Gluten Free & God Seeking: Life-Study of Exodus

Showing posts with label Life-Study of Exodus. Show all posts

Sunday, January 1, 2017

Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus - The Golden Incense Altar

For many years on New Year's Day my husband and I like to write out our prayers for each of our children, and now that's spread to our grandchildren and other family members. This year all of them are home so we drafted most of our prayers earlier this week. Yesterday I started typing them out. If you've never done this, I would encourage you to take some time today or in the next week to reflect on the people in your life and write out a prayer from your heart. When I went back a few weeks ago and read what I typed up last January, I was surprised at how God had answered many of these prayers.

As I was working on these prayers, I realized it totally relates to the post I drafted at the end of December on the golden incense altar! In the book of Exodus it's the last piece of furniture that God revealed to Moses. In chapter 147 of the Life-Study of Exodus Witness Lee says that's because the golden incense altar is like the motor that causes the entire tabernacle to work. You're probably going huh right now, but keep reading and you'll see why in the excerpt below.

First, here's a verse that he puts in this chapter to show that the incense altar represents our prayers:

As you can see in this model, the incense altar stood next to

the curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.

And another Angel came and stood
at the altar, having a golden censer, and much incense was given to Him that He should add it to the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. Revelation 8:3

On pages 1590, 1594-1595 Witness Lee explains the importance of the incense altar in the tabernacle:

"With respect to the tabernacle, there are two altars: the altar of burnt offering in the outer court, the first altar, and the golden incense altar in the Holy Place, the second altar. In the sight of God, the priestly service begins at the incense altar, at the place where prayers are offered to God. I believe that it will be very helpful to our Christian life to dwell on the importance of the priestly service beginning at the incense altar....When we study the incense altar, we are studying the greatest matter in the universe....Furthermore, we need to realize that whenever we pray in the spirit, Christ is praying in our praying. The New Testament speaks of praying in the Lord's name. To pray in the name of the Lord Jesus is to pray in Christ. When we pray in this way, Christ is actually the one praying" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1982, Print).

I had a wow moment when I read that-- through the prayer we offer at the incense altar, all the furniture in the tabernacle begins to function. I learned from my reading that first people are brought to the altar of burnt offering to confess their sins and then they are motivated to come to the laver and receive the washing of regeneration [Titus 3:5].

After that our prayer at the incense altar motivates these newly saved ones to come to the showbread table [the word of God] and receive a daily supply of grace. Our further prayer then causes them to receive divine light when they read the word. Finally our prayer helps others come all the way into the Holy of Holies to be in God's presence.

I could see in my reading of these Life-Studies that the tabernacle is an incredible picture of our spiritual experience. My prayer is that the Lord would lead His people to pray more prayers in 2017 that help Him to carry out His will on this earth!

Why Prayer Matters

Calling on the Lord Makes a Difference!

Hearing God (From Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Vol. 18 - Tell Him)

Sunday, December 25, 2016

Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 27 & Exodus 30 - What's the Spiritual Meaning of the Burnt Offering Altar & The Laver

Although God's journey begins in the Holy of Holies, ours begins in the outer court at the burnt offering altar. I learned in reading chapter 104 of the Life-Study of Exodus that this altar represents the cross of Christ. It was made of acacia wood, which represents that Christ as a man died in our place. It was overlaid with bronze which signifies that God put on Christ His righteous judgment. I learned that this bronze came from the censers of the 250 men who rebelled against Moses in Numbers 16. And I also learned that bronze always represent God's judgment in the Bible.

After I read a few chapters, I realized the burnt offering altar is actually a lot like my BBQ. It was about 7 1/2 x 7 1/2 feet with a grating for roasting the sacrifices. The burnt offering altar is so large that all the furniture in the tabernacle can fit into it. Witness Lee says that this means that the cross of Christ is the basis for all of our spiritual experiences. And God had a special requirement for this altar that the fire on it would never go out.

