Moses on the Mountain with the Lord - Part 8
Exodus 25:8 - 26:27
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - July 28, 2010 pm
BACKGROUND & INTRODUCTION:
*Tonight we continue looking at Moses on Mount Sinai with the pre-incarnate LORD, Jesus Christ. We will continue to study Moses’ 5th visit with the Lord. (1)
*This time Moses will be on the mountain for 40 days, but the Lord waited 6 whole days before He even began to speak to Moses. Then on the 7th day, the Lord began to speak, and in Exodus 25, God’s first words were a call for the Children of Israel to give a love offering for the new place of worship.
*We saw this in vs. 1&2:
1. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
2. "Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering.
*Next, the Lord described all the precious things that would be needed for the Tabernacle. Then in vs. 8, the Lord told Moses: “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.”
*Based on these verses last week, we talked about God wanting His people to give back to Him in a generous, open-hearted, cheerful way.
-We talked about how God wants to live with His people.
-Then we began to see how God uses earthly things to teach us eternal truth.
*The first example was the Ark. Let’s read about it in vs. 9-16, where the Lord said:
9. According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.
10. "And they shall make an ark of acacia wood; two and a half cubits shall be its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height.
11. And you shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall overlay it, and shall make on it a molding of gold all around.
12. You shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its four corners; two rings shall be on one side, and two rings on the other side.
13. And you shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.
14. You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, that the ark may be carried by them.
15. The poles shall be in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it.
16. And you shall put into the ark the Testimony which I will give you.
*God uses earthly things to teach us eternal truth.
1. And as we saw last week, the Ark teaches us about God’s law and His love.
[1] We see the law in vs. 16, where the Lord told Moses: “You shall put into the ark the Testimony which I will give you.”
*The Lord was talking about the Ten Commandments, written on two tablets by the Finger of God. Those Ten Commandments hold up God’s standard of perfection which we have all failed to reach. So the Ark bore witness to the eternal death we all deserved.
[2] But the Ark was covered by the Mercy Seat, and the Lord began to speak about the Mercy Seat in vs. 17:
17. “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits shall be its length and a cubit and a half its width.
18. And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work you shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat.
19. Make one cherub at one end, and the other cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim at the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy seat.
20. And the cherubim shall stretch out their wings above, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and they shall face one another; the faces of the cherubim shall be toward the mercy seat.
21. You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the Testimony that I will give you.
22. And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, of all things which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.
*Because of His holiness and our sinfulness, God always has to meet with His people at the place of mercy. For them, the place of mercy was the Mercy Seat, where the blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled.
*One example of this ceremony is in Leviticus 16, where God gave instructions for Aaron the Priest and said:
14. He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.
15. Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.
16. So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
*This all was a picture of what God would do for us on the cross of Jesus Christ. There, the perfect priest, Jesus Himself, offered the perfect sacrifice, His own body and blood, for our sins. Jesus Christ is the real Mercy Seat for the world.
*The Apostle Paul pointed us to this truth in Romans 3, when he used an unusual word, “propitiation.” Listen to Romans 3:23-26, where Paul said:
23. for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
24. being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
25. whom God set forth to be a PROPITIATION by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,
26. to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
*Jesus is our propitiation or that “the thing that satisfies God’s wrath against our sin.” The NIV Bible calls this “the sacrifice of atonement.” But the most literal translation is “Mercy Seat.” In fact, the only other time this Greek word was used in the New Testament was in Hebrews 9:5, where it was directly used for the Mercy Seat. (2)
*But Jesus Christ is our mercy seat! This is the love of God.
-The Ark teaches us about God’s law and His love.
2. Next, the showbread teaches us about God’s life.
*Starting in vs. 23 the Lord described the special table for the showbread:
23. "You shall also make a table of acacia wood; two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its width, and a cubit and a half its height.
24. And you shall overlay it with pure gold, and make a molding of gold all around.
25. "You shall make for it a frame of a handbreadth all around, and you shall make a gold molding for the frame all around.
26. "And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings on the four corners that are at its four legs.
27. "The rings shall be close to the frame, as holders for the poles to bear the table.
28. "And you shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, that the table may be carried with them.
29. "You shall make its dishes, its pans, its pitchers, and its bowls for pouring. You shall make them of pure gold.
30. "And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always.
*John Gill explained that the showbread “consisted of 12 unleavened loaves, set in two rows upon the table, and stood there a whole week. Every Sabbath the old ones were took away, which were eaten by the priests, and new ones were set, so that they were always before the Lord.
*This was a memorial of the goodness of God in daily providing bread for the people of Israel, and was presented to him as a thankful acknowledgment of it
-This showbread also may be considered as a symbol of the church and people of God, who are called “all one bread,” in 1Cor 10:17.
