How to build an altar

After issuing the ten commandments on Mount Sinai, the next instructions that God gives to Moses are how to build an altar: keep it simple, make it of earth, and if you must use stones then stick with natural rocks rather than cut stones. So why is it that not too much later God gives long detailed instructions for an elaborate place of worship which includes a carefully-crafted acacia-wood altar overlaid with bronze?

One answer might be that over the years different traditions within Judaism have preserved different stories about Moses, each biased by their own particular emphases and that the book of Exodus is a compilation of different accounts. But even so the question remains - "What is God saying through these contrasting passages?"

On the one hand we should give our best to God - using the richest materials, the most skilled artisans, the highest quality worship. But we mustn't ever let this lead us from one of the most basic commandments, "Do not make and worship idols." If ever the pomp and ceremony become a god in their own right, then the simple ways are a healthy counterbalance. Just worship with whatever materials you have to hand. Don't waste time on fancy words or elaborate systems. Simply worship God.

A personal application: Not so much when it comes to worship, but when it comes to getting done all the things a minister should, I am very good at crafting elaborate systems for monitoring my task list and motivating my actions. At their best they are beautiful works of art which honour God by enabling me to be the most efficient person I can be. (This is an ideal situation I'm talking about, not my regular state of being.) But the closer I come to a beautifully organised lifestyle, the more my time-management systems are in danger of becoming an idol. I need to know when to forget the carefully-honed framework and just get on with doing what God wants.