Exodus | Chapter 25

Exodus 25:1-9 – “That I Might Dwell Among Them (Part A)”

I.) Intro.

As we start this section, let me rehash a bit. God had been faithful to His promise and delivered the nation from bondage. Furthermore, He adopted them as His special treasure. Now He is desiring to fulfill the rest of His promise to them that was spoken to Moses back in chapter 6:8, “And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

If you have just joined us this morning, it is kind of like coming into a movie halfway through it. The story is intriguing, but who are all these characters and why are they doing what they are doing?

The final 16 chapters of Exodus are focused around building the sanctuary. The next seven chapters (25-31) deal with the intricate details of this building—everything from the building itself to the garments the priests were to wear. Then the next six chapters (32-37) deal with the actual construction. Yet, unless you are into construction stuff, most of this is like reading someone else’s blueprints. In fact, many commentaries skip this section altogether. Now, as we consider this section, it ought to pique our interest. Why? Well, because God obviously has spent a great deal of time in having Moses record this for us. Immediately two questions come to my mind that I want answers for:

  1. Why is the sanctuary so important that 16 chapters are dedicated to the details of its building? If you will, “Why a building?”
  2. Is there any significance to all the intricate details of the construction of the sanctuary in my life? Or again, “What does it matter what the building looks like?”

1.) Why a building?

It really is quite simple; in fact, we don’t have to do very much searching as God Himself tells us the reason for the sanctuary in verse 8: “That I may dwell among them.” In chapter 29:45, God connects it this way when He says, “I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God.” So? Take this verse and consider it in light of His nature, and you will see how radical this really is. You see, God is absolutely 100% holy and pure. In 1 Timothy 6:16, we are told that God “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see.” This being the nature of God and we being sinners, it is quite amazing that He desires to dwell among us. He is holy and powerful and yet desires to dwell among them, love and care for them!

What this should produce in them, as well as us, is twofold:

  1. First, because of who He is in nature, we ought to desire to worship Him. You only worship that which is greater than yourself. God is perfect and thus ought to hold the sole place of worship and honor in our lives.
  2. Second, because He desires to make Himself known to us by loving and caring for us, He ought to be loved for His love towards us.

God redeems us in order that He may have a relationship with us. That relationship must have both of these components from our perspective: worship and love. The idea of “dwelling” with someone brings to mind intimacy. When I asked Donna to marry me, I was asking her to dwell with me, or literally take up her “permanent residence” with me, in which we would become one! The fact that the sanctuary was to be a portable structure tells us that God wants to be everywhere that they are. Is that not cool? God wants to walk everywhere I walk; in light of the fact that He is holy, this means that I should order my steps to be where He will go.

In answer to the first question, it is important to realize that God does not dwell in a building. He never said that He was going to live in the sanctuary; instead, He said He would dwell between the cherubim on the mercy seat. Solomon expressed it this way in 1 Kings 8:27: “Will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!” You get it? The sanctuary was not to be for God; it was for them! It was to be built specifically to meet the limitations they had in the relationship. It was a place where they could be with God and He could be with them. It was to be a place where worship and love could be expressed towards God, or if you will, a place for His glory to dwell and His children to experience His love.

So how does that relate to you and me? Well, from the standpoint of a building, we realize that God will not live in the structure that we are building. No, we are the temples of God and He dwells in us. So, why build a building? Well, there is no reason as it pertains to God—He does not require a building—but from our position, we do. There is a Calvary Chapel on the North Shore of Maui that meets outside in a park right on the beach every week, and I suppose that if we had great weather like they do, we could do the same. The building is not for God to live in; no, it’s a place where we can comfortably worship and love Him together! Or, if you will, it is there to facilitate service towards God, service towards each other, and service towards our community! Home is not a place; it’s the Lord Himself. Yet, with that said, for all of us to get together to worship and love Him, we need to have a place to accommodate us.

2.) What does it matter what the building looks like?

