Title The Tabernacle God's Presence (Exodus 35:)
Content We often feel the urge to ignore the repeated construction of the tabernacle from the beginning of Exodus 35, seeing that it is boringly recorded. Especially in this area, preachers rarely preach. However, there is good reason for mentioning the construction of the tabernacle in such detail. Because the tabernacle is the place where God dwells.
The tabernacle is divided into the Most Holy and the Holy of Holies. Between them is a thick curtain, almost 30 cm thick. In the Holy of Holies there is an ingot, and a cherub made of gold (the name of an angel) spreads its wings. Once a year in this Holy of Holies, the high priest brought blood and performed a rite of atonement for all Israel.
In the sanctuary, there is a table on which bread is placed, a candlestick with seven lamps, and an altar of incense for burning incense in the morning and evening. And in the courtyard of the tabernacle, there is a laver for the priests to wash themselves and the altar of burnt offerings. Let's omit the meaning of each of these parts. Because it is more important to know why the tabernacle was given to Israel and what the tabernacle meant.
First, the tabernacle is the dwelling place of God.
The shape of the Holy of Holies is made like a palace where God dwells. If you see tens of thousands of angels embroidered on the inner wall of the Holy of Holies, everyone will know that it is the Zion where God dwells. At that time, no one dares to enter the door. Only the high priest who sanctified his body once a year could enter with the blood of atonement.
Of course, the blood of animals does not mean that Israel's sins are forgiven. However, because God said that He would redeem Israel only through His blood, that was the only way for Israel to receive atonement. This was God's revelatory work to foreshadow the cleansing of our sins by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Second, the tabernacle is a holy place.
The tabernacle was guarded by Levites who were specially set apart for the tabernacle. The 12 tribes surrounded the tabernacle, and the Levites were between the 12 tribes and the tabernacle. The reason was that the unclean people were not allowed to approach the tabernacle recklessly and defile the tabernacle. Because the tabernacle is a clean place. Because it is the place of God, the tabernacle had to be kept clean.
The third tabernacle was a place of fellowship where God met the Israelites through the priests.
Even from the fact that the tabernacle is called the tent of meeting (Exodus 40:2), we can see that the tabernacle has the meaning of meeting God's people, rather than simply offering sacrifices. In fact, the presence of God in the midst of the congregation of Israel clearly shows that God is always with them and is in fellowship with them. Therefore, the tabernacle can be seen as a meeting place between God and Israel.
Fourth, one of the important functions of the tabernacle is to heal Israel from their sins. Looking at the above, we can see that God Himself is ruling over Israel. In other words, when you see that you are in Israel, where you know God's will to the priests, have fellowship with His people, and rule over Israel Himself, you can know that God dwells in the tabernacle as the king of Israel. Therefore, the building of the tabernacle was to proclaim that God is the King of Israel.
It was only then that the nation of Israel was firmly established as the nation of God. God is the king of that country, and the people of Israel are the people of that country. And the law is the constitution of that country, and the land of Canaan, promised to Abraham, becomes its territory. Therefore, from now on, God, who has been perfected, will personally march and lead his people to conquer the land.
We can see in Numbers 1-2 that God is arranging his people and arranging them as an army. The figures of counting the army, of the direction and order of the march, and of encamping in the east, west, south, north, and north respectively, are the appearances of God exercising the right to command. Thus, the presence of God in the tabernacle as the king of Israel indicates that God is ruling over the nation. This is the kingdom of God. Only in this God-ruled country can true peace be achieved.
This is the country we are looking forward to.
This kingdom of God appears as a new heaven and a new earth in Revelation 21. The tabernacle of God is with men, and God dwells with them, and they become God's people, and God is with them and wipes every tear from their eyes, and there is no more death, no more mourning or weeping. There will be no more things or pain, for the first things have passed away (Rev 21:3-4). That kingdom is the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:10), the country we hope for and the kingdom of true peace.
From this point of view, it mentions the construction of the tabernacle in detail, and the fact that the book of Exodus ends with the completion of the tabernacle shows us where our final salvation will be.. It was the power of Satan that God led the people of Israel out of Egypt. He brought out his people who were under him and was to make known to all nations that Israel belonged to God. And finally, it shows that it is to lead them to the kingdom of God through the tabernacle. From this, it can be seen that the final destination in the history of redemption is to lead his people to the New Jerusalem.
Lastly, the fourth function of the tabernacle is the function of healing. This function is closely related to the previous case of the golden calf. It is also significant that Israel made a golden calf and recorded the rebellious appearance that they considered their God right before the construction of the tabernacle. The Golden Calf incident put Israel on the brink of extinction.
Of course, the punishment was temporarily suspended due to Moses' intercession, but their sins were not fundamentally forgiven. This is just as if we were saved by a saint who sinned, we may be exempt from the punishment of going to hell because we are already in salvation, but the punishment for our sins is still there.
God has given us the forgiveness of sins by allowing us to repent through the merits of Christ. Likewise, God forgave the Israelites by having them come to the tabernacle and offer a sin offering. Therefore, the tabernacle became a channel of grace for the forgiveness of Israel's sins and a place of healing that purifies the corrupted Israel. Leviticus must be viewed from this perspective. Leviticus is a difficult book to read, but it is also a book that deeply impresses us.
In other words, Leviticus records the rules and ordinances to live in the future, centering on the tabernacle completed in Exodus. Therefore, Leviticus is a book that shows what the life of the people of Israel living in the presence of God is like. In other words, Leviticus is a continuation of Exodus.
We should not always think that we are in the early stages of salvation. The book of Exodus shows us the early days of our salvation. However, Leviticus shows what the life of a believer who is now in the stage of completion of salvation is like.