SERIES: “DISCOVER THE LESSONS OF THE TABERNACLE”
TEXT: EXODUS 25:31-40
TITLE: “THE LAMPSTAND AND THE WORD OF GOD”
OPEN: A. Light is certainly important
1. It’s important for sight
a. The visual ability of humans and other animals is the result of the complex interaction of light,
eyes and brain.
--We’re able to see because light from an object can move through space and reach our eyes
b. . Once light reaches our eyes, signals are sent to our brain, and our brain deciphers the
information in order to detect the appearance, location and movement of the objects we are
sighting at.
--The whole process, as complex as it is, would not be possible if it were not for the presence
of light
c. How many of us have stumbled or fallen or banged our shins where it’s so dark that we can’t
see?
--We could have saved ourselves from countless injuries if only we had light by which to see!
2. It’s important for growth
a. Plants feed themselves and grow by a process called photosynthesis.
b. Let me try to explain photosynthesis in a simple way
1). Plants absorb water and minerals by their roots but they also sweat water from their
leaves creating an upward stream in the trunk, which permits the sap fed by the roots to
reach the leaves.
--But only half the job is done,
2). Without light, the rest of the process can’t be accomplished.
--Light has to combine with chlorophyll and then these two ingredients enable the
completion of the process
c. Plant nurseries can go bankrupt if the owners don’t understand what kind of light is important
to the well-being of individual species of plants
--plants can die without the proper amount of light
B. Two weeks ago, we began our study of the tabernacle
1. Remember that the tabernacle was a large portable tent structure that served as the center of
worship for the Israelites as they traveled along their journey to the Promised Land
2. It served as the reminder of God’s presence among His people
3. It was comprised of three areas:
a. The Outer Court
--It was the general meeting area for the tabernacle
1). All Jewish people who had business at the tabernacle were welcome
2). It held the Altar of Sacrifice and the Bronze Washbasin we studied last week
b. The Holy Place
--The Holy Place was the start of the tabernacle proper and was 30 ft. long x 15 ft. wide
a). This is the area where the priests performed a good number of their daily duties
b). It held the Menorah (Golden Lamp stand), The Table of Presence (Shewbread), and the
Altar of Incense
c. The Holy of Holies
--15 ft. square
a). This is the area where only the high priest could enter and do so only once a year to spread
the blood on the mercy seat of God on the Day of Atonement
b). Inside the Holy of Holies was the Ark of the Covenant
D. This week, we’re looking at the Menorah or Golden Lampstand
I. THE LAMPSTAND – LIGHT FOR THE TABERNACLE
A. God’s command
1. Ex. 25:31-40 – “Make a lampstand of pure gold and hammer it out, base and shaft; its flowerlike cups,
buds and blossoms shall be of one piece with it. Six branches are to extend from the sides of the
lampstand—three on one side and three on the other. Three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds
and blossoms are to be on one branch, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches
extending from the lampstand. And on the lampstand there are to be four cups shaped like almond
flowers with buds and blossoms. One bud shall be under the first pair of branches extending from the
lampstand, a second bud under the second pair, and a third bud under the third pair—six branches in
all. The buds and branches shall all be of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold.
Then make its seven lamps and set them up on it so that they light the space in front of it. Its wick
trimmers and trays are to be of pure gold. A talent of pure gold is to be used for the lampstand and all
these accessories. 40 See that you make them according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”
2. Ex. 37:17-24 – tells us that it was made according to God’s plan
B. About the lampstand
1. The lampstand is sometimes referred to as the candlestick however candles were not yet invented, we
will therefore keep more properly to the description of lampstand.
--In Hebrew called the menorah
2. As you entered the Holy Place, the lampstand was to your left (south side)
a. To your right (north side), was the Table of Presence (Shewbread)
b. Directly in front of the curtain separating the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies sat the Altar of
Incense
3. The lampstand was a true work of art because it wasn’t molded out of individual pieces of gold but was
hammered out of one talent of pure gold
--to authentically replicate it today, it would be quite expensive
a. A talent = about 76 pounds = 1,216 ozs.
b. As of Friday, avg. price for gold = $885.45 an oz.
c. Cost to replace lampstand today = a little over a million dollars
--(just in ozs. of gold – doesn’t include its unique construction.)
