George M. Stahnke 08/25/2001
This model for personal devotions incorporates prayer, worship, praise, confession, scripture reading, listening and journaling. It is not intended to be legalistic or regimented. Your time with the Lord should be unhurried and free flowing out of your devotion and love of Him. 1. As we look at the Tabernacle we see the complete redemptive work of Christ (Hebrews 9). The Door of the Outer Court was a large curtain, made of fine linen, colored in blue, purple, red and white. Each of the colors has a significance: Blue represents that which is heavenly and godly. Purple signifies royalty, majesty or kingship. Red signifies blood. White signifies purity and innocence. These four separate colors, woven together become the completed door to the outer court. It is the only way in, inviting, appealing and beautiful. The door speaks of both the compassion and the kindness of Jesus, His nature as both 100% God and 100% man, the two woven together into a beautiful curtain a gateway into the presence of God! John 10:9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Praise the Lord for his love and that through the blood of His son Jesus you can come boldly into His presence. Acknowledge that He is high above the earth, that He is holy, majestic and that Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Matthew 6:9 "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, The Bronze Altar is where the priest would sacrifice sin offerings. It was by these burnt offerings that atonement for sin was made thus gaining acceptance before God. Peace offerings in thankfulness to 2. God for His mercy were also made. The fires of the altar were to burn continuously, never to go out. It was in the courtyard, out in the open, accessible for all to approach. On the day of atonement blood was put on the four horns, one on each corner, representing redemption, ransom, substitution and reconciliation. The Bronze Alter foreshadowed the cross of Christ providing salvation, the Holy Spirit, healing, and provision. Here you approach the Lord in confession to receive forgiveness. 1 John 1:8-9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Psalm 19:12-13 Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. 13 Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression. (Psalms 51:1-13, 10) Do you need to forgive someone who has errored, offended or sinned against you? Choose to forgive them now and let it go. Matthew 6:12, 14 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 14 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. Jesus willingly sacrificed himself on the cross to fulfill God s will. Here we too choose to offer ourselves as living sacrifices, yielding ourselves to God s will. Mark 8:34b "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God this is your spiritual act of worship. Matthew 6:10 your kingdom come, your will be done on earth (in us) as it is in heaven. (emphasis added) We also praise God for where He has brought us from. We rejoice in the Lord for His protection and strength and thank Him for the sacrifice of Christ that has secured for us temporal and eternal blessings. 3. The Bronze Laver was a large basin containing water for the cleansing of the Priests. They had to wash their hands and feet at the Laver before they could enter the Holy Place (sanctuary building). The Laver symbolizes the Word of God washing, cleansing and preparing us as priests of the Lord for His service. 1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. The hands and feet symbolize the daily activity of life. What we do with our hands and where our feet carry us is a reflection of our purity in thought (attitude) and character (actions). God requires purity before service. As we wash in the Laver (the Word of God) we are confronted, gaining God s perspective, cleansed, encouraged and prepared for His service. John 17:17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. (Psalm 119:9) Ephesians 5:25-26 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word. Here is where you read the Bible allowing God to speak to you on area's of personal growth and holiness. What is God saying to you? What adjustment does God want you to make in your life? What encouragement did you receive? Write it down and make it a matter of meditation and prayer.
