Title: Instructions for the Altar

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 27:4-5
“Therefore it shall be, when you have crossed over the Jordan, that on Mount Ebal you shall set up these stones, which I command you today, and you shall whitewash them with lime. And there you shall build an altar to the LORD your God, an altar of stones; you shall not use an iron tool on them.”

Main idea: Our identity as the people of God is marked primarily by our faithfulness in obedience to him.

WHEN Israel crossed the Jordan River they were to build an altar “to the Lord your God.” These verse gives as Four lessons about the altar. They involved the place of the altar, The requirement of the altar, the purpose of the altar, and the command about the altar.

Mount Ebal.
The Samaritan Pentateuch says “Mount Gerizim.” This may be what the Samaritan woman had in mind when she pointed to Gerizim and said to Jesus that her ancestors had worshiped “on this mountain” (John 4:20).

Place of the altar.
“There you shall build an altar to the LORD your God.” The altar was to be built in the land of Canaan. Israel would be surrounded by the heathen of the land when they moved into the land. In spite of that, they still were to build an altar there to the Lord. We are to honor God wherever we are.

The requirement of the altar.
“An altar of stones.” The altar was to last. It was to endure the times. Our stand for God is not to be weak, but strong and durable. Our faith in the Lord must survive the stress of life. Faithfulness is a lifetime commitment. Ephesians 4:14 says, we are not to be “tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men.” The stones of the altar were to be collected from the field. When God wants to use you he always provides. On the altar, Israel was to offer burnt offerings, sacrifices that would be consumed by fire in recognition of God’s demand for a substitute for sinners.

The altar building was not going to be easy because it was built of stones. Hard work was involved. Lifting the stones up one upon another would not be easy. Living for God is never easy and serving God is also never easy, it requires much effort and commitment. But it is worth it.

Purpose of the altar.
The altar was a place of worship where sacrifices were offered. Worship involves sacrificing. No sacrifice, no worship.

The command about the altar.
“You shall not use an iron tool on them.” Altar was to be made with uncut stones. The prohibiting of the iron tools was to stop any carving on the stones (Exodus 20:25). Carving on the stones was a problem because it could lead to idolatry. It would take one’s attention off the sacrifice on the altar. The focal point on the altar was to be the sacrifice, not some carving on the stones. The uncut stones were meant to suggest that neither the Law nor the sacrificial system was to suffer any human adornment.

Throughout His Law, God declares that when an altar was made, it was to be made only of stone or earth. It was to be common and uncarved because otherwise the tendency would be for people to focus on the altar rather than on the sacrifice. Our worship is to focus on Christ. It had to be made of stones that were free from human fashioning. No iron tool could be used in fashioning them. The Lord apparently intended Israel to understand that the only valid approach to him was to be made with gifts that he had provided: “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Eph. 2:8-9).

Application
The significance of this alter is important. It commemorated God’s faithfulness in giving them the land. The alter was to build on Mount Ebal (about 35 miles north of Jerusalem) which lay the city of Shechem. It was at Shechem that the Lord first “appeared” to Abraham, and there Abraham built his first altar to the Lord (Gen. 12:6-7). The choice of this place to build the alter emphasized God’s faithfulness to the Abrahamic promises and hinted that the time for their fulfillment might be near if only Israel would obey Him.

One Sunday morning in January of 1850 when Charles Haddon Spurgeon, then fifteen years of age, came to a church to get out of the snow. Handful of people was there; not even the minister came. Speaking from his limited education, an elder of the church simply read the text of Isaiah and made a few comments on each verse. He came to Isaiah 45:22, which says, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

The preacher noted that obedience to this call did not require great ability, because anyone could look—even a child. After about ten minutes of exposition, the preacher fixed his eyes on Spurgeon and said, “Young man, you look miserable, and you will always be miserable—in life and death—if you don’t obey this text. You have nothing to do but look and live!” Spurgeon looked to God and was indeed saved. Through Spurgeon’s conversion, God used that humble substitute preacher, armed only with the words of Scripture, to produce tens of thousands of spiritual descendants and to validate the power of God’s Word.

I leave you today with these words taken from Acts 16:31 “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Let’s pray together
Heavenly Father, I thank you, Lord, You are not a respecter of persons and shows no partiality. I can come to you at any time of the day to seek Your face. You not only hear my cry but You answers. In Jesus Name Amen.