It is important to realize that all that Moses records about the details of the sanctuary came directly from God. Moses is further told in verse 40 that he is to “See to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.” As you read Revelation, John describes in vivid detail the objects that are actually in heaven, and they are the real things that Moses saw and duplicated. So? Well, we can read in Hebrews 8:5 that the earthly sanctuary “serves as the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle.” Furthermore, in Hebrews 9:11, we are told that “Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.” Then, in verse 24, we are told that “For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” It is apparent from the above verses that the earthly sanctuary was a copy of the heavenly one and that the true sanctuary is not made with hands and is not of this creation. Yeh, so? Well, I believe that as we look at the sanctuary, you will see Jesus. In fact, we are told in John that Jesus was the “Word made flesh and dwelt (tabernacled) among us, and we beheld His glory.” Jesus is the sanctuary; it is because of Him that we have fellowship with the Father. It is in Jesus, we are told in Colossians 2:9, that “dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Jesus said, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father.”

II.) Vs. 1-9 Where God Guides, He Provides

Vs. 1-2: Now that we have answered these two questions, another one comes to mind:

“How are they going to pay for this sanctuary?”

Vs. 2 answers this: they were to bring in an offering. Several things of note here:

  1. Vs. 2a: “Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering”: God instructs an offering, not for a building, but to Him! They were not giving to a specific need; they were to give to God as an act of worship. If we are to be like God in character, then we are to give like He does. God gives willingly of Himself to us, so He requires the same.
  2. Vs. 2b: “From everyone who gives it willingly with his heart you shall take My offering.” 2 Corinthians 9:7 tells us that “God loves a cheerful giver.” So, the people were to give not out of constraint or arm-twisting but rather because God had given them a willing heart.

So, with that said, as we embark on our own building project, we have been very careful to just speak of the opportunity and not twist your arms. I have had some interesting comments concerning this project. One person said, “Well, God will provide!” which I totally agree with. Yet, it appeared to that person that they had no part to play in that at all. God can truly use any means He wants to provide for the work He wants, and we have already seen the truth of this in our own building project. But most often, He uses the willing hearts of His people to support the work He has led them into. Clearly, God was providing, but He was doing so from that which He had given the nation through the spoils of Egypt as they left. What is at issue for all of us is the motivation of the heart in giving, and here we are told that it was:

  1. To be to God, not a need.
  2. To be from a heart that recognizes that all we have comes from Him. David recognized this in 1 Chronicles 29:16 when he said, “O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have prepared to build You a house for Your holy name is from Your hand, and is all Your own.”

So, this speaks to your motivation in giving and to whom they were giving. The offering did not belong to Moses or the elders; it belonged to God and it was for them. There was no mandatory amount demanded from each person; they were to give as their hearts were moved. Now, what is amazing to me is to read ahead and see the heart of the nation here in Exodus 36: “And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning. Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, and they spoke to Moses, saying, ‘The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do.’ So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, ‘Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.’ And the people were restrained from bringing, for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done; indeed too much.” Did you get that? Moses had to tell them to stop giving because they had given way too much! Man, does that speak of a right-on heart.

Folks, let me say this real plain here: if you cannot give to the Lord with a willing heart, keep your money. Yet, if you cannot give with a willing heart, then you have a heart problem.

God provided the wealth, and they were moved by Him to give back to Him the things necessary to build the sanctuary.

Vs. 3-6

There were several different kinds of material that were to be brought in by willing hearts:

  1. Precious metals: Gold, silver, and bronze. It has been estimated that more than a ton of gold was used and over three tons of silver. We are told in Exodus 30 that Moses collected ½ a shekel from every man of military age, which was 20 years old. All of that was used in a tabernacle that was only 150 feet long by 75 feet wide. Most of the precious metals were used in the holy place, which was only 45 feet by 15 feet.
  2. Fabrics: Blue, purple, and scarlet dyed cloth, as well as fine linen, which had 152 threads per inch.
  3. Animal skins: Rams’ skins, goat hair (which was like our felt), and sea cow skin.
  4. Woods: Acacia wood, which is harder than our oak and resistant to insects.
  5. Olive oil and spices: They collected these as well, and we are told that it was for use in the sanctuary.
  6. Precious stones: Now, this was for the breastplate that the priest would wear over his heart—12 stones that represented each of the 12 tribes.

