The Tabernacle of Moses- Part 1

After Moses spent forty days and nights on the mountain, he gave the people the requirements God had told him to say to the Israelites: “In the third month after the children of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on the same day, they came to the Wilderness of Sinai. For they had departed from Rephidim, had come to the Wilderness of Sinai, and camped in the wilderness. So, Israel camped there before the mountain. And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now, therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:1-6; emp added).

God called Moses to Mt. Sinai and instructed him to give to the Israelites. There were various instructions till we got to chapter 25 of Exodus. Here God said, “Have them build a sanctuary for Me, so that I may dwell among them. You shall construct it in accordance with everything that I am going to show you, as the pattern of the Tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture.” (Verse 8-9; AMP; emp added). The Tabernacle of Moses was built upon a vision. God revealed to Moses how He wanted it to be built in the same pattern as the heavenly Tabernacle. God wanted to dwell among people, and He needed a place to occupy. That place represented Him. You cannot defile God’s presence, which was why people died when they did not follow specific instructions on approaching God. A tabernacle or a temple is the meeting place between God and man. To host God’s presence, you need a “tabernacle”, “a temple”, or a “container”. Even though God is omnipresent, He “functions” in a dedicated place. This is the whole idea of going to church. The physical church structure contains an altar that represents God’s presence. Though God doesn’t “live” in any place, His manifest present dwells in places. In your house, you can dedicate a room for prayers, and as you continue to pray there, God will come there. He makes Himself comfortable at places He is invited. Because He comes there as often as you call Him, He will leave a mark there. It will surprise you that your prayer room can be an atmosphere for the miraculous because God often comes there. He lives something tangible there. If a sick person comes to your prayer closest, they must be healed because that place ceases to be an ordinary place. It becomes a tabernacle of God. Let me give you an example of what I mean.

Assume I have a Prayer Room and have been praying there for years. I went for a holiday with my family, but my caretaker took advantage of that and brought his girlfriend to sleep in my Prayer Room. Do you know that my caretaker or the girl can go mad for the rest of their lives, or something disastrous can happen to them? Do not defile something consecrated to God. This is the reason why Ananias and Sapphira died in Acts 5. They promised to give their money (now consecrated) to the things of God, but they kept back some part. They died not necessarily because they lied but they took godly money for selfish reasons.

“See that you make them [exactly] after their pattern which was shown to you on the mountain.” (Exodus 25:40; AMP; emp added). God told Moses what to tell the Israelites to do and gave him visions of exactly how the Tabernacle and its furnishings should be made. The passage clarifies that the earthly sanctuary was modelled after another Sanctuary, the True Sanctuary made by the LORD Himself. This is what was shown to Moses in vision.

“Now the main point of what we have to say is this: we have such a High Priest, [the Christ] who is seated [in the place of honour] at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty (God) in heaven, a Minister (Officiating Priest) in the holy places and in the True Tabernacle, which is erected not by man, but by the Lord.” (Heb 8:1-2; AMP; emp added).

“For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law, who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the Tabernacle. For He said, “See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.” But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.” (Heb 8:4,6; emp added).

Solomon also built the Temple to host God’s presence. Today, you and I live in a new covenant because of the shed blood of the Lamb. Jesus is both God and Man. This means His body was a Tabernacle or a Temple. Remember that a temple is the meeting place between God and man. “Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it in three days?” But He was speaking of the Temple of His body.” (Jn 2:19-21; emp added). The body of Jesus was the dwelling place of God because He was both Man and God. You and I were created to “contain” God. We have the Holy Spirit living in us, and the purpose of that is to reflect God. When people look at you, they should see God because He dwells in you. The “more” of God you have in you, the greater your light. If you make God comfortable in you, you will see comforting things in your life.

“And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” (Exodus 19:6; emp added). “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.” (1 Pet 2:9; emp added). What is your actual identity? Your identity is not in your career, your house, or the properties you have. Your identity is that of a priest or priestess of God. You are created in the image of God for something special; you have a purpose to fulfil on this earth. You are not an ordinary person; God values you, and your real identity is in Christ. God wants to use you to advance His Kingdom, but will you open your heart to Him? If you believe you are royalty, live like one.