4. On the back of the sermon outline in your bulletin, is a drawing of what the lampstand looked like
--It’s not the best picture but it will give you some conception of its look
a. There was a central shaft rising straight out of the base of the lampstand
b. There were three pairs of branches that sprang out of each side of the central shaft
--making a total of seven branches (importance of the number seven)
c. At the top of each branch was an oil lamp
c. The entire lampstand was ornamented by almond flowers, buds, and blossoms
d. The size of the lampstand is not given in the Bible
--Jewish tradition tells us it was five feet high and about three and a half feet wide
C. The purpose of the lampstand
1. Why do you put a lampstand anywhere?
--You need light!
2. The Golden Lampstand was the only source of light in the Holy Place
a. If it weren’t for the lampstand, the priests would be trying to do their job in a dark place
b. The light from the lampstand enlightened the Holy Place so that the priests could fellowship with
God and intercede on behalf of God’s people
II. THE BIBLE – A LIGHT FOR OUR PATH
--Ps. 119:105 – “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
A. The Bible provides us with God’s universal will for all people
1. In it, He reveals Himself to us
2. In it, He teaches us what He wants us to do
3. In it, He shows His love, mercy, and grace
B. The Bible is referred to as the Word of God
1. In fact, that phrase is used 40 times in the Bible to refer to any message from God
2. The Bible is not from human minds but from God
--2 Pet. 1:20-21 – “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the
prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke
from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
C. Benefits of studying the Word
1. Learning truth
--Jesus, Jn. 17:17 – “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”
2. Spiritual supply
--2 Tim. 3:16-17 – “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and
training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
3. Self-evaluation
--Heb. 4:12 – “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it
penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of
the heart.”
4. A weapon against the schemes of the devil
--In a passage describing spiritual warfare, Paul, in Eph. 617: calls the Bible “the sword of the Spirit,
which is the word of God.”
5. Direction
a. How many people here this morning have a GPS system for your car
-- GPS stands for “Global Positioning Satellite.” It locks into a navigation satellite circling the
earth. Some are built and others are what are referred to as “after market”. The “after market”
ones are portable and can be removed from your vehicle.
It operates like a computer screen. You just touch the screen to tell the GPS system what to do.
You enter where you want to go from where you are. It locks into the coordinates of the satellite
and a nice, friendly voice tells you where to turn to get to where you want to go. If you miss the
turn, it will even tell you how to turn around and go back to where you’re supposed to be
b. The Bible is a great navigational device
1). Spiritually, it will help you get to where you need to be
2). Ps. 119:9-11 – “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. I
seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word
in my heart that I might not sin against you.”
III. JESUS CHRIST – THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
A. Jesus –the Word of God
1. John’s Gospel opens by identifying Jesus as the Word of God
--Jn. 1:1 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
2. Remember, the Word of God is a message from God
--Jesus is God’s ultimate message about Himself
a. Jesus said, “If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father.”
b. Heb. 1:3 – “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”
B. Jesus as light
1. The beginning of John’s Gospel also refers to Jesus as light
a. Jn. 1:4-5 – “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness,
but the darkness has not understood it.”
b. Later, in vs. 9, John says this about Jesus’ birth: “The true light that gives light to every man was
coming into the world.”
2. Matthew tells us in Mt. 4:16 – quotes from Isaiah in reference to Jesus: “The people living in
darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has
dawned.”
3. Jesus says this about Himself:
--Jn.8 :12 – “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will
have the light of life.”
4. In the Book of Revelation, we’re told there will be no need for outside light sources in heaven. Jesus
will be the only light that we need
--Rev. 21:23 – “The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives
it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.”
C. Our role as Christians: reflecting Jesus’ light
1. The lampstand serves as a picture of our relationship with Jesus
a. Remember what Jesus said about Himself in Jn. 8:12?