On this altar God told Moses to offer burnt, sin, trespass, meal, and peace offerings. All of these offerings are explained in detail in the Life-Study of Leviticus, which I just started. So you'll hear more about that in January. I really liked the explanation of how God and man begin their journeys at the two ends of the tabernacle, and I read that on page 1205 of this chapter:

Does the record of the tabernacle in Exodus begin from God's end or from man's end? The record begins from God's end, for it begins with the ark. The description of the ark begins the divine record concerning the tabernacle. This indicates that the record begins from God and proceeds towards man. However, when man comes to the tabernacle, he does not begin from God's end. He begins at the altar, that is, he begins from man's end. Whenever a person comes to the tabernacle, the first thing he meets is the altar....When God came from His dwelling place to the earth and went to the cross, what was His main intention, His main goal? His main goal was to bring man to Himself. This means that God came out of the tabernacle to bring man into the tabernacle....We need to go to the showbread table, the lampstand, the incense altar, and eventually reach the ark. (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1982 Print).

The other piece of furniture in the outer court was the bronze laver. It stood near the entrance to the tabernacle. This was like a giant sink that the priests used for washing. Moses had the laver lined with all the mirrors of the serving women. Those mirrors made it easy for any dirt to be reflected so the priests could get thoroughly washed.

These excerpts that I chose out from chapter 156 on pages 1669, 1671, 1672,1674 show its function in both the Old Testament and our spiritual experience today:

Whenever the priests were to come to the altar to offer something to God or were to come into the tabernacle to serve, they first had to go to the laver to wash their hands. Unless the priests washed in the laver, there was no way for the tabernacle to operate....The Bible, however, speaks of two kinds of defilement, the defilement that comes from sin and the defilement that comes by the earthly touch. Whenever we are defiled by the earthly touch, we need to be washed by the water in the laver....Because the entire world is unclean, it is very easy for us to be defiled....According to the New Testament, the washing power of the laver is the life-giving Spirit. Titus 3:5 speaks of the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Spirit....The laver typifies the washing power of the life-giving Spirit brought forth by the death of Christ (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1982 Print).

You can see this same washing in Ephesians 5:26--That He might sanctify her [the church] cleansing her by the washing of the water in the word. In my Recovery Version of the New Testament the footnote there says that the Greek word for washing is actually laver. It's encouraging to know that whenever we come to God's word, there's water there that can wash us from all the defiling things of this world.

You can listen to excerpts of this life training and some outstanding commentary by listening to Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee on Exodus.

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Exodus:

Why Did God Use So Many Women in Exodus 1 & 2?
Taking a Closer Look at the Conflict Between God and Pharaoh in Exodus 5
What Does the Name Jehovah Mean in Exodus 6:2?
Why Did God Really Send the Manna in Exodus 6?
What is the Meaning of the Bitter Waters at Marah in Exodus 15:23?
How are the 10 Commandments Like God's Engagement Covenant in Exodus 20?
How Can You Keep the 10 Commandments?
Why Did the Israelites Build a Tabernacle in Exodus 25:8?
Taking Another Look at the Priesthood of the Believers in Exodus 19:6
Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 1 of 1
Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 2 of 2
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 - The Ark
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 - The Showbread Table & the Lampstand
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 27 & 30 - The Bronze Altar & Laver
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus - The Golden Incense Altar

Sunday, December 18, 2016

Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle - The Showbread Table & Lampstand in Exodus 25

The bread that was on the showbread table is a lot like the manna. In chapter 90 of the Life-Study of Exodus Witness Lee compares the bread of the Presence with the manna that the children of Israel ate for 40 years in the wilderness. He pointed out that although the manna was given to everyone in an open way, the bread on the showbread table was only available for the priests to eat inside the tabernacle.

While the manna gave food for the Israelites' daily supply for their journey, the bread on the showbread table strengthened the priests to serve God.

