THE TABERNACLE, THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE RIVER OF GOD

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1 THE TABERNACLE, THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE RIVER OF GOD 2017 Overton Ministries International. All Rights Reserved Overton Ministries International PO Box Arlington, TX (817) Page

2 2 Page THE TABERNACLE, THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE RIVER OF GOD OUTLINE 1. Introduction 2. The Tabernacle 1. The Tabernacle Made Simple 3. The Tabernacle in the Old Testament 1. Service in the Outer Court 2. Service in the Holy Place 3. Service in the Most Holy Place 4. Our Christian Walk with the Lord a. The Outer Court 1. The Door 2. The Altar of Burnt Offerings 3. The Laver 4. Faith / Prayers / Word of God b. Entrance into the Tent of Meeting - Holy Place c. New Testament Examples 1. Cornelius, His Household and His Friends 2. Jesus Himself Went Through Two Baptisms 3. Philip & the New Saints at Samaria 4. The Saints at Ephesus 5. Jesus Describes Sending the Helper d. The Tent of Meeting - The Holy Place 1. Showbread - Fellowship & Communion with God 2. Candlestick - The Light of the Gospel 3. Altar of Incense 4. Faith / Prayers / Word of God e. The Tent of Meeting - The Most Holy Place 1. The Veil - The Entrance Into the Most Holy Place 2. Experiences in the Most Holy Place 5. Rivers of Living Water 6. The Old Testament - A Type and Shadow of the New a. The Tabernacle and The Church b. God Dwells in Zion c. God Created Man for Fellowship d. The Tabernacle in God's Timeline e. The Cross f. The Old Testament - A Type and Shadow 7. Jesus in the Tabernacle

3 8. Speaking in Tongues a. b. c. The Nine Manifestations of the Spirit d. Gifts of Healings - Available for All Believers e. Prophecy, Different Kinds of Tongues & Interpretation of Tongues - Available for All Believers f. Two Types of Prophesying g. New Testament Examples h. The Other Gifts i. Do I Have to Pray in Tongues to Be Baptized in the Holy Spirit? Note that the New King James Version of the Bible is used for all scripture references 3 Page

4 THE TABERNACLE, THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE RIVER OF GOD INTRODUCTION It is with great joy and excitement that I write this book on the Old Testament Tabernacle, the Holy Spirit and the River of God. I'm humbled by the revelations received from the Lord and I pray this book will allow you to see your walk with the Lord in a way you have never heard of before; from salvation, to water baptism, to receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, to experiencing the fullness of God. This is the body of Christ - we are all one! Jesus prayed that we will all be one, so guess what, it will happen - His prayers will come to pass! The church that the Lord Jesus comes to marry will be one, not a church will major doctrinal differences. This is a great day for the people of God and the church. What an opportunity we have to display the love and power of God as a witness to the unbelievers in the face of so much opposition. Just look around at our world today and you can readily see such a need for God; immorality abounds, the institution of marriage threatened, child abuse and sex trafficking statistics are staggering, false religions are growing, etc. The world knows all to well how to be worldly - it's the church that needs to know how to be "the church." Oh how we need the nine spiritual gifts in full operation in the church today. I believe this book is great reading for any Christian, but I particularly believe the revelations received in this book are essential to those who believe getting water baptism as an infant is an act of salvation and those who believe you receive everything from God at the point of salvation. Both of those are not true. The devil is going to strongly oppose anything that threatens him. It's no wonder the baptism in the Holy Spirit has faced so much opposition within the body of Christ - it s the anointing / power of God that comes with the baptism in the Holy Spirit that threatens the devils kingdom. Yes, there have been isolated unscriptural teachings or errors in the application of the baptism in the Holy Spirit over the years. Errors or misapplications are bound to occur in any Christian faith but you don't through the baby out with the bath water. Just ask the Apostle Paul - every one of his letters had some level of correction for the church. I realize that a majority of denominations and churches and those that attend such churches believe that you receive all you need from God at the time of salvation. This book will illuminate what the bible teaches concerning just that. Are you hungry for God? I pray that many of the things that you are hungry for will start to come alive as you read, understand and put to practice the things described in this book. Five reasons why my heart is stirred to share this teaching: 1. The Lord Instructed Me To Do So While seeking the Lord for direction in early January 2005, I heard the Lord say to "reach the body." My response was I tried doing that already with very minimal positive results; I was not too excited about going to beat my head against a brick wall again. I needed confirmation and asked God for a fleece to 4 Page

