A Picture of Heaven

Tabernacle

Today we introduce the Tabernacle, where we will spend the next 7 weeks. That should immediately pique our interest that something was so important to Moses, but more so to God, that He devoted 7 of the 40 chapters in Exodus to the topic. We touched on the Tabernacle briefly when we went through the book of Hebrews, but here, we find the extensive building plans that the Israel will use to build it. At this point, Moses has ascended to the peak of Mount Sinai, and he now finds himself in the presence of Almighty God. We will read the text in just a moment, but I want to begin with the end in mind. What is the Tabernacle? Why are the building plans included in Scripture? How does any of this apply to us today?

Let’s tackle those one at a time. First, what is the Tabernacle? Let’s start with the word. Tabernacle is actually an English word that most of us are probably not familiar with outside of a biblical context, but it comes from a latin word that means tent or hut.

The Hebrew word here, miskan, means dwelling place, which for a mobile people, would be a tent. After God gives His people His Moral Law and a portion of the Judicial Law, God brings Moses into His presence. This is the first person since Adam, several thousand years before has been in the presence of God in His dwelling place.

This should immediately bring us back to Eden, and it’s meant to. As we talk more about the details that are explicitly included in the construction of the Tabernacle, we will see it is replete with Eden imagery.

Remember, when God created the Earth, He created the land of Eden, then He placed Adam and Eve into the Garden in Eden. They were commanded to fill the Earth with their children. In the center of the Garden was the Tree of Life, where God represented His presence, and without sin, God walked in the Garden with Adam and Eve.

When Adam sinned, they were kicked out of the Garden and there were two cherubim placed at the gate of the Garden. Access to the place God dwelt among His people was gone. God appears to a handful of people from Eden to Sinai, but we don’t see God dwelling among His people until a couple of weeks ago when we saw God’s presence descend on Mt. Sinai to dwell among the people of Israel. We saw that in our broken state, only the elders could ascend the mountain part way, and only Moses could pass through the cloud and fire into the presence of God.

Now that Moses has entered the dwelling place of God, God gives Him blueprints to build a “mobile Eden,” where God’s presence can dwell among His people again. God’s redeeming plan has been put into action in a significant way. God is making a way to dwell among His people again.

So, with that said, why the building plans? The answer is in the first and last verse of this chapter. Make them after the pattern for them, which is being shown you.” The building plans are not a list of building plans that the Lord gave arbitrarily gave. In addition to these instructions, God has brought Moses into the Heavenly Temple, before the Throne of God to make all of these things after the pattern that he has being shown. Now, he is to take earthly materials and make this Tabernacle after the pattern of all of these Heavenly things he is being shown. All of these building instructions carry with them an image of Eden, heaven, and with those redemptive lenses on, we see that this Tabernacle is now built inside of us to house the presence of God, through Christ, in the Holy Spirit.

Finally, why should we care about the Tabernacle? How does it apply to us? Like I just said, God’s presence now lives within us. Every detail of the Tabernacle in some way signifies Christ, shows us how we can now come before a Holy God, and shows us how to worship Him.

With that, let’s read.

Exodus 25

v.1-9

This Tabernacle is going to be expensive

God’s people left Egypt wealthy, they asked the Egyptians for their belongings as they were leaving

What’s interesting is that God could have easily required the people to give a specific amount as He does several other times for Israel. Instead, God asks for the people to give as they are moved by the Lord.

This is more similar to what we read in the New Testament about offerings

2 Corinthians 9:6–7 “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

I share this verse in particular to bring up the elephant in the room. Addressing offerings from the pulpit is like having people pray in groups at church. Our culture says we’re not allowed to do it because it makes people uncomfortable. Well, I’m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable, but it’s in scripture, and it’s not something we ignore.

The same culture that tells us we’re not allowed to talk about giving expects the government to take care of the orphans and the widows, the poor and the homeless, the lost and the broken. That use to be the churches job, but when the government takes that role over, people still get their financial needs met, but we miss out on an opportunity to share the love of Christ with those who need it most.

This all comes down to each of our hearts.

"But you are not under a system similar to that by which the Jews were obliged to pay tithes to the priests. If there were any such rule laid down in the Gospel, it would destroy the beauty of spontaneous giving and take away all the bloom from the fruit of your liberality! There is no law to tell me what I should give my father on his birthday. There is no rule laid down in any law book to decide what present a husband should give to his wife, nor what token of affection we should bestow upon others whom we love. No, the gift must be a free one, or it has lost all its sweetness." ~ Charles Spurgeon

In our house, we have financial meetings quite often and there is a healthy tension between our budget and giving

Mazevo isn’t here to motivate you to give to my vision, or Roland’s vision, or anyone else’s here. Mazevo is here to do what scripture teaches us to do. To carry the name of Jesus into our community and be the hands and feet of Jesus to them. That takes money, that takes time, but most of all, it takes the Lord to move in us and break our hearts for those who desperately need Jesus. We are a church that is growing, and we are a church that hungry for the opportunities that the Lord will put in front of us. Mazevo leadership will continue to send the same message. If the Lord is breaking your heart for a cause, act on it. If there is any way at all that Mazevo as a whole can get involved, make it known, and lets be a church that makes the love of Jesus known in our community, all for the glory of God.

v.10-22

Begins with what will be in the most holy place

The ark will later be filled with the two tablets of stone, Aaron’s almond budded staff, and a jar of manna

v.17 mercy seat -> atonement cover -> kapporet -> Yom Kippor

God’s presence was represented by the space within it

High priest one day a year may enter

The sacrifice that took place on this mercy seat calls back to the passover lamb, and points forward to Jesus’ death on the cross

v. 23-30

Continues with what will be in the holy place

The table of showbread

Symbolizes God’s continual presence with the 12 tribes of Israel

v. 31-40

This is the ever present light of God that illuminates the holy place

Almond branches and buds symbolize life and resurrection

Sevenfold, perfect and complete

Conclusion

There are several verses in the NT that we are all familiar with, but in light of what we just read, they take on a whole new meaning.

The lampstand we said is an ever present light.

John 8:12 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””

Before the lampstand, we talked about the table of showbread.

John 6:35 “Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

Before the table of showbread, we talked about the ark of the covenant with the mercy seat on top.

Romans 3:21–26 “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the OT, The word propitiation in v. 25 is translated hilastarion, which is the same Greek word the Septuagint used to translate the Hebrew word for mercy seat here in Exodus 25. The only other time we see this Greek word in all of scripture is in Hebrews 9:5, again translated mercy seat. This is no mistake. The atonement that the people received at the mercy seat was perfected once and for all in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

All of the ways that God represented Himself to Israel in the Tabernacle, God represents Himself perfectly now in Jesus. God’s redemptive plan since the Fall has been to redeem His people.In the Tabernacle, we see the pattern of the heavenly things. In Jesus, we are welcomed directly into that throne room that Moses made the pattern after.

Make no mistake, we have been richly blessed. The more we learn about scripture, the more blessed we realize we are. As we consider how blessed we are, let’s ask the Lord to break our hearts for those who don’t know Him. Let’s share the treasure we’ve found with those widows and orphans, the poor and the homeless, the lost and the broken. Let’s speak the name of Jesus into this community and see just how blessed we are.