WHEN WOMEN QUIT LOOKING IN THE MIRROR
Ex. 38:8
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: THEY CAUGHT A MERMAID
1. Three guys were out fishing one day when, out of the blue, they caught a mermaid who said she’d grant each of them a wish if they’d set her free.
2. “Okay,” said the first guy, “double my IQ.” The mermaid said, “Done.” Suddenly the guy started reciting Shakespeare and other classical literature.
3. The second guy was so amazed he said to the mermaid, “Triple my IQ”. The mermaid said, “Done.” The guy started spouting mathematical equations solving problems that had stumped scientists for centuries.
4. The third guy was so impressed that he said, “Quadruple my IQ.” The mermaid looked at him and said, “I normally don’t try to change people’s minds, but I really wish you’d reconsider. You don’t know what you’re asking...it’ll change your entire view on the universe.” “Nope make it 4x higher!”
5. The mermaid sighed and said, “Done.” Poof! And the third guy was changed into a woman.
B. LADY WITHOUT A MIRROR
1. Two centuries ago there lived a prominent English woman by the name of Lady Montagu. She was the wife of the Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire and wrote poetry. Her energy and talents won her a wide field of influence, even with such eminent literary men as Pope and Addison, who were among her close friends.
2. Historians of the time note that as she grew older she became indifferent to her appearance, so much so, that for eleven years she refused to look at herself in a mirror. On that alone she was considered a remarkable woman! [Paul Lee Tan, #4936]
C. TEXT
“They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting” Ex. 38:8.
D. THESIS
1. God told Moses to construct a tent where Jehovah could meet with the Israelites. It was called the Tabernacle. It was a portable version the Temple later built by Solomon.
2. Women have always been at the forefront of the work of God. Two Old Testament women, Deborah and Esther, saved the nation of Israel from destruction. Jesus’ ministry was supported by a group of women (Lk. 8:3). And women were the last at the cross, first at the tomb, first met the resurrected Christ, and then carried the news to the apostles!
3. Exodus 38:8 tells about women making unusual donations to construct the Tabernacle. Their gifts speak volumes about their love for God. The title of this message is “When Women Quit looking in the Mirror.”
I. SYMBOLOGY OF THE LAVER
A. THE TABERNACLE, IN GENERAL
1. Each piece of the Tabernacle had a symbolic meaning. The Tent represented our human body. We were created to be indwelt, in the inner sanctums of our spirits, by the living Presence of God.
2. We’re to have the illumination (menorah) of the Holy Spirit and we’re to be fed with the Bread from Heaven (shewbread). The incense of our praise is to be offered before God in our hearts.
3. Outside was the altar of burnt offering where the sacrifice of our sins was burned – representing the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lamb of God for our sins on Calvary.
4. Near the Altar of Burnt Offering was a large bowl on a stand. It was made of bronze and held a large quantity of water. This bowl, the Laver, is believed to have spigots to turn to release water for washing the Priest’s hands and feet before they ministered for God (or a pitcher was used to scoop it out.)
B. THE PRIESTS & THE LAVER
1. We are “kings and priests unto our God” (Rev. 1:6; 5:10; 1 Pet. 2:9). Believers have a priestly function, but we need to be cleansed daily from our old sins. We need the Laver.
2. The Laver was made from the mirrors of the ladies, so the priests could see themselves in it. They could see their faces and observe the blotches that needed to wiped off. James said the Word of God is like a mirror that people can see themselves in (1:23).
3. Paul said the Word cleanses us; “That he might sanctify and cleanse it [the Church] with the washing of water by the Word” Eph. 5:26. So the Laver/ i.e., the Word, shows us our sins and helps us be cleansed from them.
C. ONLY ONE TRUE MIRROR
1. In order for us to repent we need genuine self-examination. The Bible is the only mirror in which we can see ourselves as we really are.
2. There are some mirrors that flatter the features, and make you look better than you are. Then there are other mirrors that distort your features, and make you look worse than you are.
3. Some religions or preachers try to make you feel better or worse than you really are before God.
4. But only the Bible shows a person what they truly look like in the sight of God. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” Heb. 4:12.