5 confirm what He said. He said ok and that He was going to have a pastor friend of mine in Kansas City moved to Arlington as the confirmation. I said that would be major and a sure sign. I went to Kansas City that same week and had a conversation with this pastor. He told me that he wanted to move to Atlanta and start a ministry there. I thought "God missed that one" like God is ever wrong. I came home and shortly thereafter, received a phone call from this pastor. He said, "I'm not sure what's going on but the Lord has instructed me to move to Arlington; there's something down there with your ministry that I need or need to learn." Once again, as always, God was right! Then in October 2013 at a conference for ministers / pastors in Denton, I was alone in the sanctuary for about two hours one afternoon and began to pray over the five corrective messages that I believe the Lord wants the body of Christ to hear, this being one of them. I was calling out corrections in prayer for an hour or so. During that evenings worship service, the song leader began to holler "corrections, corrections, corrections." It stopped me cold in my tracts; I looked around in amazement thinking that the service should be stopped and we would deal with these corrections! No one else seemed to take notice or even appeared to have heard her holler corrections. After the service, I went up to the song leader and asked if she hollered "corrections" several times just to make sure I was not hearing things. She said yes, it was kind of weird but it just came up in my spirit so I yelled it out. Well it wasn't weird to me, but rather another way of the Lord was confirming He does want to bring major corrections to the body of Christ. 2. Those Suffering From Sickness, Diseases, Being Tormented or Dysfunctional Lives Oh how my heart aches for anyone suffering from: sickness; disease; tormented by what could be unclean spirits; or facing dysfunctional/abusive lives. It is not God's plan for any one in the body of Christ to even be sick much less die of sickness or be tormented or suffer abuse. I will have other books dedicated to sickness, disease and unclean spirits, but receiving revelation on how the bible deals with sickness, disease and unclean spirits and how to be made whole starts with the information in this book. The manifestations of the Spirit or the nine spiritual gifts will not manifest themselves where people do not believe in them or believe in them wrongly. Jesus could do no mighty works in His home town because of their unbelief. It is not the truth that sets you free, but rather the truth YOU KNOW that sets you free. 3. Those Who Have Attended Church Their Entire Lives and May Not Be Born Again I went to church for basically thirty-one years and never knew the Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. I think the saddest thing I can imagine is to sit in church your entire life and die and go to hell. My prayer is that this book brings knowledge about true salvation. 4. Pastors, Leaders and Others That May Not Be in the Body of Christ Several years ago, while attending a pastor's pray lunch, one of the pastors directed me to a nearby ministry that dealt with the occult and other un-godly religions. While talking to this person, he not only discussed some of the false religions, but he began negatively talking about other Christian ministries, most of whom believed similar to I regarding the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a second experience to 5 Page

6 apart from salvation. About half way through the conversation I stopped this person and informed him that he was talking about me! In addition, Christian radio and book media are filled with numerous pastoral teachings and ministries that denounce those that believe in receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a second experience. I attended a conference a few years ago where some speakers used hateful words to describe those that believe in the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a second experience apart from salvation. I have often thought how can these people get away with such and still function in the body of Christ and not be sick or die! The bible describes such people: 6 Page 1 Corinthians 11:27-30 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. Christians who talk about other people in the body of Christ - especially something that is Godly - bring judgment on themselves resulting in sickness or even death. I personally know of one person that brought destruction into his family because of such, and I've heard testimonies of numerous others that brought the same judgment on themselves. One day in prayer, I was asking God about all these pastors, ministries, books, etc., that all speak against the baptism in the Holy Spirit and other topics that are biblical. It did not appear to me that any of them were suffering sickness nor death as the scripture says. I thought "ok God, what's the deal with all these people, how come they do not seem to suffer sickness or death? Your word is true, is it not? I would like to hear what You have to say about all the hate." The Lord's answer shook me to the core. He said: "They are not in the body" Whoa!!! They are not a part of the body of Christ! I was not expecting that answer! If they are not a part of the body of Christ, the 1 Corinthians 11 scripture does not apply to them. I thought that makes so much sense and is the only explanation regarding people who speak hateful words about other Christians and do not suffer sickness. Knowing that, my heart cries out to bring knowledge to them. Hosea 4:6 My people perish for the lack of knowledge, because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me. 5. Spots in the Body Finally and closely associated with the previous reason for wanting to share the information in this book, is to help remove spots and blemishes in the body of Christ. When dealing with false teachers, Peter calls them spots and blemishes: 2 Peter 2:12-13 But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption, and will receive the wages of unrighteousness, as those who count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes, carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you, In 1987, the Lord Jesus appeared to me and gave me a commission:

