Exodus: A Dwelling Place For God

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Chapters: Exodus 25-27
Message: Exodus: A Dwelling Place For God

Hello My Friend,

God is not some inanimate object you put upon a shelf to get wisdom from, He is not a picture on a wall you look at to get inspiration from, He is not an amulet you hold to get power from. He is God, Jehovah (Supreme Being), the great I Am (Permanent Being), Alpha (Beginning) and Omega (End). He is the omnipotent (possessing unlimited power), omnipresent (present in all places at the same time), and omniscience (the quality of knowing all things at once;) God who dwells in every believer. Why then do so many Christians lack the power of God in their lives? They have not made a dwelling place for Him. We cannot please God if we do not allow Him to dwell with us. “So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.” - Romans 8:8-11.

Dwell, to abide as a permanent resident. God dwells in all believers in the form of the Holy Spirit permanently once they receive Christ as our Saviour, but that does not mean they allow Him to be a permanent resident. Yes, God wants permanent residency in our lives to show Him in us, not just a room to sleep in once in a while. God does not force us to do anything, if we want Him to be a permanent resident, we must come to Him willingly. As God speaks to Moses on the mount, He gives to him instructions to build a tent, a place for Him to dwell among the people. “Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats' hair, And rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood, Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate. And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” - Exodus 25:2-8.

“of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.” Do you remember all the items the Egyptians gave to the Israelites as they were leaving? The silver, gold, linens, and wood? Well, God had a plan for all that stuff, and it was time to see if the people would willingly give up the gifts they received to make a dwelling place for God. Everything we possess comes from God, it is a gift, and if we willingly offer it to Him when He needs it, He will willingly bless us abundantly for doing so. “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” - Malachi 3:10.

It was important that Moses follow these instructions entirely, one missed loop could have done a lot of damage. And while we may not ever see the significance of knowing every loop and tache needed in building God's dwelling place, they are significant to God. Every part of the tabernacle, down to the very last pin, was given specific details on how it was to be assembled and attached in order to become one building, just like every person who accepts Christ as their Saviour becomes a part of the body of Christ. Now, God instructs Moses on what is needed to build the most holy place, the place where God would dwell would be hidden from common man with a veil.

“And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made: And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver. And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place. And thou shalt set the table without the vail, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table on the north side.” - Exodus 26:31-35.

“and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy.” There were two veils, this veil was a partition between the holy place and the most holy place, which not only was forbidden to enter, they could not even look at it. The other veil was for the outer door of the tabernacle, through this veil the priests went in every day to minister in the holy place. Jesus Christ removes the veil that separates God from man, once we receive Him as our Saviour, He cleanses us, makes us ready to minister to God, and allows us to be able to stand before Him. “And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished: But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ. But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart. Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away. Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” - 2 Corinthians 3:13-17.

The wonders of God’s presence through the Holy Spirit are known only to those who come inside the curtains of His grace, but we cannot know His amazing grace until we allow Him to dwell with us on a permanent basis. Now, God instructs Moses on the court yard, it was enclosed with hangings of the finest linen that used for tents.

“And for the gate of the court shall be an hanging of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework: and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four. All the pillars round about the court shall be filleted with silver; their hooks shall be of silver, and their sockets of brass. The length of the court shall be an hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and the height five cubits of fine twined linen, and their sockets of brass. All the vessels of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass. And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.” - Exodus 27:16-21.

“to cause the lamp to burn always.” The pure olive oil was to be burned before God daily, it signifies the gifts and graces of His Spirit, who dwells permanently in all believers of Christ. Christ is our Light, and without Him we will remain lost and in the dark, even if we are saved we can get lost in the dark. Today, it is the work of faithful, God dwelling Christians to keep the Light shining by preaching and teaching the Scriptures, which are a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” - John 1:1-4,9.

Today's Prayer: God, Thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus to become the sacrifice needed that would redeem me of my sins and bring me to know that You are always with me. It is comforting to know that You dwell in me, but I know there are times that I have gotten lost in my world of darkness. Lord, I want to be a living sacrifice for You, I want to offer myself to be used in anyway that You need me. Lead me and guide me, help me give You a permanent dwelling place in my life. Give me Your power to understand and know Your Word so that I can be the light people need to bring them to Your Son. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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