INTRODUCTION
• God heard the cry of the Israelites; He delivered them from the hands of the Egyptians; they are now free!
• Why did God do this?
• This goes to the question as to why God created us in the first place?
• Honestly, the way you answer that question will determine how you live your life.
• If one does not understand there is a higher calling, something beyond this life, it will impact the way one lives their life.
• If one believes there is a god but equates their terrible earthly father to God, the way one lives their life will be impacted negatively.
• If one sees God as some superhero, it will impact the way one lives life.
• When we think of superheroes (like Superman), we think of beings who save the day and then leave or go into hiding, waiting for another time to spring into action and save someone.
• Our Savior doesn't want to save us and then leave until we need him again. Instead, He wants to live life with us, moment by messy moment.
• God didn't want to liberate his people from Egypt and give a few handouts just to be worshipped from afar.
• God wanted something different; He desired to dwell among his people.
• God desired to have His presence in the midst of their lives.
• God never desired to be a Disney dad; you know, the dad who leaves his family and only comes in for fun.
• God created you for a SPECIAL purpose, you have a purpose in life, and God has a purpose for you.
• God WANTS to be a presence in your life; God desires you to have a personal relationship with Him!
• At this time in history and God's plan, God would be present in the nation's life by having his people build a dwelling place for him, a tabernacle.
• In the New Testament, God, would even be closer to us in a new way that we will look at later in the message.
• The fact that God desires to be in a relationship with His people is not a new concept.
• Clear back to the beginning of creation; God stood in the presence of Adam and Eve; God walked in the garden where they resided.
• God also laid out the parameters for Adam and Eve to maintain the closeness God desired.
• Why did God bring the Israelites out of Egypt?
• Better yet, why did God send His Son to die on the cross?
• Our BIG IDEA this morning helps bring us the answer to that question.
› Big Idea of the Message: God brought the Israelites out of Egypt to have a present relationship among them through the Tabernacle!
• We will be examining three verses today, and we will reference a couple of others.
• Let's begin our examination by turning to Exodus 25:8!
Exodus 25:8 (CSB)
8 "They are to make a sanctuary for me so that I may dwell among them.
SERMON
I. Preparation for His presence.
• God was about to drop a blessing bombshell on the people.
• The nation struggled to gain its faith and footing as it left Egypt behind.
• The people had been in darkness for so long; they really had no clue what it meant to be in the presence of God.
• God unveiled His desire to Moses in this passage; God waned a sanctuary to be built so He could dwell among the people!
• At the beginning of chapter 25, God tells Moses that the people were to take an offering of various items so that a dwelling place could be built for the Lord to inhabit!
• Have you ever had company come to your home?
• Like many folks I know, a great deal of preparation goes into having guests in your home.
• I would suspect if you were going to entertain the CEO of your company, or if the CEO of your company was going to stay with you for a while, you would spend a great deal of time preparing.
• What if a President of the United States was going to come to visit or stay with you? I would imagine there would be a high level of preparation for the visit.
• God wants to stay with the Israelites, yet they are walking through the desert; they have no homes or real buildings for God to dwell within.
A Handbook on Exodus ((1) Materials for the Tabernacle (25:1–9))
Beginning with chapter 25, the rest of the book of Exodus is concerned primarily with the details of building a suitable place for the worship of Yahweh.
There is so much monotonous detail that many readers feel like the Israelites wandering through the desert in search of an oasis.
The only exception to this "desert of detail" is the brief "oasis" in chapters 32–34 that tells how that covenant was broken and then restored.
Before this story of the golden calf, seven chapters give Yahweh's instructions to Moses for building the Tabernacle.
After that story, five chapters describe in detail how those instructions were carried out.
The term used for this "tabernacle" (mishkan) literally means "dwelling," a place where Yahweh could now dwell with the people with whom he has made a covenant.
• When you read most of the rest of the book of Exodus, it is filled with the details for the Tabernacle.
• Approximately 35% of the book covers the place for God to dwell.
• The Tabernacle was going to be an important milestone for the people!
• This was a BIG deal!
• The Tabernacle was to be temporary.
• The verb DWELL was a rarely used Hebrew term that conveyed the idea of the temporary nature of the lodging.
• Look at verse 9.
Exodus 25:9 (CSB)
9 You must make it according to all that I show you—the pattern of the Tabernacle as well as the pattern of all its furnishings.
• God was very specific in what He was asking for.
• Now, think about this for a moment.
• If God is being this specific on what He was looking for in what is basically an AWESOME tent, why do we think we can tell God how to be saved, or tell God who gets to go to heaven and who does not?