7 Ron, I want you to know that the kingdom of God is at hand, the end of the world is upon us, I want you to go out and prepare the way. I can t be with you any longer, but I want you to go prepare the way. At that time, I was born again but was not aware of such and had no knowledge of redemptive truth. In April 1990 after attending Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, I came to understood that I had been born again three and one-half years earlier! I was water baptized and was baptized in the Holy Spirit after the third service, then began to grow in the things of God. But it was not until January 2002 when I discovered that this dream was a calling from the Lord Jesus Christ to help establish order in the body of Christ. Turnaround and radical change are words the Lord placed in our hearts in 2002, words that describe what needs to occur in the church. A slew of supernatural events were occurring in our life during a three week season from January to early February During that time, my wife had a dream of a baby being born breach, feet first. She described the dream and said when she pulled the baby out the face was marred on one side and spotted all over the other. The Lord quickly took me to: Ephesians 5:27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. The calling in 1987 was a commission to prepare the church for the return of the Lord and that return will be for a glorious church, one without any spots or blemishes. I have huge compassion for pastors, teachers, other ministries and Christians in general who do not understand the baptism in the Holy Spirit as a second experience apart from salvation. But if a person teaches against such and hatefully so, Peter calls them false teachers, or spots and blemishes in the body of Christ. My desire it to educate the body of Christ on the baptism in the Holy Spirit and help remove spots and blemishes from the church. 7 Page

8 THE TABERNACLE 8 Page Exodus 26:30, And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain. God had instructed Moses to make sure that he built the tabernacle exactly according to its pattern that he was shown while spending the forty days on the mountain talking with God. Every article, every piece of equipment, all the material, even the threads had to be designed and built exactly like Moses was shown on the mountain. We serve a God of order. Leviticus 9:6, Then Moses said, "This is the thing which the Lord commanded you to do, and the glory of the Lord will appear to you." Moses passed on the instructions he received from God for building the tabernacle to the children of Israel. If the children of Israel built the tabernacle exactly like the pattern described to Moses, then God would come down and sanctify the tabernacle by filling the tent of meeting with the glory of the Lord. And that s exactly what happened through out the Old Testament. Exodus 40:18-35, So Moses raised up the tabernacle, fastened its sockets, set up its boards, put in its bars, and raised up its pillars. And he spread out the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent on top of it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He took the Testimony and put it into the ark, inserted the poles through the rings of the ark, and put the mercy seat on top of the ark. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, hung up the veil of the covering, and partitioned off the ark of the Testimony, as the Lord had commanded Moses... Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 2 Chronicles 5:5-14, Then they brought up the ark, the tabernacle of meeting, and all the holy furnishings that were in the tabernacle. The priests and the Levites brought them up.indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying: "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever, "that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God. The Tabernacle Made Simple I recall as a young Christian reading the portions of Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy that dealt with the tabernacle and being very confused as to the complexities of what God had laid out. Reading this part of the bible was a time I did not look forward to and just assume skip over. Even the Feast of the Lord did not make much sense in my early days as a Christian. Drudgingly, I made it through these sections of scripture. As I grew in my Christian walk, I started to understand more and more about why Moses had to build the tabernacle so precisely and the just why the Feast in the Old Testament were so important for the children of Israel to observe. I will never forget the revelation I received concerning the actual day the Lord was crucified and when He arose. Even in my pre-christian days, the entire Easter week did not add up how could Jesus have been nailed to the cross on Friday, spend three days and three nights in the grave, then