And you shall put upon the table bread of the Presence before Me continually. Exodus 25:30

Like the ark, the showbread table was made of acacia wood overlaid with gold. All the furniture except the lampstand had rings and poles so they could be carried on their journeys. It’s fascinating that the ark and the showbread table both have the same height. I learned that this means that our enjoyment of Christ must match the level of God’s testimony signified by the ark. In chapter 91 on pages 1062-1064, Witness Lee explains the spiritual significance of this showbread:

According to Leviticus 24:9 the bread of the Presence was the most holy of the people’s offerings to Jehovah by fire….This means that the bread of the Presence was God’s food. It was offered to God by His people to be His food. God, however, caused certain loaves to be spared, brought into the Holy Place, and arranged and displayed on the table. Eventually, the priests who served in the Holy Place ate of this bread.…The bread of the Presence on the table signifies a corporate feasting…To be sure, we can have some enjoyment of Christ when we are alone. But this enjoyment cannot compare with feasting with Christ corporately in God’s dwelling place (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1981, Print).

After revealing the showbread table God describes to Moses how to make the lampstand. It was made of pure gold and it had seven lamps. In chapter 92 Witness Lee says that this lampstand symbolizes Christ as the light of life. In John 8:12 it says, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men." He also shared how the showbread table and the lampstand connect to each other. After we enjoy Christ as our life supply, we receive spiritual sight. I know this is true because many times when I've read the Bible I've received light on situations in my life.

You can listen to excerpts of this life training and some outstanding commentary by listening to Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee on Exodus.

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Exodus:

Why Did God Use So Many Women in Exodus 1 & 2?
Taking a Closer Look at the Conflict Between God and Pharaoh in Exodus 5
What Does the Name Jehovah Mean in Exodus 6:2?
Why Did God Really Send the Manna in Exodus 6?
What is the Meaning of the Bitter Waters at Marah in Exodus 15:23?
How are the 10 Commandments Like God's Engagement Covenant in Exodus 20?
How Can You Keep the 10 Commandments?
Why Did the Israelites Build a Tabernacle in Exodus 25:8?
Taking Another Look at the Priesthood of the Believers in Exodus 19:6
Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 1 of 1
Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 2 of 2
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 - The Ark
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 - The Showbread Table & the Lampstand
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 27 & 30 - The Bronze Altar & Laver
Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus - The Golden Incense Altar

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Taking a Closer Look at the Tabernacle in Exodus 25 - The Ark

My friend's model of the
tabernacle

God wanted His dwelling place to be furnished with just four pieces of furniture. And they weren’t a couch, a recliner, a bed, a table and chairs either! Instead of furnishing God's house the way I would furnish my own, God had another idea. He wanted Moses to build an ark, a showbread table, a lampstand, and an incense altar.

When you read these descriptions you may be going huh, what does this all mean? I read some of the chapters in the Life-Study of Exodus for the first time when I was in my twenties. I've read this book three times, and each time I see something more of the spiritual meaning hidden in all the details of the tabernacle. You have got to get on Living Stream Ministry's website and read through these on your own--they are very enlightening and helpful.

The ark in the Holy of Holies is the first piece of furniture that God describes to Moses. This ark contained three things--a golden pot of manna, the tablets of the law, and Aaron's budding rod. I learned from my reading that the ark is the focus of the tabernacle and represents God's being incarnated in Christ, and as such, it is God's starting point on His journey to reach us (See John 1:14). What stands out to me here is that God

went through incarnation, a human life, death, and resurrection so that He could not only redeem us but also become the place where God fellowships with us. This fills my heart with awe and wonder. And God told Moses that in this verse:

And I will meet with You there, and will speak with you from above the propitiatory cover, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, all that I shall command you concerning the sons of Israel. Exodus 25:22

There are six chapters on the ark, and these excerpts in chapter 84 and on pages 985-986, 988-989 explain some of its important features:

This is the model that some of my friends
made for their Bible study.

