. Sin happens. The wages of our sin is death. [Romans 6:23] We talked about that a little bit ago. The nation of Israel goes into slavery in Egypt. They are called out and Bezalel is called by name to build the Tabernacle, a place of fellowship and worship, a shadow of the temple that is to come, that is described in the book of Isaiah and by Jesus as My house shall be a house of prayer for all nations, because Israel is called to be a conduit of the Gospel, the conduit to get God to the people, not a container to hold Him to themselves. Bezalel, the only time that he is mentioned outside of the book of Exodus is in First Chronicles. In 1 Chronicles, chapter 2, he is listed in the genealogy of David, which means he is in the genealogy of Christ. He is paving the way for people to see the coming Messiah who is going to come from his family, because that’s what God does in ways that we could never imagine. And so Bezalel builds the tabernacle, reminding us that God wants to be in relationship with us, not only in the good times, like the pre-fall garden, not only in the times where things are easy, like pre-slavery Israel, but through the bad times, through the desert, when it’s hard and exceedingly difficult, when we’re suffering like Pastor Colton preached on last week, when things don’t go according to our plans. And what I love about this is seen in Hosea chapter 2 verse 14. The Lord is telling Hosea, he says:

Hosea 2:14, “I, (the Lord who’s talking) will allure her (Israel) into the wilderness so that I can speak tenderly to her.’

But the thing about speaking tenderly is you can’t speak tenderly to someone if you’re not with them. And so in this tent built by obedient, faithful Bezalel the Lord dwelt among His people and spoke tenderly to them. Until Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us, Jesus, born humbly, lived perfectly, died sacrificially, rose victoriously, ascended gloriously… which by the way, the ascension, that’s the unsung part of Jesus’ ministry on earth. And He will return triumphantly. But that ascension, that unsung part, that is so vital for us today. Jesus tells us in John chapter 16, He says:

John 16:7, ‘It is to your advantage. It is for your gain, for your betterment, for your benefit that I go away, for if I don’t, the Helper, the sealing, indwelling, equipping Holy Spirit will not come.’

And so Jesus ascended, and the Holy Spirit has come. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 3 says:

1 Corinthians 3:10b-11, 16

10b “… like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it.

Let each one take care how he builds upon it.

11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

If you have a relationship with Jesus Christ, if you know that you are a sinner and you you have placed your faith, your hope in His perfect life, His sacrificial death, and His triumphant raising from the grave, then you are a temple of the Holy Spirit, the same Holy Spirit that empowered Bezalel. We see this in Acts 1 verse 8:

Acts 1:8, “… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

It’s the same Holy Spirit called to the same task make worshipers. In Romans 10 verse 14 it says:

Romans 10:14, ‘How can they call on Him to save unless they believe Him? And how can they believe in Him if they have not heard about Him? And how can they hear about Him unless someone tells them?’

Witnesses make worshipers. Some of you, your theological bristles just went up. I know the Lord does the saving, but the Lord uses witnesses to witness. How are you doing? The same call that was given to Adam and Eve, be fruitful and multiply, is the same call that is given to Bezalel to build the tabernacle. It’s the same call given to Solomon and the temple. It’s the same call given to the prophets and the priests. And it’s the same call that is given to you… not to build your kingdom, but to build His, to make worshipers because the work is not done. So, fellow workers for the Gospel, how are you doing? How’s your obedience this morning? Are you being obedient to be the witness that He has called you to be? Are you open-handed with the supply? Are you stewarding that role, that gift well? — but in doing so, are you being overshadowed by the Spirit, knowing that it is only through Him and by Him that hearts are changed? — and so you are asking Him to do what He does best and use you in the process. Who’s kingdom are you building? — His or yours?

Gracious Heavenly Father thank you for today. Thank you for faithful servants like Bezalel, who through their work that we see as ordinary or commonplace, reaches far beyond these seven chapters, and into our hearts and lives to convict us, and to have Your Spirit mess us up… in all the right ways. And so Father, as we go from this place today, we ask that You, by Your Spirit, would make us obedient, that our stewardship would be stewardship and that we wouldn’t hoard what You have given us. And Father, we pray that we would work hard as if it depends on us, but know that none of it does, and that we would step out of the way and let Your Spirit work through us. We love You, and we praise You, and it’s in the matchless name of Your Son, Jesus, we pray. Amen.