9 arose from the grave before sunrise on Sunday morning, the first day of the week. I never was good in English, but I loved math. Any way you look at it, Friday plus three days does not equal pre-dawn Sunday morning. It may have been the engineer in me two plus two equals four, water flows downhill and if the bible is accurate, which it is, then all scripture most line up and make sense. When I gave my life to Christ, I began asking the Christian people I knew to explain the Easter week chronology, but all I heard was Jesus died on a Friday, the day before the Sabbath! Not being satisfied, I began crying out to God to provide the answer, which He did, Praise God! This revelation will be in a forthcoming in a book. This made me realize that all scripture truly IS inspired by God and makes sense. I began to see the construction of the tabernacle in a whole different light. Everything that God showed Moses concerning the tabernacle points to the cross and the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The entire tabernacle is about Jesus, not just salvation. The books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy became easier and easier to read with this new revelation and understanding. This is the inspiration of this book to simplify the tabernacle in a way that every born again believer can easily understand it, to show you exactly what God was saying to Moses, and the incredible significance for the body of Christ today! 9 Page

10 THE TABERNACLE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT God has always desired to have fellowship with man. His original purpose for creating mankind was for His fellowship. Man was created in the image of God, created to have dominion over all of Gods creation on this earth, and created to walk and talk with God. Unfortunately, Satan had other plans! He sought to destroy the fellowship between God and man and was successful in his plan with his temptation of Adam and Eve. The tabernacle basically represents Gods new earthly plan to restore the fellowship that Satan destroyed. The Old Testament tabernacle was just that a place where God could come down and tabernacle or dwell with His people. After Moses brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and through the wilderness, God wanted to talk with them directly but they said no. Exodus 20: So God gave him the plan for the tabernacle during his forty days and nights on the mountain. The plan was directly from the pattern already in place in heaven and Moses was to build the earthly tabernacle in the exact same pattern. Though every minute detail served a purpose and pointed to Jesus, only the basic articles and layout of the tabernacle will be covered in this book. The following diagram shows the basic layout and the articles that made up the tabernacle in the wilderness. TABERNACLE IN THE WILDERNESS Tent of Meeting Ark Manna Law Aaron s Rod Altar of Incense Showbread Lamp Laver Burnt Offering Altar The Door Holy of Holies The Holy Place Outer Court The tabernacle had three sections: the outer court, the holy place and the holy of holies. The entire tabernacle was bordered by an outer curtain that surrounded the entire structure. The holy place and the holy of holies (or most holy place) were enclosed in a tent like structure that was called the tent of meeting. The section of the tabernacle within the outer curtain but outside of the tent of meeting was called the outer court. The tabernacle had an outside door that always faced east when the tabernacle was erected. 10 Page Exodus 38:13-15, For the east side the hangings were fifty cubits. The hangings of one side of the gate were fifteen cubits long, with their three pillars and their three sockets, and the same for the

11 other side of the court gate; on this side and that were hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. Inside the door was the altar of burnt offerings followed by the laver where the priest washed prior to entering into the tent of meetings. Exodus 40:6-8, Then you shall set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. And you shall set the laver between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. You shall set up the court all around, and hang up the screen at the court gate. The term tabernacle used in the bible sometimes referred to the entire structure including the tent of meeting and the outer court and sometimes it referred only to the tent of meeting. The tent of meeting had a covering over it, making it an actual tent. Exodus 26:12-13 The remnant that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. And a cubit on one side and a cubit on the other side, of what remains of the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and on that side, to cover it. The tent of meeting had a door as well that served as the entrance point into the holy place. The holy place had the table of showbread on the north side of the tabernacle, the candlestick on the south side and the altar of incense situated before the veil, basically as shown above. Exodus 40:4-5, You shall bring in the table and arrange the things that are to be set in order on it; and you shall bring in the lampstand and light its lamps. You shall also set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the Testimony, and put up the screen for the door of the tabernacle. Exodus 40:22-28, He put the table in the tabernacle of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil; and he set the bread in order upon it before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He put the lampstand in the tabernacle of meeting, across from the table, on the south side of the tabernacle; and he lit the lamps before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He put the gold altar in the tabernacle of meeting in front of the veil; and he burned sweet incense on it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. He hung up the screen at the door of the tabernacle. Separating the holy place from the most holy place was the veil of the temple. Exodus 40:2-3, "On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. You shall put in it the ark of the Testimony, and partition off the ark with the veil. Beyond the veil in the most holy place sat the ark of the testimony with the mercy seat on top of the ark and two cherubim or angel like figures covering the mercy seat. It was from here that the Lord God spoke to the children of Israel. Exodus 25:20-22, 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. 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. And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above 11 Page