--“ I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will
have the light of life.”
b. Jesus is represented by the main branch of the lampstand
1). We, as His followers, are represented by the six branches that extend from the original branch
2). Jn. 15:5a – “I am the vine; you are the branches.”
c. Becoming a follower of Jesus, we are told to live as “children of light”
--Eph. 5:8 – “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of
light”
d. Shining our light
1). Jn. 9:5 – “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
2). Jesus gives us the role of being light
--Mt. 5:14-16 – “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do
people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light
to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may
see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
3). How are we “the light of the world”?
a). Simply by reflecting Jesus’ light
b. Like the relationship between the moon and the sun, we are not the source of the light but
we illuminate by reflecting the source
2. There is a Greek philosopher named Dr. Alexander Popaderos. Every summer, Dr. Popaderos
teaches a class on ethics on the isle of Crete.
One particular summer, Dr. Popaderos was ready to close the class and in the last few minutes he
asked, “Are there any questions before we go?” Just as he was getting ready to say, “You’re
dismissed,” a rather timid looking man carefully raised his hand and said, “Dr. Popaderos, I have a
question.” The teacher asked “What is it?” The replied, “I’d like to know, what is the meaning of
life?
As you can imagine, people were ready to go home and were irritated by this man’s heavy
question. Dr. Popaderos very quickly quieted the group, he said to the class, “You know, if you don’t
mind I’d like to answer that question.”
He reached into his back pocket, and took out his wallet. Out of the wallet he took a little mirror
about the size of a fifty-cent piece, honed down on the edges, kind of sparkling. Then he told his
story: “When I was a child, I began to realize that I could have so much fun with that mirror. I
would simply catch the glint of the Sun, and shine that mirror into an otherwise darkened place. As I
grew older I began to learn that this is no child’s toy.”
“This little piece of mirror is really a metaphor for my life. Now I am not the light—I am not the
source of the light. I am simply a broken mirror fragment. But if I allow the sun to shine on my
mirror fragment, it is amazing what light I can bring into darkness.” Then he said, “Ladies and
Gentlemen, that is the meaning of life.”
--Each one of us is a mirror fragment. We are not the Light. We are not the source of the Light. We
are simply a broken mirror fragment. But when we permit the SON to hit our mirror fragment, and
then bounce off into the life of a darkened heart, lives can be changed
CLOSE: A. There is a source of light that is extremely important to the city of Livermore, CA
1. This source of light is a light bulb shining in one of their fire houses that has been burning for
over a hundred years – 107 to be exact!
2. The light bulb has actually been moved several times
a. It was first installed in a firehouse on L Street in Livermore in 1901
b. Shortly after, it was moved to the main firehouse on Second Street
c. In 1903, it was moved to the new Station 1 on the corner of First and McLeod and even
survived the renovation of that firehouse in 1937, when it was off for about a week
d. In 1976 it was moved with a full police and fire truck escort, under the watch of Captain
Kirby Slate, to its present site at Fire Station 6, on East Ave.
--It was then hooked up to a separate power source with no interruptions since, according to
retired city electrician Frank Maul
e. It is recognized as the oldest burning light bulb by the Guinness Book of World Records
and mentioned in Ripley’s Believe It or Not
f. People from Livermore loved their light bulb.
--They became so concerned that it might go out, several years ago a webcam was placed in
the firehouse directly on the bulb so folks could go online any time day or night and see if
the bulb was still burning
g. In May of this year, so many people worldwide tried to access the webcam to view the light
bulb that the webcam and server both went down.
1). The light bulb has even outlived the much younger webcam and computer server
2). According to the website, there is a new camera and server ready to go online soon
--and people worldwide can see the marvelous light bulb in Livermore, CA.
B. What is your source of light?
1. Are you depending on natural light?
--Just whatever comes along and happens to work at the time?
2. Are you depending on artificial light?
--It’s manufactured and never as good as real light
3. Are you depending on Jesus Christ, the light of the world?
--the source of light and life?