• Where do we get the idea that when God says something, we think He does not mean it?
• God gave Moses precise instructions on how to build the Tabernacle (Exodus 26:1–37).
• In this place, sacrifices would be made at an altar in worship of the Lord (27:1).
• God didn't just want a tent that he could dwell in.
• He wanted artisans, builders, and artisans to use their gifts to build and adorn his Tabernacle.
• He called Bezalel (BEZZ A LELL)from the tribe of Judah to help build and oversee the project (31:1–5).
• "His ability to work in the arts and his skills as a craftsman were gifts of the Holy Spirit" (EXODUS 31:3)
• (Walter C. Kaiser Jr., "Exodus," in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, The Expositor's Bible Commentary 2, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein [Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1990], 475).
• The tabernacle story reveals that skilled trades, craftsmen, and builders can be used by God to do amazing things.
• Their skills, talents, and labors were an act of worship to God.
• Let's turn to Exodus 40:34
Exodus 40:34 (CSB)
34 The cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle.
II. God has entered the building!
• At the end of the book of Exodus, we read that "the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle" (Exodus 40:34).
• This means that a visible manifestation of God's presence filled the Tabernacle for his people to see.
• This had to be an encouraging sight for the people!
Exodus 39:42–43 (CSB)
42 The Israelites had done all the work according to everything the LORD had commanded Moses.
43 Moses inspected all the work they had accomplished. They had done just as the LORD commanded. Then Moses blessed them.
Exodus 40:35 (CSB)
35 Moses was unable to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud rested on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle.
• God gave instructions, and the people followed them with joy, and as a result, God entered the Tabernacle!
• One of the ways we show God we love Him is by our obedience to His commands.
• When you know God is present with you, it changes you.
• God's presence brings hope and peace!
• God's approval was demonstrated by His presence.
Exodus (17. The Glory of Yahweh (40:34–38))
This visually confirmed the explanation given by Yahweh earlier, "Have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell with them" (25:8) and created "a portable Sinai" which provided a "means by which a continued avenue of communication with God could be maintained," as well as "a visible, tangible symbol of God's ever-abiding presence in their midst."
• Building this home together best expressed the reconciliation between the people and the Lord.
• God designed it and directed the construction through Moses.
• The people made and gave everything.
• The long detail and labor of Exodus 35–40 are best explained as a fitting response to the betrayal and rift of the golden calf.
• By building the Tabernacle, they participated in the restoration of hope.
• God is a God of restoration and hope!
• Now, I want to take us to a passage in the New Testament!
1 Corinthians 6:19–20 (CSB)
19 Don't you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,
20 for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body.
III. The new temple.
• When Jesus came, something changed.
• God pours out the Holy Spirit who dwells WITHIN us when we are baptized into Christ! (Acts 3:38)
• As Christians, we do not have a geographical location for God's presence.
• God's Spirit resides in us (1 Corinthians 6:19) as his "walking tabernacles." We are carriers of God's presence to the world around us.
• We no longer need to put out a Tabernacle or Temple because those in Christ ARE THE NEW TEMPLE!
• Think of all the sacrifice, time, effort, and preparation the people in Exodus made as they were working to make the Tabernacle.
• They did not throw up a cheap Coleman tent; they make the Tabernacle with the best materials available, they worked hard to follow the Lord's instructions.
• There was a sense of anticipation and excitement.
• The time and sacrifice required to construct the Tabernacle made the people appreciate it, so they cared for it and took care of it; after all, it was where God dwelt among the people.
• What an honor it was to have God with them.
• Now let's think of something for a minute.
• The 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 tells us that Christians are the Temple of the Holy Spirit!
• God the Holy Spirit!
• How special does that make you feel?
• How much preparation do not make for the God dwelling within you?
• Do you look like (conduct yourself) as if the Spirit of God dwells within you?
• Does your life reflect the fact that YOU are the temple of the Holy Spirit?
• Do you feel honored to be the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit?
• As honored as we would be to have a world leader in our home, you have someone much more important within you, God's Spirit!
• Do you think it is time for all of us to start to live in victory because of this fact?
• Is it not time to quit letting Satan enter the temple of the Holy Spirit?
• We have to understand that we are not our own; we BELONG to God.
• We need to show the world the difference that God makes in our life!
CONCLUSION
• God is with you!
› Application Point: We won't treat God as a saving superhero (here today and gone tomorrow) but as a God who is present with us.
• God being in you SHOULD make a difference in your life!
• Life with confidence knowing God is in you and with you!