-And the showbread can be symbolic of Christ Himself, because He is the Bread of life. (3)
*As Jesus said in John 6:35 & 47-51:
35. "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
47. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
48. I am the bread of life.
49. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.
51. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.’’
*God uses earthly things to teach us eternal truth.
-The showbread teaches us about God’s life.
3. And the lampstand teaches us about God’s light.
*In Exodus 25:31, the Lord began to describe “candlestick” or “lampstand” for the Tabernacle:
31. You shall also make a lampstand of pure gold; the lampstand shall be of hammered work. Its shaft, its branches, its bowls, its ornamental knobs, and flowers shall be of one piece.
32. And six branches shall come out of its sides: three branches of the lampstand out of one side, and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side.
33. Three bowls shall be made like almond blossoms on one branch, with an ornamental knob and a flower, and three bowls made like almond blossoms on the other branch, with an ornamental knob and a flower and so for the six branches that come out of the lampstand.
34. On the lampstand itself four bowls shall be made like almond blossoms, each with its ornamental knob and flower.
35. And there shall be a knob under the first two branches of the same, a knob under the second two branches of the same, and a knob under the third two branches of the same, according to the six branches that extend from the lampstand.
36. Their knobs and their branches shall be of one piece; all of it shall be one hammered piece of pure gold.
37. You shall make seven lamps for it, and they shall arrange its lamps so that they give light in front of it.
38. And its wick-trimmers and their trays shall be of pure gold.
39. It shall be made of a talent of pure gold, with all these utensils.
40. And see to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.
*There were four layers of curtains covering the Tabernacle, so the tent was very dark. The only natural light came from the Lampstand that God commanded them to make.
*Notice in vs. 37 that there were 7 lamps on the Lampstand. That wasn’t a coincidence, church. Seven is one of the most significant numbers in the Bible.
*Ed F. Vallowe tells us that it was the most sacred number to the Hebrews. It was earth crowned with heaven -- the four-square earth plus the divine completeness of God. Seven then denotes completeness or perfection. This number is used more than all other numbers in the Word of God, except for the number one.
*We see the number 7 in the first book of the Bible, the last book of the Bible and many times in between. Based on the seven days of the creation week in Genesis 1-2, God appointed 7 days for the week, and most, if not all advanced nations reckon time in that way: 7 days to the week. Few ever stop to think of why there are 7 days in a week, but it is part of God’s design for our world.
*In the Book of Revelation there are 7 churches, 7 Spirits, 7 stars, 7 seals, 7 trumpets, 7 vials, 7 dooms, and 7 new things. The number seven is used 54 times in the Book of Revelation, and altogether over 700 times in the Bible.
*In relation to the Tabernacle: Before Aaron and his sons entered their priestly work they were consecrated 7 days (Leviticus 8:31-36). Here is a picture of a life completely or wholly consecrated or dedicated to the Lord for service.
*On the Day of Atonement the high priest sprinkled the blood upon the mercy seat 7 times (Leviticus 16:14). This is a picture of the completeness of the redemptive work of Christ.
*Also, there were 7 branches on the Candlestick in the Holy Place of the Tabernacle. This pictures the perfect and complete light of God. (4)
*The Lampstand symbolized the perfection of God’s light, but Exodus 27:20-21 shows us that it also symbolized the permanence of God’s light. There the Lord said:
20. “And you shall command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually.
21. In the tabernacle of meeting, outside the veil which is before the Testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening until morning before the LORD. It shall be a statute forever to their generations on behalf of the children of Israel.”
*In summary, the Lampstand symbolized God’s permanent, perfect Light, which is manifested at least 3 ways in the Word of God:
[1] First is the Light of God’s Word.
*I didn’t have time to check it, but one writer said that when you count up all of the parts of this description, you get a total of 66. (5)
*Why is that number familiar? -- There are 66 books in the Bible.
-And I don’t know if there are 66 individual parts of this Lamp stand.
-But here’s something I do know. Psalms 119:105 is absolutely true when it says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
*The Lampstand points us to the Light of God’s Word.
[2] But is also points us to the Light of God’s Spirit, because on the Day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit appeared as flames of fire when He came to the church (Acts 2:3). The Holy Spirit is the kind of spiritual fire that purifies and gives light.
[3] But the Lampstand also points us to Jesus Christ, for in John 8:12 Jesus said, “I am the light of the world!”
*Luke and Matthew both remind us how desperately people need the light of life. Before Jesus was even born, Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he began to prophesy about baby John and the coming Messiah.