Vs. 8-9

There were six special pieces of furniture that were associated with the tabernacle. And Moses was to make sure that he built them to the exact specifications that God had shown him. May I just say that I think this speaks of order and that there is a way that we are to express our love and worship towards the Lord. The purpose of this, again, is that of fellowshipping with His people.

This last Tuesday, we went up to take a look at Calvary Chapel Modesto’s building project—a six-million-dollar project. I came away thanking God for what He has done outside of our body in providing what He has. Yet, I realize that we have now come to the part of our project where it is time for all of us, according to a willing heart, to start giving whatever He has laid upon our hearts to give towards this. We have a much shorter distance to go than they did, but we are both going to make it by trusting Him and by responding with a willing heart.

Exodus 25:10-40 – “That I Might Dwell Among Them (Part B)”

Outline:

  1. Intro.
  2. Vs. 10-22 In the Presence of His Mercy
  3. Vs. 23-30 The Bread of Life
  4. Vs. 31-40 Shining Light on the Bread

Intro.

As we saw last week, it was the responsibility of the nation to build the sanctuary. They were to build it from willing hearts as an exact duplicate of the vision that Moses had received from the Lord. Now, the sanctuary was not to be the home of the Lord; rather, it was to be where His presence would dwell in such a way that man may receive more of Him and grow closer to the Lord. So, the sanctuary was for man, not for God; thus, it was intended to bring man closer to his God because of the limitation of man, namely his sin.

The future history of this structure is quite interesting. It started out mobile as God wanted them to realize that He was walking everywhere that they walked. After they entered the Promised Land, they set it up as a semi-permanent structure for 14 years at Gilgal, near where they had entered the land of promise. They then built a more permanent structure from stone at Shiloh, where it remained for 369 years. From there, after the ark was captured by the Philistines, the ark was brought back by the Israelites to Nob and then to Gibeon, where it remained for 57 years until a permanent temple was built on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

To read this section is to see the precise dimensions of the six pieces of furniture that God had for the sanctuary. Why study all of this? Well, it is apparent by reading Hebrews that these earthly items were duplicates of what is in heaven. And in heaven, all things reflect the nature and glory of God. So, it seems to me that by looking at these specific items, we should be able to see the Lord more clearly. This week, we are in the final process of our interior plans for our new church. The details of where to place things, how large to make the Sunday school rooms, and so on are nearing completion. The question we keep asking ourselves is, “Does what we construct facilitate worship and love?” To build something that does not facilitate our growth in Jesus is to waste time and money!

What about you personally? I mean, is your temple—that is, your body and life—all about facilitating your growth in Jesus? Or are there some hidden closets and stairs that lead to nowhere?

II.) Vs. 10-22 In the Presence of His Mercy

Vs. 10-21: Here we are told of the basic structure of the first piece of furniture in the sanctuary.

What is interesting to me is the order in which God gives the construction of these six pieces of furniture. Now, the sanctuary is 150 feet by 30 feet, and if you or I were to enter into it, you would first see the altar for the burnt offering and the laver. In the western end of the sanctuary, you would see a 15 feet by 45 feet structure called the Holy Place. As you would go inside, the first 30 feet of it, you would see two pieces of furniture: on the left, the golden lampstand, and on the right, the table of showbread. Directly in front, you would see the altar of incense, and behind it was a 4-inch-thick curtain or veil that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, which was 15 feet by 15 feet. As you went inside the Most Holy Place, you would see the Ark of the Covenant. So? Well, did you notice that God does not give the vision of the sanctuary from man’s entrance but from His? Yeh, so what? Well, think about that a moment, and I believe you will see that God does not want Israel or man to think of their relationship with Him in terms of their approaching Him, but rather in terms of Him approaching them!