4. The purpose of the Lampstand was to give light for the priests to do their work in the Tabernacle. Its light was cast directly on the table of showbread. It had a central stem and three branches on the left and right sides. Upon each of the seven stands was a bowl and wick (Exodus 25:31-37). John 8:12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. (Matthew 5:14-16) Philippians 2:15 (NLT).You are to live clean, innocent lives as children of God in a dark world full of crooked and perverse people. Let your lives shine brightly before them. The Lampstand also speaks of the Holy Spirit, the creative fullness of divine power as seen in all His gifts and graces, at work in Jesus and the church. Isaiah 11:2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him--the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD-- 1 Corinthians 14:8-12... Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church. Ephesians 3:14-20... Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, Pray that the Lord will help you to be a brighter light (witness) at work, at home and in your neighborhood. Pray that you would increase in wisdom, understanding, godly counsel, spiritual might, knowledge, and the fear of God. Ask the Lord to use you in the gifts of the Holy Spirit with greater frequency and purity. Remember that you can do NOTHING apart from God and the power of the Holy Spirit. John 15:5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 5. Shewbread means the bread of His presence. It was a constant reminder of God s faithfulness and provision for your physical and spiritual life (Exodus 5:23-30). All that the follower of Christ needs to strengthen and sustain him spiritually is found in God s presence. It also points to Jesus as the bread of life and our communion with him. John 6:35 Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. John 6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Lord communed with His priests through the bread. They were partakers of Him. What we eat becomes part of our being. Believers in Christ are partakers of the divine nature when they partake of His body. The Tabernacle of Moses, Kevin Conner, pg. 36 1 Corinthians 10:16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?
There were twelve loaves of bread representing the twelve tribes of Israel (Lev. 24:5-9). Unity and forgiveness among God s people is very important. 1 Corinthians 10:17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. 1 Corinthians 12:13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Ask the Lord for an increase of unity in the leadership and members of your congregation. Pray for those that you may be having difficulty with. This is also a wonderful time to worship the Lord for all He has done. Praise God for past provision and boldly ask Him to meet the needs that you have at this time. Luke 11:3 Give us each day our daily bread. Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 6. The Altar of Incense stood before the veil that separated the holy place and the most holy place. This altar spoke of worship and of other dimensions of prayer (Rev. 8:3-4). Here praise and prayer are blended together as the priest approached the presence of God. It is Christ s blood (our sin offering) that was shed on Calvary (Brazen Altar) which is the basis and foundation of His ministry of Intercession (Golden Altar of Incense) in behalf of the saints and the Church at the right hand of the Majesty on High (Heb. 8:1-2). Only the Blood of Jesus gives power to the incense of prayer. It is only the Blood of Jesus that enables us to stand before a holy God (Heb. 9:12-14 and John 1:6-7). The Tabernacle of Moses, Kevin Conner, pg. 50 Revelation 5:8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 1 Corinthians 14:14-15 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15 So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Allow the Holy Spirit to impress upon your mind what and whom to pray for. Begin to pray and worship in the Spirit. Sing to the Lord a new song. (Ps. 40:3, 96:1, 98:1, 149:1, Rev. 5:9) Enjoy His presence!
7. The Ark of the Covenant was a symbol of the presence of God in the midst of His people and a continual reminder of God s commitment to fulfill all His promises. Inside were the stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were written, speaking of the righteousness which God alone can produce (Ex. 25:21, 40:20; Deut. 10:5). There was a jar of manna, speaking of His miraculous provision (Ex. 16:33-34). There was Aaron s rod, which miraculously budded and bore fruit, speaking of God s power to bring life from the dead (Num. 17:10). Each of these three items is also a reminder of the rebellion on the part of God s people: the tablets of the Law with the making of the golden calf; Aaron s rod with the rebellion led by Korah; and the manna with Israel s complaining in the wilderness. These three items within the ark could have brought judgment to Israel were it not for the mercy seat where the blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement. The shed blood covered the sins of the people so that God saw the blood and not their rebellion. Pray for yourself and your family. Matthew 6:13 (NLT) don t let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Pray for the church, it s leadership team and various ministries. Pray for the unsaved and un-churched. Pray for public servants and government officials. 1 Tim. 2:1 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone. The mercy seat is where the Lord met and spoke with the priest. Be prepared to listen. Have your paper and pen ready and write down what God impresses upon your mind. Check it against the scriptures, seek wise counsel and be prepared to act. Exodus 25:22 There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites. May God bless you with spiritual refreshing and renewal in your daily time with Him. May you be encouraged and strengthen for the work to which you have been called. May God s name be exalted! All scriptures are quoted from the New International version (NIV) and the New Living Translation (NLT).