Section Two—Half Shekel

The 11th verse begins another section. The children of Israel were to take a half shekel of the sanctuary; the rich were not to give more and the poor were not to give less. That brings before us the worshipers themselves who are fitted to draw near before God. The Israelites could only draw near to God through the priest. The veil was still up and Israel was represented before God by the priestly family whom He had appointed for that purpose. Today each believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is redeemed with His precious blood and fitted by the Spirit of God to be a worshiper of God the Father.
Half a shekel of silver for each Israelite was the price of redemption. But now we are redeemed, not with corruptible things as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, the Lamb without blemish and without spot. Unless we are redeemed in this way, we cannot worship God. The half shekel of the sanctuary had to be paid for each one. The rich were to have no better standing before God in worship than the poor brother. The poor brother was not to give less than the rich one. The price of redemption of each cannot be more or less than the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
How precious is this redemption ground on which we draw near before the Lord Jesus Christ. Redeemed ones are those privileged to draw near before God as worshipers. We have the case of a poor worshiper in the woman of Samaria in John 4. This speaks to our hearts of what we were when the Lord took us up and the blood of Jesus redeemed us, and now we are able to draw near into His presence without a qualm of conscience because the blood of Christ has answered for our sin before God. Rich or poor, learned or knowing little, blessed be God each has the same foundation: the perfect work and the precious blood of Christ.
Although that is our place before God, the perfect ground of redemption, do we not feel as we pass through this world how much comes in to hinder us from drawing near in worship to God? We are passing through a defiling scene; the evil nature in us so answers to what is around us. The enemy is ever seeking to trip up the feet of God's saints and to defile them. How then can we draw near to God?