[powerpress]
The Tabernacle in the Old Testament is a wonderful picture of Jesus Christ! Today we see how privileged we are as believer-priests, and are challenged to take full advantage of those spiritual privileges.
Christ – Our Tabernacle: Part 1
Exodus 25:8
This morning we continue our Christ in Exodus series, and we come to Exodus chapter 25. For the next several messages, we are going to focus on Christ – Our Tabernacle. M. R. Dehaan, in his book, The Tabernacle, writes, “God Himself was the architect, and every detail points to some aspect of the character and work of the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, and, in its complete form, it is probably the most comprehensive, detailed revelation of Jesus the Son of God, and the plan of salvation in the entire Old Testament.” Now, that is a pretty lofty claim. However, I believe he is right.
As we study the Tabernacle, we are going to find that it is a picture of Jesus Christ, His person and work. It is also a picture of the experience of the believer. We are going to see Jesus in the Tabernacle, but we are also going to see ourselves in it as well.
In Exodus 19-24, God enters into covenant with Israel. It is a bilateral conditional covenant. Israel pledges themselves to obey God’s Law, and God binds Himself to bless Israel. However, interestingly, God not only Gave Moses the Law on Sinai, but He also gave Him very specific instructions on erecting a Tabernacle. You see, God knew that Israel would break His Law, so He also included a plan whereby He could continue to commune with the children of Israel. On Sinai, God gave Moses a revelation of His Law and His Grace. The Tabernacle was the means whereby God could shed His grace on Israel and continue to dwell among them in spite of their law breaking.
This morning let’s look at five different aspects of the Tabernacle.
1. The Purpose Of The Tabernacle
Why did God tell Moses to construct a Tabernacle to begin with? Why not continue just as they had been? Why did God need this special tent constructed? Exodus 25:8 gives us the answer, “Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them.” That’s why! God wanted to dwell among them. Evidently, their sin of breaking His law would have separated God from them, but the Tabernacle provided a way to have their sins atoned for and fellowship with God continue, so that He could continue to dwell among them.
Look at Exodus 25:22, “There I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel.” The Tabernacle was the meeting place between God and man. If you wanted to be with God, that’s where you would go. His immediate presence emanated from the Holy of Holies, over the ark of the covenant, and His glory cloud lifted up through the roof of the tent and spread over the whole camp of Israel, protecting them from the scorching sun by day, and guiding them as a light during the night.
My friends, the Tabernacle is a picture of Jesus. John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us.” The everlasting Son of God, became flesh and pitched His tent, and tabernacled among men.
Do you know where a sinner can meet God today? It’s not in a special temple or church building or mosque or wailing wall. No, it is in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the meeting place between God and sinners. You can’t find God or commune with God any other way than by coming to Christ. 1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” There is only one mediator, one go-between, who can bring you to God, and it’s none other than Jesus Christ. So, my friend, if you want to get in touch with your Creator, you have to go through Jesus Christ. You can’t get to God by going through Mohammad or Buddha, or the thousands of Hindu deities, or any other religious leader or teacher. Christ is the only meeting place between God and man.
2. The Position Of The Tabernacle
So, where was the Tabernacle positioned? Numbers 2 tells us that the Tabernacle camped in the middle of the tribes of Israel. There were three tribes that camped to the north of the Tabernacle, three tribes that camped to the south of the Tabernacle, three tribes that camped to the east of the Tabernacle and three tribes that camped to the west of the Tabernacle.
The three tribes that camped to the West went under the tribe of Ephraim, and were numbered at 108,100. The three tribes that camped to the East went under the tribe of Judah, and were numbered at 184,600. So, the three tribes to the west of the Tabernacle would not have spread out as far as the three tribes to the east. Interestingly, the tribes to the North and the South, Dan and Reuben, respectively, were almost equal in number. So, if you were God looking down from heaven upon the camp of Israel, you would see a cross. *Show the picture on the projector.
Also, Numbers 2:2 says “The sons of Israel shall camp, each by his own standard, with the banners of their fathers’ households; they shall camp around the tent of meeting at a distance.” These tribes had banners that they would set up and camp by. We know from Jewish tradition, that Ephraim’s banner had a picture of a calf on it; Dan’s had an eagle on it; Judah’s had a lion on it; and Reuben’s had a man on it. Does that ring a bell with anyone? A calf, an eagle, a lion, and a man? Look at Revelation 4:5-7, “Out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God; and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. The first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. It seems that God deliberately told the children of Israel how to camp because He wanted to picture what heaven will look like. The throne of God will be in the center of everything, and there will be four living creatures, resembling a lion, a calf, a man and an eagle round it. Then there will be the multitude which no man can number spreading out from the throne in all directions, symbolized by the children of Israel! Where will you be in that scene?
