Tabernacle
Notes
Transcript
GLASSES
GLASSES
INTRODUCTION — Lion King
INTRODUCTION — Lion King
Once upon a time, there was a young lion named Simba.
One day he meets Timon (a meerkat), and Pumbaa (a warthog), who live a carefree lifestyle in the jungle.
They introduce Simba to their philosophy of life, “Hakuna Matata,’ which means, “No worries.”
Interesting note: Hakuna Matata is Swahili — language spoken in several countries in East Africa. It actually means “no worries.”
Together, these three friends enjoy their care-free lifestyle, filled with laughter, singing, and a laid-back attitude, and they lived happily ever after.
The End!
Most of you know that I am referencing the movie, “The Lion King”.
Most of you will also know that what I have just described only represents the middle section of the movie.
But I want you to imagine for a moment that you have never seen the movie.
If I only told you the middle part of the movie where Simba lives together with Timon and Pumbaa in their carefree lifestyle, you would have missed out on so much detail the makes it the story that we know and love.
You wouldn’t know Simba came from a loving home… or that…
That Simba’s father Mufasa was tragically murdered by his brother Scar…
who then deceived Simba into running away so that he could become king…
And if you didn’t know that, you wouldn’t know that as Simba grows up in this carefree paradise with Timon and Pumbaa, he is actually rejecting his responsibility as others suffer under the rule of Scar.
If you only knew the middle of the story, you would miss out on the fact that Simba, inspired by love, goes back and defeats Scar… restores the land back to order, and takes his rightful place as king.
Sorry If I spoiled the ending for you…
but you’ve had 29 years and 115 days since the movie came out, so if you haven’t seen it yet, that’s your own fault.
Besides the fact that you would miss the main parts of the story, you would miss out on so many little funny parts… sad parts… good songs…
Without all the details, the story wouldn’t be the same… it wouldn’t mean as much!
TRANSITION — The Bible’s One Story
TRANSITION — The Bible’s One Story
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happens a lot of times when we read our Bibles.
We pick up where we are reading, and we have no context for where we are in the storyline of Scripture.
Though we don’t often tend to think of it this way, the Bible is ONE STORY!
The Bible has 66 books…
Written by about 40 different authors…
Over the span of about 1,500 years…
But one of the most fascinating aspects of the Bible is that it tells ONE STORY!
This is one of the proofs that the Bible is God’s Word, because of how it all links together into ONE STORY, even though you have many different authors over many centuries.
This is because… GOD WROTE THE BIBLE!
knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
How can it be true that both God wrote the Bible, and men wrote the Bible?
God, used the thoughts and words of men, led by His Spirit, to write His Word.
In their book on the Old Testament, David Allan Hubbard, Frederic William Bush, and William Sanford LaSor state this helpfully…
To assure verbal precision God, in communicating his revelation, must be verbally precise, and inspiration must extend to the very words. This does not mean that God dictated every word.
Rather his Spirit so pervaded the mind of the human writer that he chose out of his own vocabulary and experience precisely those words, thoughts and expressions that conveyed God's message with precision. In this sense the words of the human authors of Scripture can be viewed as the word of God.
So the Bible is God’s Word, written to us.
But if the Bible is one story, what is main point of the story?
What is the story of the Bible?
What is the story of the Bible?
A story has a certain elements:
Beginning/Introduction…
characters are introduced, a setting is given, we get a sense of what is normal.
and then we are introduced to the main…
Conflict…
characters face obstacles that intensify the story which builds tension.
the conflict leads us to the…
Plot
the plot is the storyline… the plan to resolve the tension/conflict.
at the high point of the story comes the…
Climax…
the peak of the story, the central conflict, the big battle.
Here is where the main character defeats the main enemy… at least most of the time.
this leads to the…
Resolution
there are usually a few small remaining conflicts which are resolved.
then there is closure… and they live happily ever after.
The story of the Bible follows this pattern as well.
Let’s take a quick look at the overview of the Bible so that we get an idea of what story the Bible is telling.
The Introduction
The Introduction
The Bible tells us that in the beginning, God created all things.
He created the heavens and the world…
sun, moon, stars…
plants, animals, sea creatures, and birds…
and last of all, He created man in His own image.
AND IT WAS ALL GOOD!
God planted a garden in Eden, and put Adam there to work it.
Adam could eat from any tree in the garden, but God commanded him not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
God then formed a woman using a rib from Adam, and they dwelled together in the garden with God.
We are never told explicitly that God is dwelling there with them, but in Genesis 3:8 we read that God was walking in the garden in the cool of the day.