Folks, it is not what we have done to get close to God; rather, it is what He has done to get close to us! In fact, in verse 22, God tells Moses, “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony…” Clearly, this Ark is the most important piece of furniture in the sanctuary, but what can we learn about it? Well, we are told the dimensions of the box were 3 feet 9 inches long, by 2 feet 3 inches wide, by 2 feet 3 inches high.

  1. It is made out of two things: “shittim wood,” which is a species of acacia wood, and gold.
    • Acacia wood: This species of acacia wood has some very interesting things about it. It is the only tree found in this desert area, which means that it can survive in extremely dry regions. Furthermore, it is known to be incorruptible by insects or rot. In fact, when this section of Scripture was first translated from Hebrew to Greek, it was translated as “incorruptible wood.” It also has on its branches very long, sharp thorns. It is believed that the crown of thorns placed upon Jesus’ head was woven from this tree. Lastly, the tree was known for its medicinal usage. At night, if you pierce the tree, sap oozes out of it and was used for its healing properties. Now, symbolically, it does not take much imagination to see that this wood speaks of Jesus’ humanity. An incorruptible man who took the thorns of our curse upon His brow was pierced at nightfall, and the sap of His blood has healed us from our sins.
    • Gold: It was overlaid with pure gold inside and out, as well as four rings, which were cast and placed on the top and bottom of the four corners so that it could be carried by attaching two poles also made out of acacia wood overlaid with gold. On top of the ark was a lid of pure gold (verses 17-21) the same length and dimensions as the ark. There were two cherubim facing each other carved on the lid and their wings reaching forward toward each other. It has been estimated that the mercy seat alone would have weighed about 750 pounds, with a value today of around 3½ million dollars. This speaks of Jesus’ deity, how He is fully God. His incorruptible humanity is overlaid with His divine nature. In fact, we read in Philippians 2:5-8 that Jesus, “being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”

Vs. 15, 22: We are told that they were to place the testimony, which is the Ten Commandments that God would write with His own finger, in the Ark. Later on, Moses would place a jar of manna, which showed God’s provision for the nation, as well as Aaron’s rod that budded, showing God’s fruitfulness, in the Ark as well.

We are told in verse 22 that from above the mercy seat between the two cherubim, God would speak to Moses and through Moses to the people. It was once a year that the High Priest would enter into the Holy of Holies where the Ark was kept and pour over the mercy seat the atoning blood from the sacrifice. It is as if God was looking down from between the cherubim, seeing the Ark and knowing man’s sin because of the breaking of those Ten Commandments, yet upon the mercy seat, blood has been poured to cover their sin, so that forgiveness is offered, which brought fellowship between God and man.

Now, in Romans 3:25 we read that “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” Jesus is our mercy seat. He is the place, as well as the means, by which we have redemption. Can you see that? This Ark where the presence of God dwelt represents Jesus. Folks, it is in Jesus that He will meet with us based upon His Son’s shed blood poured out upon His mercy seat. And the good news is that we don’t need to wait only once a year. No, we can now, according to Hebrews 10:19-20, “have boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh.”

III.) Vs. 23-30 The Bread of Life

Vs. 23-30: Here we are given the second piece of furniture, the table of showbread, or literally the “bread of faces” because the bread was to be eaten in the presence of God or before His face.

Now, before we look at the material and dimensions of this table, we need to spend a few moments looking at what this showbread was all about. Bread, of course, is absolutely necessary for man’s survival. In that it was to be eaten in the presence of God, it was to remind Israel that fellowship with God was just as necessary for them as was bread. The bread consisted of 12 loaves, which corresponded with the 12 tribes of Israel. They were arranged upon the table in two rows of six each, with room left above and below each loaf. On either side of each row was a place to burn frankincense. The showbreads were to be replaced each week on the Sabbath in a ceremony involving eight priests. As one priest slid out the bread, another slid his in so that the table was never bare. They then took the bread to a table and ate it.