D. WASHING IS MANDATORY
1. In Exodus 30:20-21, God told them they must wash in that laver or die. The priests might have said, "Can't I wash elsewhere? I washed in the sink at home, and now you want me to wash here?"
2. God says, "It doesn’t matter where else you’ve washed before; you must wash in this laver or die." "But," the priest might say, "there’s water in my well just as clean as this, why won't that do?”
3. God says, “No other fountain will do for your cleansing but the fountain opened by Jesus Christ!” What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
II. THE BRONZE FOR THE LAVER
When Moses put out the call for supplies to build the Tabernacle, one thing needed was bronze for the Laver. A group of women volunteered to give their mirrors of bronze to make the laver.
A. ORIGIN OF THE BRONZE MIRRORS?
1. Bronze was a scarce metal in those days. It was expensive because it was the product of advanced technology and a lot of labor (digging, sifting, smelting, purifying, burnishing, etc.).
2. These mirrors would be too advanced and costly for slaves. They were produced or obtained by the Egyptians and were earned or given to the Israelites when they left Egypt. So they were derived of the heathen Egyptian culture.
B. THE WOMEN WHO GAVE THE MIRRORS
1. These were not just average women who gave up these mirrors; these were women who’d already shown their love for God by volunteering to help at the “Tent of Meeting” so they could serve God and be near God.
2. These were women willing to SCORN THEIR BEAUTY because of their love for God. The woman at Simon the Pharisee’s house was such a woman; she used her beautiful hair to wipe the Lord’s feet.
3. These were women already around God’s presence. The Spirit’s Presence gives us the power to throw off the world’s influence and make the sacrifices that are needed.
4. “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” 2 Cor. 3:17.
III. REMARKABLE NATURE OF THE GIFTS
A. WHAT WE DO WITH MIRRORS
1. We use mirrors to look at ourselves. Our identity is often wrongly tied to our outward appearance. God says, “The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” 1 Sam. 16:7.
2. Most world-conscious people only think of their exterior, and so go to great efforts to dress up their outside, look attractive – to please themselves, to be popular with others, and to attract romantic partners.
3. So mirrors represent the worldly way of thinking; with Self at the center of our focus. But outward beauty isn’t God’s standard, inward beauty is.
4. We’re made in the “Image of God,” but that’s not an outward image. (Paul said, “put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” Eph. 4:24; “put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” Col. 3:10.)
B. SO WHAT IS REAL BEAUTY? [1 Pet. 3:1-5a]
1. “Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. 5 For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves.”
2. A person who is gentle with others, and sweet, is a person people want to be around. A gentle and quiet spirit are an expression of faith, which trusts God and is in control of their thoughts and emotions.
3. So it’s wrong to evaluate ourselves by our exteriors. Whether we’re handsome or homely, God sees us as priceless. He was willing to pay the price of the death of His Son for us!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: THEY GAVE THEIR GOLD TO THEIR KING
1. During his reign, King Frederick William III of Prussia found himself in trouble. Wars had been costly, and in trying to build the nation, he was seriously short of finances. He ran out of options to save his nation.
2. After careful reflection, he decided to ask the women of Prussia to bring their jewelry of gold and silver to be melted down for their country.
3. For each ornament received, he determined to exchange a decoration of bronze or iron as a symbol of his gratitude. Each decoration would be inscribed, "I gave gold for iron, 18l3."
4. The response was overwhelming. Even more important, these women prized their gifts from the king more highly than their former jewelry. The reason, of course, is clear. The decorations were proof that they had sacrificed for their king and country.
5. In fact, it became unfashionable to wear jewelry, and thus was established the Order of the Iron Cross. Members wore no ornaments except a cross of iron for all to see. [Lynn Jost]
6. May the Christian women of today (and the men) do as much for their King -- exchanging the emblems of earthly vanity for ones that will last forever.
B. THE CALL
1. Notice that this laver in which the priests washed was filled with fresh water every morning. So it is with the gospel of Jesus Christ; it is supposed to refresh us every day!
2. Let’s pray and ask God to help us be – on the inside – more like Jesus Christ. Our beauty “should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight” 1 Pet. 3:4.
[ Several points were gleaned from Matthew Henry and others from Dr Talmadge’s “The Laver and Looking-Glasses” monograph.]