*Listen to Zacharias in Luke 1:76-79:
76. "And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77. To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins,
78. Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us;
79. To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace."
*Then in Matthew 4:13-16, Jesus was at the very beginning of His ministry:
13. And leaving Nazareth, He (Jesus) came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali,
14. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
15. "The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:
16. The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.’’
*God uses earthly things to teach us eternal truth.
-The lamp stand teaches us about God’s light.
4. And the tabernacle teaches us about God living in His saints.
*In Exodus 26, the LORD God began to describe the Tabernacle in great detail.
-Listen starting in vs. 1:
1. "Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them.
2. The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. And every one of the curtains shall have the same measurements.
3. Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another.
4. And you shall make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set, and likewise you shall do on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set.
*Now if you are like me, you begin to lose the big picture in all of these details, so I highly recommend that you go online or find a book with detailed pictures of the Tabernacle
*There is so much to say about this God-designed tent, but the main point I want to make tonight is that the Tabernacle is a picture of God wanting to live with and in His people. As the Lord said in Exo 25:8: “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.”
*This was the sure experience of the Children of Israel out in the wilderness.
-But we can also find symbolic evidence in God’s description of the Tabernacle.
[1] First consider the little word “side.” In our English Bibles, God uses this word 23 times in Exodus 26&27. But the interesting thing is that there are over 20 Hebrew words in the Old Testament that we translate as “side.”
*Each of them is based on a word picture. For example, Exodus 26:18 says: “You shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south “side.” The word picture behind this word “side” is “mouth.”
*Then in Exodus 26:20 the LORD said, “And for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, there shall be twenty boards.” The first word “side” in this verse is based on the word picture “rib.”
*Exodus 26:27 in the KJV says: “And five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the two sides westward.” That word “sides” is based on the picture of “flanks” or “thighs.”
*Then Exodus 27:14 says, “The hangings on one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets.” This word “side” is the picture of a shoulder. (6)
*So we’ve got a mouth, ribs, shoulders and thighs.
-Now all of that could be a coincidence. But I don’t believe in coincidences.
[2] Now let’s focus on the coverings of Tabernacle. There were four layers:
-In Exodus 26:1-6, we see curtains made of fine linen. This was the inner layer, the actual ceiling of the sanctuary.
-Then in Exodus 26:7-13, we see curtains of goat’s hair. This was placed over the fine linen curtain.
-In Exodus 26:14a, God commanded the Children of Israel to make a third covering of ram’s skin dyed red.
-And in Exodus 26:14b, we find the fourth and top layer: an outer covering of badger’s skin. This was the view to for the outside world. (7)
*Think about the top two coverings we see in Exodus 26:14. Here God said: “You shall also make a covering of ram skins dyed red for the tent, and a covering of badger skins above that.”
*Why did the Lord want them to make the ram skins red? -- It surely seems symbolic of the blood of Jesus Christ, maybe having to go through the blood to get to the holy places.
*But then the brown badger skins above. This is a good model of a believer today. Outside we may not look like much. But inside we have the greatest beauty, the greatest treasure of all: The Holy God living in our hearts!
*Just think of what the Tabernacle must have looked like with the Glory of God shining down, and the people camped all around. It was an amazing thing.
-But in Jesus Christ we have something infinitely better!
-In Col 1, Paul described it as:
26. the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints.
27. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
[3] Let me share one more symbol tonight that points out the only way we can have Christ’s presence in us.
*When the Children of Israel camped around the Tabernacle, God told each tribe where to go. The Levites surrounded the Tabernacle. Then some of the tribes camped due north, due east, due west and due south.
*When you add up the numbers of people in these tribes, here is what it probably looked like from God’s point of view:
(Picture: The camp of Israel around the Tabernacle in the shape of a cross)
*Amazing! -- Amazing grace, through the cross of Jesus Christ.
*God uses earthly things to teach us eternal truth.
-He gives us earthly pictures of Heavenly things, so that we will know, trust, love and serve the true and living God.
-Let’s thank Him as we go to the Lord in Prayer.
1. Good explanation of Moses’ time on the mountain: “Seven Ascents” by Richard Gamble - www.heraldmag.org/2006/06mj_3.htm
2. “Word Pictures in the New Testament” by A.T. Robertson
3. Adapted from John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible - Exodus 25:30
4. Adapted from “The Number Seven in the Holy Bible,” a chapter from the book, “Biblical Mathematics” by Ed F. Vallowe
Source: www.angelfire.com/az/rainbowbridge/seven.html
5. Original source unknown
6. Source: www.tabernacleofmoses.org/chapter1.html
7. Sources:
www.templebuildersministry.com/Index_Tabernacle_of_Moses_6.php)
www.enduringword.com/commentaries/0226.htm
8. Source: “The View from Above: The Camp of Israel” by Chuck Missler - http://www.ldolphin.org/camp.html
