Set Apart - Ex. 29:45-46

"I will live among the people of Israel and be their God, and they will know that I am the Lord their God. I am the one who brought them out of Egypt so that I could live among them. I am the Lord their God." Ex. 29:45-46

Whenever I read about all of the exacting detail that Got imposed on the Jews with regard to the Temple, priests, sacrifices, ceremony/ritual, etc., I can't help but wonder what it's all about. Does an all powerful God need all this? When I read this verse in Exodus I had a different thought (beyond the obvious, "He's God, he can require anything he wants."). That all of his demands were more for the benefit of the Jews than for him. These were slaves--they had only known slavery for over 400 years; yet they were also God's chosen people. I am certain that any thoughts of being anything special whatsoever, died long ago. How would God take a community of slaves and transform them into a nation set apart to serve the God of the universe? By showing them that they were different, unique and special to the ONLY God that matters. That HE loved them, would take care of them, and had a plan. By creating an environment and way of life that was SO different from what they knew, God was giving them their identity back. By no means an easy task as they constantly wanted to go back to what they saw as the "security" of being slaves -- but God triumphed. These were no longer the people of Pharaoh, they were the people of God.

Lord, just as you set the Jews apart you did the same for me, a Gentile. I don't always feel special, unique and different, but I am working on it. Keep revealing yourself to me.

Today's reading: Ex. 28, 29; Acts 7