Preparing Your Heart for Easter Part 2

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As we make our way through the Tabernacle, my prayer is that we continue to be drawn to worship as we behold the glory of our Savior Jesus in new ways during this season of Easter. Pray before you begin, asking the Lord to open your eyes and enlighten your thoughts and mind to the presence of Jesus today.

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Read Exodus 30:17-21 below.

The Lord said to Moses, “You shall also make a basin of bronze, with its stand of bronze, for washing. You shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, with which Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn a food offering to the Lord, they shall wash with water, so that they may not die. They shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they may not die. It shall be a statute forever to them, even to him and to his offspring throughout their generations.”

The Bronze Laver (Basin or Wash Basin) was placed half way between the door of the Tent of Meeting and the Brazen Altar. The Basin was only used by the priests. The priests were to wash their hands and feet prior to entering the Holy Place and prior to ministering at the altar. The laver was made completely of bronze, specifically bronze mirrors; there was no wood comprising the laver. It was a constant reminder that God was holy and was to approached only after cleansing.

Read Ephesians 5:25 below.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.

Sanctifyhagiazō – purify/set apart

Cleansedkatharizō – catharsis – purify, (think: rotto rooter – squeaky clean from the inside out)

Washingloutron – bathing the whole self

Water hydōr – moving/living water

Word – rhema – a specific word from God, a message

God’s Word provides deep cleansing for us daily. Jesus is the living water and the living Word.

The Word of God sanctifies and purifies. It makes us holy like Jesus. The Word reveals sin, speaks truth and encouragement, and gives light and life.

Did you notice in the initial description of the laver that it was made up of the looking glasses (bronze mirrors) of the women ministering at the temple?

Read Exodus 38:8 below.

He made the basin of bronze and its stand of bronze, from the mirrors of the ministering women who ministered in the entrance of the tent of meeting.

Imagine this. As the priest bent over the basin to cleanse his hands, he saw a reflection of himself. Think about that for a moment. He was about to approach a holy and perfect God, yet he saw the filthiness of his own image reflecting back at him.

Isn’t that what God’s Word does for us today? As we read the Holy Word of God, we get a clear picture of who we really are in light of who God is. Then we have a choice. We either accept the Word and receive cleansing, or we turn away from God’s Word, remaining dirty. God’s Word has power to change us and make us more like Jesus.

Experience … Jesus’ presence as you pray and thank Him for His holiness. Thank Him for the cleansing you received from sin when you accepted His forgiveness and for the daily cleansing you receive when you encounter His Word. Thank Him for making you holy through His Word as Jesus is Holy.

Exclaim … and proclaim with great joy the authority of the Word of God as complete Truth. Tell others of how the power of the Word is transforming you. Meditate on these verses about the Word of God and worship Jesus as the living Word today.

  • Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalm 119:105
  • Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Colossians 3:16
  • Faith comes from hearing and hearing from the word of God. Romans 10:17
  • For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

Blessings,

Jacqueline Heider

Director of Women’s Ministry, Prayer, and Resource Specialist

This devotion was written in 2014 by Jacqueline Heider and was first published on her blog at jacquelineheider.com.

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