So the implication is that God is living together in harmony and peace with man in the garden of Eden.
This is to be the normal way of life. God dwelling with man, whom He has created in His own image.
The Conflict
The Conflict
As Adam and Eve are in the garden one day, they are tempted by the serpent in the.
He causes them to distruct God’s Word, and question His goodness.
Following their desires, they disobey God’s Word and eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil from which God had commanded them not to eat.
This is the first sin… what we refer to as, “The Fall.”
What is the consequence of their sin?
They are driven out of the garden… out of God’s presence… where they dwelled with Him in peace.
The perfect relationship with God has been broken…
dwelling together in harmony and peace has been lost.
This leads us to…
The Plot
The Plot
The on-going question of the rest of the Bible is…
Are God and man going to be able to dwell in harmony and peace together again?
This introduces us to the plot/storyline of the rest ot the Bible…
God is working to restore what was lost in the garden.
His plan… His goal, is to dwell with mankind again, in completely holiness… free from sin.
Spoiler alert… God will succeed!
Although it seems like things have gone horribly wrong, God is in control, and He is working a plan to restore what has been lost… and
One day He will usher in a new kingdom where He will dwell with man in perfect harmony.
TRANSITION TO WHERE WE ARE IN EXODUS
As we read through our Bible’s, we must have this overarching theme in our minds.
Then, as we read we see…
“Echoes” of God’s Purpose
“Echoes” of God’s Purpose
And as we read, we will see important instances of God meeting with man.
These are “ECHOES” from the garden of Eden.
These are significant high points of the story where we can see God actively working His plan to restore fellowship with man.
We see one of these “ECHOES” when God reveals Himself to Abraham and promises to make him a great nation.
This is a high point of the story… God meeting with man!
We see more “ECHOES” when God later reveals himself and affirms His promise to Abraham’s descendants, Isaac and Jacob.
Through God’s plan, Jacob and his family eventually move to Egypt, where God grows them into a great nation, despite the fact that they’re suffering in brutal slavery.
This is where we picked up the story when we began the book of Exodus a few months ago.
God saves His people and brings them out of Egypt, and reaffirms His promise to Abraham to bring them to their own land and make them His holy nation.
As they left Egypt, God led them by a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night. This too is an “ECHO”.
Once again, a highpoint of God meeting with His people.
As we talked about last week, God made a covenant with His people based on His law.
After being consecrated through a sacrifice, God met with the leaders on the mountain, and they ate in the presence of God.
Once again, an“ECHO”… notice they seem to be getting louder.
This is a sign to us that things are moving in the right direction… God is working His plan to dwell with man again.
All of these “ECHOES” are coming from the garden of Eden when God lived in harmony with man…
and they remind us of God’s plan, and urge us to look forward to the fulfilment of God’s plan.
TRANSITION TO TABERNACLE
This morning we are going to see the “ECHO” as it gets EVEN LOUDER!
See, to this point, the “ECHOES” are instances of God revealing Himself to His people.
But this morning, we are going to see that God wants to DWELL AMONG HIS PEOPLE!
How is this possible, since they are sinful?
This leads us to…
God’s Plan
God’s Plan
1 The Lord said to Moses,
2 “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me.
3 And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze,
4 blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats’ hair,
5 tanned rams’ skins, goatskins, acacia wood,
6 oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense,
7 onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece.
8 And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.
9 Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.
Verse 8 is the key… Exodus 25:8
Exodus 25:8 (ESV)
And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.
That is the purpose of the Tabernacle.
That God may dwell in their midst.
This “ECHOES” very strongly back to the garden of Eden, and God’s desire to dwell with man.
This is the…
The Purpose of the Tabernacle
It is to be God’s “Dwelling Place” among His people.
That is the meaning of the word God used.
Your Bible likely translates it as “tabernacle” — which means “dwelling place.”
We don’t instinctively think of it as a home, because it looks like a tent.
But the Israelites lived in tents, so they would have immediately understood it as a home.
A very nice home at that!
We’re going to see some of the glory and splendor of this tent…
Which is meant to tell us something about the One dwelling in the tent.
This morning we are going to be overviewing the system of worship God is going to establish, in order that HE CAN DWELL AMONG SINFUL PEOPLE.
In doing research, I found these images, and I thought it would be helpful for us to have visuals to better understand what they might have looked like and how they functioned.
Because of the detail given to us in these chapters, we have a pretty good idea what it might have looked like.
Position of the Tabernacle
The Tabernacle was pitched facing the east, the position of the sun at sunrise.
Interestingly, many aspects of the tabernacle echo back to the garden of Eden.