12 the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel. Inside the ark of the testimony were the tablets of the covenant, Aaron s rod that budded and the manna that fell from heaven. Hebrews 9:3-4, and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron's rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant. Service In The Tabernacle the Outer Court The door to the tabernacle was the entrance into the entire tabernacle in the wilderness and provided entrance into the outer court. Obviously, the sun or moon provided the light in the outer court. The first item to be seen after entering into the tabernacle was the altar of burnt offerings. It was constructed from acacia wood overlaid with bronze and stood 1.4 meters high and 2.3 meter wide. Bronze in the bible speaks of God's judgment. At the altar of burnt offering, the priests sacrificed various offerings to God; some offerings were for their own sins and other offerings were for the sins of the people. For the burnt offering a male animal was sacrificed: a ram, a goat, a bullock or a turtle-dove (or a pigeon). The offering had to be without blemish, the very healthiest and best available. A lamb was burnt at the altar of burnt offering every morning and every evening. Exodus 29:38-41, "Now this is what you shall offer on the altar: two lambs of the first year, day by day continually. One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight. With the one lamb shall be one-tenth of an ephah of flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of pressed oil, and one-fourth of a hin of wine as a drink offering. And the other lamb you shall offer at twilight; and you shall offer with it the grain offering and the drink offering, as in the morning, for a sweet aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord. The next item to be seen was the laver. The laver was a large bronze basin containing water. Having entered through the door into the tabernacle's outer court, the priests had to wash their hands and feet at the laver before they could either enter into the sanctuary building or make any offering to the Lord at the altar of burnt offering. God warned Moses that if the priests did not wash they would die. Exodus 30:18-20, "You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base also of bronze, for washing. You shall put it between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. And you shall put water in it, for Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in water from it. When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die. Service In The Tabernacle the Holy Place The tent of meeting, that enclosed the holy place and the most holy place, had a door on it as well, similar to the entrance door to the entire tabernacle. Prior to entering this door, the priest had to put on priestly garments and be anointed with oil. 12 Page

13 Exodus 40:12-13, Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and wash them with water. You shall put the holy garments on Aaron, and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest. The priest had to perform services inside the tent of meeting in the holy place, some daily and some weekly. The priest had to burn incense at the altar in the morning and at twilight as a perpetual fragrance before the Lord. The lampstand was also lit permanently, to give light inside the holy place. The priests in the tabernacle were responsible, evening and morning, for topping off the seven lamps with oil and trimming their wicks. Exodus 27:20, "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. Exodus 30:7-8, Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations. On the table of showbread were placed twelve loaves of unleavened bread, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. The loaves were replaced by the priest every week on the Sabbath, fresh food in the house of God for the priests, Aaron and his sons. Exodus 25:30, And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always. Service In The Tabernacle the Most Holy Place It was only once per year that the priest went into the most holy place to make atonement for sins of the people of Israel. The glory of the Lord provided the light inside the most holy place. Exodus 30:10, And Aaron shall make atonement upon its horns once a year with the blood of the sin offering of atonement; once a year he shall make atonement upon it throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord." This awesome responsibility of entering the holy place once per year required a sanctified person, the high priest, dressed in "holy garments" described in Exodus 28 and 29. The robe of the priestly garments had bells on the around the bottom hem so that when the high priest ministered in the holy place, those outside could hear him move. If the bells stopped ringing, they knew he had died in the presence of the Lord because of improper sanctification. 13 Page

