LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for May 9: How do you contribute?

A few years ago during Vacation Bible School, the children at our church were invited to bring boxes of crayons as their offering. Each day during the gathering time, the children would bring their crayons to the front of the fellowship hall and place them in a large basket.

Midweek, in the basket, we noticed a blue plastic container filled with crayons. The container was covered in stickers, and had the name Ricky scribbled across the top in marker. Ricky had been at VBS all week. He was part of a  family of Latino immigrants who spoke little English and lived on money they earned through minimum wage jobs.

As such, they did not have the resources to purchase crayons for the offering, but Ricky wanted to give. Sacrificially, he brought his own crayons and placed them in the basket. No one prompted him to do this. In his heart, he wanted to contribute and he did. Through this act, he reminded us all that every person can contribute to the work of the Lord.  

This lesson is about Moses calling the Israelites to give an offering for the tabernacle along with their building expertise for the tabernacle’s construction. The emphasis of this lesson is on contributing to God’s work; through it adults are encouraged to contribute freely and wholeheartedly to God’s work.

When Moses came down from the mountain, he called the entire community, young and old, men and women together. Then, following God’s instructions, Moses invited the people to bring all the materials needed to build the tabernacle. Everyone with a willing heart was invited to contribute to the offering.

The Bible tells us, “All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord” (Exodus 35:22).

Ironically, just a few chapters earlier, the people brought their gold earrings and laid them at Aaron’s feet so he could fashion a golden calf for them to worship. Now, their gold will be used for God’s purposes, to make the tabernacle beautiful. It will be used to overlay the Ark of the Covenant and the winged cherubim that surround it. It will be used to make the lampstand (or menorah), to cover the altar of incense, and the table that will hold the bread of the presence.

The people gave generously. In fact, the people gave so much Moses finally asked them to stop. But this project required more than financial contributions. It took the time and talent of many skilled artisans to build the tabernacle.  

To lead this work, God gifted and called a master craftsman named Bezalel. In the next few chapters of Scripture, we learn that Bezalel built the Ark of the Covenant out of acacia wood, sculpted the two winged cherubim, crafted the lampstand out of gold and then built the altar for burning incense.

Bezalel was a gifted artist. Scripture describes Bezalel this way: “He has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts” (Exodus 31:3, 35:31). This passage is the first instance in the Bible that the phrase “filled with the Spirit of God” is used. Bezalel was a man who worked with his hands. He was a sculptor and carpenter, and he was filled with God’s Spirit.

This phrase is not used of Abraham or even Moses, two spiritual giants of the Old Testament. Maybe, it is because Bezalel so willingly offered his time and talent to build the tabernacle that God reserved these words of praise for him. Surely, God valued the work of this artisan as much as God valued the spiritual leadership that Moses provided.       

At this moment, Moses who has been the most significant figure in Exodus takes a back seat to the artisans. He still is involved, but he does not have the skills necessary to do the work of constructing the tabernacle. He is a religious leader, not a craftsman. He knows how to lead the people, but he does not know how to spin yarn or sculpt cherubim.

This passage beautifully illustrates how God calls and equips each person to their particular work. All the Israelites were invited to give their time, material possessions and talent to God’s glory by contributing to the building of the tabernacle. Moses was called to lead the people, and Bezalel was called as an artisan.

The women had an opportunity to participate, for “Every skilled woman spun with her hands and brought what she had spun—blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen” (v. 25). Oholiab is called to teach others how to weave and embroider.

Later, Aaron and the other Levities are called as priests. In God’s kingdom, everyone has a purpose and each person’s gifts can be used to contribute to God’s work in the world. This was true for the Israelites and is for us today.  

So, how do you contribute? At our church, a senior adult on a fixed income washes the welcome center windows each week as an act of service, a formerly homeless woman volunteers her time in the church kitchen and children bring crayons for children in need in another part of the world. All of these individuals have different levels of skill and abilities, yet they are contributing.

Do not be left out of God’s plan. Take time to think about what talent or skill God might want you to use for his glory. Then, do not hold back. Do not miss the chance to participate in God’s work in the world.