3. The Pattern Of The Tabernacle
In Exodus 25:8-9, God told Moses, “Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I am going to show you, as the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct it. Then in verse 40, God told Moses, “See that you make them after the pattern for them, which was shown to you on the mountain.”
Then, notice Hebrews 9:23-24, “Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” This passage tells us that the Tabernacle on earth was a copy of the true one in heaven. God showed Moses an exact pattern to follow in order to construct the Tabernacle. When we want to make a copy of a document, we just go to our Xerox machine, and put the original on the glass, shut the cover, and press Copy. As a kid, we would sometimes put together a model of some car. Well, evidently there is an Original Tabernacle in heaven, and God gave Moses instructions on how to construct an exact model on earth. When we get to heaven we will find out how the Tabernacle on earth was a mere copy, and we shall see the real Original. Won’t that be something?!
4. The Entrance To The Tabernacle
Exodus 27:18 says, “The length of the court shall be one hundred cubits, and the width fifty throughout, and the height five cubits of fine twisted linen, and their sockets of bronze.” So there was a fence or court around the Tabernacle. It was 150′ long, by 75′ wide. Just to give you some perspective, its length was about half the length of a football field. Its width was half that distance. This fence was made of fine twisted linen. Linen is white, the color for purity or holiness. This points to the fact that God’s absolute holiness is a bar from us getting close to Him. He is altogether righteous, and we are depraved. His righteousness is like a fence, barring us from access to Him. *Show picture of Tabernacle and court on Projector.
However, there was one entrance through this fence. There was a gate on the east side of the Tabernacle. One and only one entrance through this fence into the courtyard. My friends, all of this is a picture of our spiritual reality. Naturally, we are barred from God’s presence because of our sin and rebellion. His righteousness shuts us out from communion with Him. However, there is one entrance, one gate, one door. In John 10:9 Jesus said, “I am the door, if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved.” Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” Peter declared in Acts 4:12, “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” There is a true exclusivity in the Christian faith! Men and women scream that Christians are intolerant. Well, did you know that God is intolerant? God will not tolerate sinners coming into His presence who do not come through Christ. That’s true! My friends, beware of becoming more tolerant than God! God excludes all persons from His presence who do not come through Christ. 1 Jn. 5:12 says, “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.” There is only one way for a person to be saved, and it is through the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
5. The Appearance Of The Tabernacle
There were four different coverings that made up the roof and sides of the Tabernacle. There was the curtain of fine linen, the curtain of goat’s hair, the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, and the covering of porpoise skins. White in the Bible, as we have said, stands for purity. The white curtain pictures Christ as the sinless and righteous Son of God. The goat’s hair was usually black in the Middle East. Black is the color for sin. The goat was used in the sin offerings (Lev. 9:3). The curtain made of goat’s hair pictures Christ as our Sin-Bearing Sacrifice. Red in the Bible speaks of Christ’s blood. Where in the Bible do you remember reading about a ram? That’s right – Genesis 22, when Abraham was offering up his son, Isaac, he offered up a ram instead that was caught in the thicket. The ram’s skins speak of Christ as our Substitute. He is the One who died in our place and in our stead. The porpoise skins were a drab, dull, bluish-gray color. They were a stark contrast to the beauty of the fine twisted linen curtains that were underneath. The porpoise skins were exposed to the sun, sand storms, and rain continually. This was the only covering that was visible to outsiders.
Remember that the fence was 7.5 feet high, but the Tabernacle was 15′ feet high. That means that even though a fence surrounded the Tabernacle, much of it was still visible to people on the outside of the fence. But what did they see? Just a drag, dull, grayish tent covering! It must have appeared to the eye of a stranger as a long, dark, coffin-like structure. The porpoise skins point to Christ as Servant. Here we see Jesus in His rejection, in His humanity. Isaiah 53:2 says, “He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.” Jesus was ordinary looking. There was nothing special about His appearance. He didn’t wear a halo around His head so everyone would know that He was the Son of God. This points to Christ in His persecution, opposition, and life of sorrow and grief.