14 OUR CHRISTIAN WALK WITH THE LORD The tabernacle in the Old Testament is a picture of our Christian walk with the Lord in the New Testament, the Old Testament being a type and shadow of the new. The Old Testament saints did not have the presence of God inside of them all their actions were outwardly. We, as New Testament saints, have the life of God inside of us when we are born again. Acts 7:38 This is he who was in the congregation (or church) in the wilderness 1 Corinthians 3:16, Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of he Holy Spirit who is in you Luke 17:21, For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you." Our bodies are the temple of God the Old Testament tabernacle is a picture of our life as a Christian. The Spirit of God dwells in New Testament believers. In the Old Testament, they had to physically erect the tabernacle. For New Testament believers, we in general progress through the same order as laid out in the Old Testament tabernacle, except it is a spiritual progression vs. actual physical service to the Lord. Now God is not limited to a precise step by step orderly plan. Revelation knowledge, supernatural experiences, and other moves of God can happen at any point in your life. God will use the supernatural to draw sinners to the cross. You can experience the glory of the Lord at any point in your life. But what is contained in this section does point out some significant milestones that occur as we walk with the Lord. 14 Page

15 The Outer Court The Door John 10:7-9, Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. Jesus is the door into the kingdom of God. The only way to enter into the kingdom is through the door which is Jesus. You can not climb over the wall or dig around it or enter by any other means besides coming through the door which is Jesus. The only way to the Father is through the son. John 3:3, Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Acts 4:12, Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Romans 10:13, For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Salvation brings us into the door of the tabernacle, into the kingdom. Salvation occurs when we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, when our dead spirit is born again and the Divine nature of God comes inside of us. We are a spirit, we have a soul and we live in this body or earthen vessel. When we get born again, the Spirit of the Living God comes into our spirits and makes us alive. We are quickened the King James Bible states. John 3:6, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." Ephesians 2:1, "And you He made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins." Romans 8:9, "But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Colossians 1:27, "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Revelations 3:20, "If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, an he with Me. At salvation, the Divine nature of God comes in us; He comes into our dead spirits and makes us alive. The Spirit comes to dwell in you at salvation. The Altar of Burnt Offerings - Repent The altar of burnt offerings represents the burning away of all our sins repentance before the Lord. To obtain salvation, we first come to Jesus and repent that we were a sinner. Listing all your sins individually is not important because you probably can not remember all your sins anyway. But you can repent of your life as a sinner or of Adam s original sin, and that you were lost and undone without God. 15 Page

16 16 Page Acts 2:38, Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Laver Sanctification / Consecration / Water Baptism The laver for washing by the priest was position immediately after the altar of burnt offerings. This laver represents our sanctification or regeneration by the washing in water by the word and our decision to start living consecrate lives, separate from world. Ephesians 5:26, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word Titus 3:5, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit When you come to Jesus or enter the door of the outer court, repent of your sins or come through the brazen altar, Jesus expects us to live separate from the world. The church means the called out ones or called out from living a worldly life. Water baptism, or full immersion in water, is the actual external act that we perform that signifies to the world that we are now a Christian, that we have decided to live a sanctified and consecrated life for the Lord Jesus Christ. The steps in our Christian walk are 1 st come to Jesus, 2 nd repent that you were a sinner, and 3 rd get water baptized. That is why the tabernacle in the Old Testament was laid out in the exact order described everything in the kingdom of God had to be done in order. Acts 2:38, Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Some major Christian religions baptize infants, believing that this baptism washes them from original sin and brings them into the kingdom of God. The major problem with this is that they baptize infants before they have the opportunity to come to Jesus. Baptizing a person or infant before they have an opportunity to come to Jesus and repent is out of order you basically are placing the laver outside of the door to the tabernacle. This baptismal ceremony may be very sacred and special to those involved in such but it does not serve any purpose in the kingdom of God. It is out of order. Faith / Prayers / Word of God There is some degree of faith being applied or used by Christians that are in this section of their spiritual walk with the Lord. Without some measure of faith, you can not be saved. Without some measure of faith, you can not come to God since you must first believe that He is God. Ephesians 2:8, For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, Hebrews 11:6, But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By dwelling in the outer court, you will have some degree of revelation into the things of God, but your growth as a Christian is limited. Your faith will only grow to the measure of the natural light provided by the sun. But there is more to the things of God that God wants us to experience.

