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Day 28, or January 28. Fragrant aroma and covenant in writing.

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Our thoughts today are rooted in Exodus chapter 31 verse 18. When the Lord finished speaking

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to Moses on Mount Sinai, He gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of

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stone inscribed by the finger of God. Now the big picture surrounding this verse.

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An altar is described that would be part of the tabernacle project for the children of

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Israel. This would be made from wood and covered entirely with gold. Sweet smelling incense

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was to be burned on this altar, and it would have been very important in setting the scene

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for reverent and genuine worship of the living God. They knew that God couldn't be contained

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in a tent or even a temple, but having a visual reminder of their invisible God was very important

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to them. God understood their need, which is why He encouraged them to erect the tabernacle

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whenever they stopped as they travelled to the promised land. Bearing in mind that all

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of this was to the glory of God, we can better understand why so much trouble was being taken

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to get everything just right. When God had finished speaking to Moses at

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Mount Sinai, giving him the regulations that would form the foundation for Judaism and

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ultimately Christianity, He handed him the two tablets of stone on which He Himself had

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written the Ten Commandments.

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And finally our action step for today. What sort of aroma do you leave in a room when

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you leave it? Sorry if that sounds a bit risque, but our reading today emphasizes how important

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sweet aromas are to God. In chapter 30 we read of God telling Moses how to mix a perfume

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mixture, which would be a sacred anointing oil to be used in the tabernacle. It would

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consist of myrrh, cinnamon, calamus, cassia and olive oil. Of course, leaving a smell

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of perfume is not the point I'm trying to make. What atmosphere do you leave? Is a place

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better after you leave than it was before you came? It should be, so be careful to make

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a godly impression.