My friends, do you know Christ in all four of these areas? Do you know Him as the sinless, righteous Son of God? Do you know Him as the One who became sin? Do you know Him as your Substitute? And do you know Him as the Rejected Servant who was willing to lay aside His glory and majesty to condescend to become a man and die an accursed death? He is the Sinless One, Sin-Offering, Substitute, and Servant.
But there is more. Outsiders only see a drab and dull coffin-like structure. But the priests who entered into the Tabernacle saw something altogether different. They saw the glory of the Tabernacle. Everywhere they looked they saw gold! When they looked up they saw the beautiful white fine twisted linen for a roof intertwined with blue, purple and scarlet material. The veil was made of the same beautiful material. The entrance to the court, and the entrance to the Tabernacle were also made of this linen with blue, purple and scarlet material. What does this teach us? It teaches us that outsiders can’t see the glory of Christ, but those who have been to the altar (the cross) and to the laver (confession and daily cleansing) can now see His glory.
This is exactly what Scripture teaches in other places. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says, “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and the cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” The natural man does not value Christ, because he sees no glory in Christ. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” The devil has blinded the natural man’s mind. He can’t see the glory of Christ. The gospel is veiled to him. He can’t appraise the value of Christ, because he is blind to His glory.
How different for the person who has been born again! Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:6, “For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” The natural man can’t see Christ’s glory, but the spiritual man sees it! Remember 1 Corinthians 1? To the Jews, Christ was a stumbling block. To the Gentiles, He was foolishness. But to those who are called, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Cor.1:23-24).
Conclusion
Friends, do you enjoy camping? Some of you do, and others probably don’t because you don’t like sleeping on the ground with bugs and flies! But did you know God loves to camp? He camped with Israel for nearly 500 years in the Tabernacle. Then He camped with men through the physical body of Jesus Christ that served as a tent for God’s presence. Now the church and the bodies of Christians are His temple. In heaven there won’t be a temple, because God is the temple. Revelation 21:3 says, “And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them.” Then in verses 22-23 we read, “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.” Wow! This is a picture of perfect fellowship and communion with God. Here God dwells with man without the hindrance and separation of sin. Here we find unbroken communion with God. The curse is gone. Man is redeemed. Sin has been punished. Death has been destroyed. Oh, Christian, can you see it? Do you long for it? It is coming! Hold on! Persevere! The new heavens and the new earth are yours!
So, what spiritual truths do we learn from the Tabernacle?
God can only dwell with man when atonement has been made. That’s why, apart from faith in Christ crucified, you can have no knowledge of or relationship with God. I don’t care how religious you are, or how many times you kneel on your prayer shawl, or how many doors you knock on, or whether you are married in the temple, or whether you have been baptized and attended church every Sunday. The real issue is Christ! Do you have a living, vital union with Jesus Christ! Are you trusting in His righteousness and shed blood? Have you been to the Tabernacle? Have you gone to the altar? Then, and only then, can you meet with God.
Christ will only appear glorious to us when God causes us to be born again. Notice it was only the priests that could enter into the Tabernacle. Everyone else was shut out. Did you know that you are a priest? I grew up in the Roman Catholic church, and believed that only a select few men were priests, and that everyone else was less privileged than them. My friends, nothing can be further from the truth! Listen to the words of Peter in 1 Peter 2:5, “you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Again 1 Peter 2:9, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
Listen to these statements found in the book of Revelation:
Revelation 1:6 “and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father — to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Revelation 5:10 “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
Revelation 20:6 “Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.”
My friends, you have the privilege of seeing the glory of Christ! You have the privilege of access into His presence! You have the privilege of fellowship with God Almighty! The Spirit of God has opened your eyes. He has shown you the beauty and glory of Jesus Christ! Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!
So, what is the application of these wonderful truths?
Take advantage of your priestly privileges! Come into God’s presence. Enjoy the sight of the glory of Christ. Fellowship with your Savior. Worship the pure and holy Son of God.
That’s exactly what we see the psalm writers doing!
Psalm 36:7-9, “How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house; And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights. For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light.”
Psalm 16:5-11, “The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me. I will bless the LORD who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night. I have set the LORD continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely. For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.”
My friends, seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon Him while He is near. Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Amen!
______________________________
© The Bridge
Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be approved by The Bridge.
Follow Us!