17 Acts 10:1-4, There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, "Cornelius!" And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, "What is it, lord?" So he said to him, "Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God. Cornelius was a devout Christian, but living his Christian walk in the outer court in the tabernacle of God. The Lord God was about to show him as well as all other Gentile believers how to gain access into the holy place. 17 Page

18 Entrance Into The Tent Of Meeting Holy Place There were two doors on the tabernacle; one for entrance into the outer court and the other for entrance into the inner tent of meeting. The tent of meeting or sometimes called the tabernacle of meeting, was called such because this is where God met with the priest. It was the place that revelation came concerning the things of God. The priest had to first come through the door of the tabernacle, offering burnt offerings, and wash in the laver prior to entering into the tent of meeting. But there was one more major task the priest had to perform prior to them entering into the tent of meeting: Exodus 28:41, So you shall put them on Aaron your brother and on his sons with him. You shall anoint them, consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister to Me as priests. Exodus 40:12-13, Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and wash them with water. You shall put the holy garments on Aaron, and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest. Before entering into the tent of meeting, the priest had to be anointed with oil to consecrate them. This anointing oil in the Old Testament was a type and shadow of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. In the Old Testament, the priest had to be anointed before entering the tent of meeting, the holy and most holy place, the place of revelation. The same holds true for the New Testament believer! In order to enter into the tent of meeting or the place of revelation in our personal temples, we need to be anointed by the Holy Spirit, and that anointing or immersion in the Holy Spirit comes when we are baptized in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes upon us, just as the New Testament scriptures signify. Baptism means full immersion. The Holy Spirit comes upon you just like the priest in the Old Testament, the oil being poured on their head representing a full immersion in the anointing of God, or the Holy Spirit. Psalms 133:1-2, " Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments." This scripture compares unity amongst brethren to the unity between Aaron the priest and the anointing oil poured over his head; a great picture of what happens when we are baptized in the Holy Spirit. All four gospels mention how John the Baptist described how Jesus would baptize them in the Holy Spirit: Matthew 3:11, I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. Mark 1:8, " I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." 18 Page

19 Luke 3:16, John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John 1:33, " I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit." John baptized them in water. Jesus is the one who baptizes you in the Holy Spirit. This is not water baptism, but a separate event in the life of a Christian apart from salvation, just like there are two separate doors in the Old Testament tabernacle. In Hebrews, the writer clearly notes that there are more than one baptisms: Hebrews 6:1-2, Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. So exactly like the Old Testament type and shadow, New Testament saints have to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit coming upon them, or be baptized or fully immersed in the Holy Spirit in order to enter into a deeper revelatory relationship with God inside the tent of meeting. The requirements for being baptized in the Holy Spirit are: 1. You must be born again 2. Recognized & repented that you were a sinner, lost and undone without God 3. And you must have decided to live a sanctified life, set apart from the world. No you are not perfect yet, it is just deciding to live for God. Water baptism is the physical act that signifies this consecrated life. For every New Testament example of saints being baptized in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Living God comes upon us, not in us. The Divine nature of God comes in us at salvation, but comes upon us when we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 19 Page

20 New Testament Examples Let's look at the examples in the bible where saints where baptized in the Holy Spirit. Cornelius, His Household & Friends With Cornelius, the Lord caused the Holy Spirit to fall upon him, his family and close friends, just like on the day of Pentecost while Peter was sharing the word of God with them. Though Cornelius had not yet been through the actual physical water baptism, he and the relatives and close friends he had gathered together that day had already come to Jesus and were living sanctified and consecrated lives to the Lord. 20 Page Acts 10:2, 24, 35, A devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always.and the following day they entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends.but in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him. The fact that Cornelius and his household were devout or just and feared God shows that they were most likely already were saved; they were already Christians. The following scriptures confirm that they had experienced salvation: Acts 10:36-38, "The word (logos) which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ--He is Lord of all-- that word (rhema) you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. The Greek translation for "word" in the first sentence is logos; Jesus was the walking talking logos word of God. The translation for the second use of "word" is rhema. Rhema means revelation of the logos word. Peter was stating that Cornelius had a rhema or revelation that Jesus was the Christ; he knew that Jesus Christ was Lord of all. Cornelius was saved or born again. And you have to assume his whole household was as well. They knew Jesus as Lord and Savior. Peter and his friends from Joppa that accompanied him came to Caesarea. After a few verses in Acts 10:24-33 where both Peter and Cornelius discussed how they arrived at this point, Peter began to share what he knew God already had done, but wanted to bring clearer understanding to the Gentiles. We are not clear from these verses whether Peter realized that Jesus was about to drop the gift of the Holy Spirit upon them or not, but that's exactly what happen. Acts 10:44-46 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished as many as came with Peter because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. Though they had not been through the physical act of being water baptized, they had experienced the spiritual significance of the laver in their walk with God. That is why they could be baptized in the Holy Spirit before the physical act of water baptism. The Holy Spirit fell upon them, not in them. Salvation had already occurred when they knew or had a rhema that Jesus was Lord. How did Peter and his companions know that they had just received the gift of the Holy Spirit? Because they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.