We are given its dimensions as 36 inches long by 18 inches wide by 27 inches tall. It, like the Ark, was made of acacia wood overlaid with gold, which represents Jesus’ humanity and deity. It had a molding around the top of it to keep the bread from sliding off. It also had four rings of gold as well as acacia wood poles overlaid with gold so that it could be transported without touching the table. There were dishes in which the bread was to be brought in, as well as utensils in which the bread was to be made, all out of pure gold.

So what is it all about? Well, the Ark speaks of Jesus as the basis (shed blood of Jesus) of fellowship with God. The table of showbread speaks of the substance of fellowship, His body, as Hebrews 10:5 reminds us that, “when He (Jesus) came into the world, He said: ‘Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me.’”

Say what? Well, listen to what Jesus said in John chapter six, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”

Folks, we have fellowship with God because we have partaken of Jesus. How cool is it to realize that God desires us to have a meal with Him. Remember what Jesus said to the lukewarm church of Laodicea, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Man, what an invitation. Why not “taste and see that the LORD is good!”

IV.) Vs. 31-40 Shining Light on the Bread

Vs. 31-36: Now, you need to remember here that this Holy Place was completely covered, so the only light source would come from the lampstand. It was located across from the table of showbread so that its light shone right on the table with the bread. It was made out of pure gold without any overlay. Its appearance was like that of the typical menorah that you see in Israel or in most Jewish homes today: six branches—three on the left and three on the right—with one in the middle. The wicks came out of almond blossom bowls, all of which were of one piece. Now, the almond blossom was special in Israel, as it is always the first tree to blossom in the springtime. Springtime is always a sign of new birth. The oil that was placed in these bowls was pure olive oil. In the old town of Jerusalem, there is a recreation of this lampstand out of pure gold. It is around five feet tall, and they have it encased in specially protected glass.

So what does this speak of? Well, you will remember the words of Jesus in John chapter 8 and 9, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” So clearly here, Jesus is the golden lampstand. But there is something else we should look at concerning this lampstand.

In Revelation 4:5, we read John’s description of heaven, and it says that “seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.” So then, the lampstand in heaven is a sevenfold description of the Holy Spirit, which we are given in Isaiah 11:2 as it relates to the anointing that was on Jesus at His incarnation:

  1. The Spirit of the LORD
  2. The Spirit of wisdom
  3. Understanding
  4. The Spirit of counsel
  5. Might
  6. The Spirit of knowledge
  7. The fear of the LORD

In Zechariah 4:1-6, Zechariah sees a vision in which the priests don’t have to go get the olive oil for the lampstand, for the oil is coming directly from the olive trees themselves. The idea is that the Holy Spirit is the source of fuel for the light. Now, in Matthew 5:14, Jesus said that we “are the light of the world.” Then, in Revelation 1:20, we read that the “seven lampstands are the seven churches.” So clearly, the Holy Spirit in the church is illuminating a dark world.

But what is it illuminating it with, and what does it shine forth? Well, remember the picture here in the sanctuary? The lampstand was directly across from the table of showbread. Get it? Jesus said in John 15:26-27 that when the Holy Spirit, the “Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” Furthermore, in John 14:26, Jesus tells us that “the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.” The Holy Spirit is at work in you and I illuminating Jesus, the bread of life, with the very words that He spoke. Cool, huh?

Folks, none of this is by accident. God wanted everything to point to His Son. So as we close this chapter out, I pray that you will come over into the fellowship hall with me now so we can discuss our building and the way we can proclaim Jesus as the basis of fellowship, the source of fellowship, and that which we want to shine forth in His glorious power to a world that stands in darkness.