Exodus 20:24-25 KJV
An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
The Lord is here either speaking of another type of altar than the one He would later give instructions to build for the tabernacle or else, this is a provision for an altar prior to the construction of the altar they had in the tabernacle.
God said concerning the altar of stone, that if they lifted a tool to change the shape of the stone, they had polluted the altar. This was to be an altar made entirely of that which God provided, not touched with the art and craftsmanship of man.
I am reminded that when the Temple was built the Bible says that all the stones were hewn out of earshot of the building site so that no sounds were heard in the building. I am also reminded how that when the brazen altar was constructed, it was crafted by men, not with natural talent, but men who had been gifted by the Spirit of God.
I do note that man has his place of service. God did tell them to make the altar of stone. There is human responsibility in the work of worshiping the Lord. However, men were not to lift a tool upon that stone, which reminds us that whenever we take what God has given, and mold it in any way, we corrupt and pollute it.
There is the fine balance in the work of worshiping and serving the Lord. That balance is kept when we do our service, not in the strength of our own will and natural abilities, but in complete dependence upon the Holy Spirit in us.
An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
The Lord is here either speaking of another type of altar than the one He would later give instructions to build for the tabernacle or else, this is a provision for an altar prior to the construction of the altar they had in the tabernacle.
God said concerning the altar of stone, that if they lifted a tool to change the shape of the stone, they had polluted the altar. This was to be an altar made entirely of that which God provided, not touched with the art and craftsmanship of man.
I am reminded that when the Temple was built the Bible says that all the stones were hewn out of earshot of the building site so that no sounds were heard in the building. I am also reminded how that when the brazen altar was constructed, it was crafted by men, not with natural talent, but men who had been gifted by the Spirit of God.
I do note that man has his place of service. God did tell them to make the altar of stone. There is human responsibility in the work of worshiping the Lord. However, men were not to lift a tool upon that stone, which reminds us that whenever we take what God has given, and mold it in any way, we corrupt and pollute it.
There is the fine balance in the work of worshiping and serving the Lord. That balance is kept when we do our service, not in the strength of our own will and natural abilities, but in complete dependence upon the Holy Spirit in us.
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