21 Jesus Himself Went Through Two Separate Baptisms 21 Page Matthew 3:16, When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. The Lord Jesus did not need to be born again nor did He need to repent of any sins! He was born of the virgin by immaculate conception so that He could be that perfect Lamb of God, totally without sin to take the sin of the world to the cross. Being born any other way would mean Jesus would have been born with Adam's original sin, negating His spotless status. And we know He never sinned. So what happened when the Holy Spirit came upon Him? Jesus allowed Himself to be baptized in water to fulfill all righteousness. He was following exactly the will of God for His life and demonstrating God's ordained process. After His water baptism, the Spirit of the God descended upon Him, not in Him, but upon Him. It's a full immersion in the Holy Spirit. The very same way the Old Testament priest poured the anointing oil all over themselves - this was His baptism in the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you This was the Lord Jesus receiving the power of the Holy Spirit, just like what happens to us when we the Holy Spirit comes upon us. And exactly like the Lord Jesus and the Old Testament saints, this allows us to enter into the holy and most holy place. There was nothing miraculous about the ministry of Jesus until after He was baptized or received the Holy Spirit upon Him, nothing. He had to be baptized in the Holy Spirit before He began His ministry, most definitely marked with countless signs, wonders and miracles. Philip and the New Saints in Samaria In bible days, receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit was not really an issue for any of the new converts. In Acts 8, Philip went down to Samaria and preached about Jesus Christ and the multitude with one accord gave heed to things Philip preached. Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. They believed what Philip preached concerning Jesus Christ being Lord and Savior; they were born again or received salvation. Then both men and women were water baptized. But they had not yet received the Holy Spirit, it had not come upon them. Acts 8:14-16 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them who when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. They all had received salvation, or the Divine nature of God came to reside in them, but none of them had received the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:17 Then they laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.

22 After Peter and John laid hands on them, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit, or were baptized in the Holy Spirit. The bible does not say in this passage how Peter and John knew they received the Holy Spirit, but it's safe to assume that they heard them speak in tongues, similar to other occurrences in the Book of Acts. The Saints at Ephesus 22 Page Acts 19:1-6, And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" So they said to him, "We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit." And he said to them, "Into what then were you baptized?" So they said, "Into John's baptism." Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. Paul asked the disciples (pupils of Jesus) had they received the Holy Spirit when they believed. Believe in what? Believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. They were believers, or they had already been saved. But they had not even heard of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Paul went on to explain the difference between John's baptism and being baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. But recall, baptism does not save you. Confessing and believing on the Lord Jesus is when salvation occurs, it's when the Divine Nature of God comes in you. Paul baptized them in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then after that, Paul laid hands on them and the Holy Spirit came upon them, not in them. Exactly like the Old Testament pattern where the priest had to be anointed with oil before entering into the holy and most holy place Paul's Conversion Paul's Damascus Road experience is probably the most famous conversion to Christianity in the bible. Acts 9:3-6 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads." So he, trembling and astonished, said, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" Then the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." Until this time, Paul thought he was doing the right thing by persecuting Christians; he thought he was serving his Lord. That's why after he fell to the ground, he said, "Who are you Lord?" Paul was asking who is the person who caused the light to shine around him and knocked him to the ground! Then Jesus spoke and identified Himself, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting." Paul was astonished and trembled, then he calls Jesus Lord. That is salvation. Anybody that calls on the name of the Lord and believes in his heart that God raised Him from the grave, shall be saved. Paul called Him Lord, and obviously realized He had been raised from the grave because he was talking to Him. Salvation had come unto Paul. A few days later, Ananias laid his hands on Paul and Paul received his sight and was filled with the Holy Spirit. The word filled is translated to be filled up, or be immersed in the Holy Spirit.