The ark, the incense altar, the showbread table, and the lampstand are all types of Christ....As a type of Christ, the ark typifies Christ as the embodiment of God's testimony....God is in Christ. Apart from Christ we cannot meet God. Not only is God in Christ, but Christ Himself actually is God....In Romans 9:5 Paul says that Christ is God blessed forever....The only way for us to contact God and enjoy Him is through Christ and in Christ....Likewise, because the Holy of Holies is the inmost part of the tabernacle, it is the center of the tabernacle. It is the focus of the tabernacle and signifies the center of God's dwelling place....The cover of the ark is equal to the throne of grace in Hebrews 4:16. It was upon the cover of the ark, the throne of grace, that God dwelt....It was made of acacia wood, which signifies Christ's humanity, strong in character and high in standard....This pure gold signifies Christ's divinity. Other metals may rust or decay, but the substance of gold does not change. Hence, it signifies God who is eternally unchanging. Christ is one Person with two natures, a human nature and a divine nature. Because He is man as well as God, He can rightly be called a God-man (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1981, Print).

The propitiation cover of the ark was made of solid gold and it had two cherubim facing each other. Once a year on the day of atonement the high priest would come in and sprinkle blood seven times on the propitiation cover. I had a wow moment when I read that only in the redeeming Christ can fallen, sinful people come into God's presence. This really portrays God's loving heart towards us!!

Sunday, December 11, 2016

Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 2 of 2

God didn't leave anything concerning the tabernacle up to Moses to figure out. After God told him about the four layers that would make up the roof, He spoke about the boards of the tabernacle. The acacia wood that God wanted Moses to use for the walls and furniture grew in the desert.

Model of the tabernacle our friends

made for their Bible study on Exodus.

You may not have ever considered this before, but the believers actually are these boards! When I read chapter 97, I got a renewed appreciation for the fact that when I received the Lord's life, I automatically become a "board" in God's spiritual building. And he points out in these chapters that this account in Exodus shows us that our salvation is for God's dwelling place; it's not just something individualistic.

In chapter 98 Witness Lee goes over the details of these boards. Here's excerpts from pages 1142 to 1148:

"The individual boards of the tabernacle must become a corporate entity. This requires a uniting power to join them and make them one. The tenons [each board had 2] and the sockets [each board had 2] are for us individually, but the rings and the bars are for us to be joined together corporately....These sockets signify stability for standing....According to 38:27, each socket was a talent of silver, weighing approximately one hundred pounds....Because these sockets were made of silver signifying redemption, I believe that the two tenons refer to our faith....Today as the church, we are one entity, one building, for God's habitation, because we stand on the silver of Christ's redemptive work and are united by the gold of His divine Person" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Exodus. Living Stream Ministry: Anaheim, 1982, Print).

There's something else amazing that this chapter says about these boards. Because the size of each board is 1 1/2 cubits, it needs to have another board to make it a complete unit of 3 cubits. Even that has meaning, and you'll just have to click on the above link to read the entire chapter and find that out!

Take a closer look at this picture, and you'll see that every board also had three rings on it. When the walls were erected, bars were slid through them and this joined all the boards together. All the structural components of this tabernacle from the tenons that sunk into 100 pounds of silver to the rings that held the golden bars, everything was for stabilizing and unifying it from any attack.

Although the exterior of the tabernacle was pretty ugly looking with a porpoise skin draped over it, when you walked into the holy place, all around you was gold. I found out that this shows us that God’s house should just reflect His own divine nature. By connecting this to 2 Corinthians 3:18, I saw that this is how the gold in us spreads over our "boards." In the next post, I'll tell you the things about the ark that I learned about from my reading!!

You can listen to excerpts of this life training and some outstanding commentary by listening to Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee on Exodus.

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Exodus:

Why Did God Use So Many Women in Exodus 1 & 2?
Taking a Closer Look at the Conflict Between God and Pharaoh in Exodus 5
What Does the Name Jehovah Mean in Exodus 6:2?
Why Did God Really Send the Manna in Exodus 6?
What is the Meaning of the Bitter Waters at Marah in Exodus 15:23?
How are the 10 Commandments Like God's Engagement Covenant in Exodus 20?
How Can You Keep the 10 Commandments?
Why Did the Israelites Build a Tabernacle in Exodus 25:8?
Taking Another Look at the Priesthood of the Believers in Exodus 19:6
Seeing God's Spiritual Building in Exodus 26 - Part 1 of 1

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