The garden of Eden was in the East, and when God drove Adam and Eve out, he put a Cheubim at the East entrance to the garden to guard it.
Now the Tabernacle faces the East as well.
Gate of the Court
There was only one entrance to the tabernacle called the ‘Gate of the court’.
The white curtains around the tabernacle separated it from the rest of the people.
The priests wore white linen garments as well.
White represents holiness and purity.
Gate Curtain
The colours of the threads in the gate curtain were symbolic.
Blue stood for the deity, meaning the court was a place of God.
Purple, a difficult and expensive dye to produce, was a symbol of royalty.
Gate Curtain cont...
Red symbolized blood, the colour of sacrifice.
Altar of Burnt Offering
Directly upon entering the outer court you would see the brazen altar (also called the altar of burnt offering).
Box made of wood, covered in bronze.
Here, the Israelites made daily sacrifices to God on this altar to atone for their sin (Exodus 29:38).
Altar of Burnt Offering cont…
Later, when the first priests began their service at the tabernacle, fire from the presence of the Lord consumed the sacrifice (Leviticus 9:24).
This fire of the altar was to be kept burning at all times.
The horns of the altar were to be covered with blood at the consecration of the priests.
Bronze Laver
Between the altar and the entrance to the Holy Place was a wash basin called a ‘laver’.
Priests cleansed hands and feet before offering sacrifices in tabernacle.
This made them ceremonially clean so as to be consecrated or set apart for ministry.
Tabernacle Entrance
The pillars were made of Acacia wood and covered with pure gold.
There was also a curtain which covered the entrance to the Holy Place.
The curtain was made of blue and purple and scaret yarn.
This guarded the way into the…
Holy Place
Only priests could enter the Holy Place where there were three items.
To the right was the Table of Showbread
Ahead was the Altar of Incense.
To the left was the Golden Lampstand.
The Golden Lampstand
Made out of one solid piece of gold.
It was made to resemble a tree with the base and middle shaft representing the trunk and with three ‘branches’ on each side.
Many see this as an echo back to the tree of life in the garden of Eden.
This lamp was the only source of light in the tent.
It was to be tended by Aaron and his sons so that its light never went out.
The Table for Show Bread
Made of Acacia Wood and covered in gold
At the start of each week the priests placed 12 loaves of fresh bread on the Table.
One for each of the 12 tribes.
It served as a memorial food offering to the Lord.
This symbolized God’s desire to be with and satisfy His people and their needs.
The Altar of Incense
Made of Acacia Wood and covered in pure gold.
Aaron was instructed to burn incense on the altar each morning and at twilight, every day.
This was a regular offering to the Lord.
In Scripture, incense is often associated with prayer.
A symbolic reminder that God hears our prayers as they go up to Him.
The Holy of Holies
There was a large, thick curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.
On this curtain were cherubim.
Once again, this is an echo back to the garden of Eden and the Cherubim guarding the garden of Eden and tree of life.
Inside the curtain/veil was the Ark of the Covenant.
The High Priest alone could enter through the curtain to the Holy of Holies.
This was allowed once a year on the Day of Atonement.
Along with daily, weekly and annual sacrifices, one day every year, the Day of Atonement, the holiest man from the holiest tribe offered the holiest sacrifice in the holy of holies for the holiest people on earth, and that’s how we were able to approach God. — Bob Kauflin
The Ark of the Covenant
The Ark was a box made from Acacia Wood, overlayed with pure gold.
Inside the Ark was:
The 2 stone tablets with the 10 Commandments written on them.
Later, God would command Moses to put some of the Manna that He provided for the Israelites during their wilderness wanderings…
As well as Aaron’s staff which budded.
This lid of the Ark of the covenant with the two cherubim that was placed on top was known as the mercy seat.
There were 2 cherubim (angels) on top.
The cover made of solid gold
God is described as being enthroned between the cherubim over the ark (1 Samuel 4:4, Psalm 18:10)
His footstool.
This is where heaven and earth meet.
When the Priest would enter once a year, he would sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the mercy seat covering the people’s blood for another year.
This was the key symbol of atonement that God would forgive His people.
Though daily sacrifices were necessary for payment of sin, it was only through the mercy seat on the day of atonement that the stain of sin was washed away.
Tranportation of the Tabernacle
Although the tabernacle was heavy and had many parts, it was surprisingly portable.
It was designed by God with this in mind.
All the rings and carrying poles.
Priests carried the Ark and the altars on their shoulders, but the rest was transported in ox- drawn carts.
Credit
freebibleimages.org
Bible-Scenes.com
SUMMARY
All of the elements of the Tabernacle should point us to the holiness and majesty of God.
Though we may see this as merely a tent, the Israelites immediately understood that this was a dwelling fit for a King!
God was moving into their neighbourhood… and He was going to dwell among His people.
At the end of the book of Exodus, after having built all of these things exactly as God described, God’s glory will inhabit the Tabernacle.
Since we know that the story of the Bible, which is the purpose of God’s plan, is to restore what was lost in the garden and dwell with man again…
We should see this as a monumental moment.
But it’s not the end of the story… this is only a temporary plan.
Through this system of worship, there is the constant reminder of sin, and the Israelite’s need to be cleansed.
God still did not dwell with His people in holiness.
This points us forward to something greater… the…
The Climax
The Climax
God still has more work to do in order to restore what has been lost in the garden of Eden, and usher in His kingdom where He will dwell in perfect unity with His people.
In John’s gospel He tells us…
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.
He was speaking of Jesus, and would say a few short verses later…
John 1:14 (ESV)
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The Greek word here literally means:
dwell (skay-no’-o)
to fix one’s tabernacle,
have one’s tabernacle,
abive (or live) in a tabernacle (or tent)
It’s not very hard to see the “ECHO” back to the Tabernacle there is it?
Jesus, fully God, came into the world and literally “pitched His tent” among us.
The writer of Hebrews shows how the old covenant was a shadow of things to come.
Christ is the fulfilment of all of these things.
1 Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly place of holiness. 2 For a tent was prepared, the first section, in which were the lampstand and the table and the bread of the Presence. It is called the Holy Place.
3 Behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place, 4 having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.
5 Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail. 6 These preparations having thus been made, the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, 7 but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people.
8 By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing 9 (which is symbolic for the present age). According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, 10 but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation.
11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
Priests had to make on-going sacrifices - but Christ made a once-for-all sacrifice.
He sprinkled His own blood before God securing atonement forever, for all who would trust in him.
Jesus cleanses us, makes us pure, and enables us to rightly approach the Lord.
He tore the veil that kept distance between Israel and the Lord.
50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. 51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
There is no longer a need for a sacrificial system of worship, for we can go directly to God through Jesus Christ!
God dwelled in Israel in a tent, now he dwells in His people through the Spirit.
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
We remember that the Tabernacle was beautifully designed with the most valuable resources our world has to offer.
This was to indicate the majesty and holiness of God who would dwell in it.
What does that say about those who have the indwelling Holy Spirit?
The only way God can dwell in us through His Spirit is if our hearts are pure, spotless, blameless…
We don’t often feel like that description fits us, and we definitely don’t feel worthy, but that’s exactly what God has done in you if you have put your faith in Jesus Christ!
11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.
14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. 15 And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, 16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,”
17 then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.” 18 Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.
Through faith in Christ, we are made perfect!
His Holy Spirit dwells within us, and ALL of our sins have been forgiven…
Past, present, and future!
What is our response to such great promises?
The writer of Hebrews tells us…
19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
This is incredible!
All through the old covenant we hear God saying, “Don’t come near! I am holy. Only the priests can come into the holy place, and only the high priest can come into the holy of holies.”
But now, through Jesus Christ willingly offering His body to be torn,
and thus tearing the curtain which separated God from man…
the way to the presence of God has been opened…
we are called to draw near to God!
This is the climax of the story! Christ has defeated the enemies of sin and death!
Jesus is the fulfilment of all the Old Testament:
Jesus is the better lampstand… the light of the world…
Jesus is the better showbread… the bread of life…
Jesus is the better sacrifice… cleansing us once and for all…
Jesus is the better prophet… who spoke the truth of God’s Word…
Jesus is the better priest… who was perfect and did not need to first cleanse Himself, and brought us near to God…
Jesus is the better king… who has been given all authority, and is worthy of our devotion and worship.
But this is not the end of the story…
There is still…
The Resolution
The Resolution
Now, dwelling in us, and working through us, Christ is building His kingdom here on earth.
One day, when Jesus ushers in the New Jerusalem, we will dwell with Him in perfect unity.
He will be our God, and we will be His people.
Oh how we long for that day!
But until then, there is work to do.
As His people, we must build His kingdom as await His return.
There are 3 things we must do as we await the return of Christ:
We must walk by faith
We must build one another up
We must bring others near to God
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.
There are 3 things we must do as we await the return of Christ:
We must walk by faith
We must build one another up
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
There are 3 things we must do as we await the return of Christ:
We must walk by faith
We must build one another up
We must bring others near to God
14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
