The Tabernacle: The Blasphemed Tabernacle

Bible Reading:  Revelation 13:1-9

Key Verse: Verse 6 - “And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.”

Key Words: to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle

 The verses in our Bible reading speak, I believe, of a revived Roman empire.  We say revived, but in actuality, Rome has never been destroyed completely.  Rome’s political system has continued to “smolder” from underneath the ruins of the old Roman empire.  The religious system of Rome, though weakened, has continued to play an active role in world politics.

The anti-Christ religious headquarters will be in Rome. I believe it will be the Catholic Church, or a form of the Catholic Church.  It’s this religious system headed by the anti-Christ that will blaspheme God and His tabernacle.

I believe our world is set up for the coming of the anti-Christ.

Our world is fast becoming a madhouse and the inmates are trying to run the asylum.  It is a strange time when the patients are writing the prescriptions, the students are threatening to run the schools, the children to manage the homes, and church members not the Holy Spirit to direct the churches.  Such lawlessness always brings a dictator and the last of the line will be the anti-Christ, now in the offing awaiting his cue. 

Amen and amen!!

                                                                                            Dr. Mike Rouse  

What to do:

      ✞Make your calling and election sure.  God has elected you to be saved, but you, with your free will, must elect Him as your Savior.

The Tabernacle: A Feast

Bible Reading:  John 7:1-9

Key Verse: Verse 2 - “Now the Jews' feast of tabernacles was at hand.”

Key Words: feast of tabernacles

         The Feast of Tabernacles is a fall festival celebrating the abundance of God’s blessings as they would gather their fall crops.

It is also a memorial of Israel’s exodus from Egypt.  It represents the protection and promises of God’s provision.

“Back in the depression days of the early '30s, my husband pastored a small country church.  We then had three little children.  Many times our weekly income was less than $10.  One day, we found ourselves out of bread and with only some rancid bacon grease for shortening.  I used it, however, in making hot biscuits and we managed to eat some of them for lunch.  Later, as we put the remaining biscuits on the supper table, our five-year-old daughter prayed very earnestly, ‘Dear Jesus, help us to eat these biscuits or else send us some better ones.  Amen!’  Later that evening, the doorbell rang.  There, at the door, stood a member of our church who had a bakery route.  Before we could tell him our story he began unloading his large bakery basket with all kinds of tempting sweet rolls, buns, biscuits, besides dark and white bread.  ‘You know,’ he said rather apologetically, ‘I was tired tonight and seven miles out here in the pouring rain seemed so far.  I was tempted to wait until tomorrow evening and bring these bakery things on my way to prayer meeting as I usually do.’  Then he added, ‘But I was strongly constrained to come tonight!  Hope you can use these things!”

~  Anne S. Alexander

All blessings are ultimately from the Lord!

                                                                            Dr. Mike Rouse 

What to do:

      ✞Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.

 

The Tabernacle: Not Three But One

Bible Reading: Matthew 17:1-8

Key Verse: Verse 4 - “Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou    wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.”

 Key Words: let us make here three tabernacles

         Outside of God, the Father, and God, the Son, five people are here on the Mount of Transfiguration: Moses, who represents the Law, Elijah, who represents the Prophets, and Peter, James, and John who represented the New Testament.

When Peter said “let us make three tabernacles” he put Moses and Elijah on the same level with Jesus, which reminds me of Matthew 4:10, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.”

Today, many believers are confused about worship.  They mistakenly call emotionalism worship.  The word worship mean to fall down prostrate before God.

Several years ago we had a Dachshund dog.  That dog loved both my middle daughter and me.  Often the two of us (my daughter and I) would sit on the back porch and Fritz (the dog) would get so excited, he would run around the back yard a couple of times and then get directly in front of us and begin to crawl on his belly toward us.  Finally arriving at our feet, he would begin to lick us.  As strange as it may sound, that’s a picture of true worship.  Worship is not the running around the back yard in excitement.  The worship is when he bowed down before us.

We worship only God Jehovah and Jesus Christ.  We do not worship man!  Today, let me encourage you to worship God and Him only.

                                                                              Dr. Mike Rouse 

What to do:

            ✞ Worship God!

The Tabernacle: A Place of Safety

Bible Reading: Isaiah 4

Key Verse: Verse 6 – “And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a  place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.”

Key Words: And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the day time

The Tabernacle (tent) was a place of safety from heat and storms which raged through the Middle East.  The tent was not only needed but a necessity.

The “spiritual” Tabernacle was a place of spiritual safety where people would make sacrifices to God and confess their sin and cry out to God for His provision and protection.

In much the same way today, our Biblical churches are a place for protection and spiritual provision.

The following statistics reveal church is the safest place of all.

Automobiles account for 20 percent of all fatal accidents, while 17 percent of fatalities occur at home.  Fourteen percent happen to pedestrians on streets and sidewalks.  Travel by air, rail, or water causes 16 percent of the deaths.  Yet, of all reported deaths, only .001 percent occur in worship services.

Moral:  You are safer in church than any other place.  Think about it!

                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:

            ✞ For self-preservation, go to church.

The Tabernacle: A Flourishing Tabernacle

Bible Reading: Proverbs 14:1-11

Key Verse: Verse 11 – “The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall   flourish.”

Key Words: but the tabernacle of the people shall flourish

It’s interesting to me that the wicked have a house but the upright have a tabernacle.

You see, the tabernacle is the dwelling place of God.  God doesn’t dwell in the house of the “wicked,” only in the tabernacle of the upright.

Some years ago we were selling our house in order to move closer to the church.  As you know, when you are selling your house people come through quite often.  I remember on one occasion on a Saturday afternoon the realtor had scheduled a showing of the house.  The prospective couple arrived at the appointed time and began their tour of looking in every room, including all closets and corners.  After about forty-five minutes or so they came in and talked with my wife and me about the house: why we were selling and if there were any problems with the house or the neighbors.

As they were leaving the lady turned and looked at my wife and me and gave one of the greatest compliments when she said, “The greatest thing about your home is that God dwells here.  You can tell that God dwells here.”  And that’s what makes the house a home…God dwells there.

                                                                                                    Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

      ✞Give up on you and rely solely upon the Lord.

The Tabernacle: David's Tabernacle

Bible Reading: Psalm 15

Key Verse: Verse 1 – “LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?”

Key Words: who shall abide in thy tabernacle?

David also asked “who shall dwell in thy holy hill?”

As you read Psalm 15, it almost sounds as if our salvation (our dwelling) depends on our good works, but this is not about our salvation, but about our dwelling (our fellowship) with God, a close relationship with God.

The answer is found in verses 2 – 5.  Verse 2: those who walk uprightly and speak the truth in his heart.  Verse 3: those who do not backbite, nor those who do evil to his neighbor, nor take up a reproach against his neighbor.  Verse 4: those who fear the Lord.  Verse 5: those who aid people, not use people.

It appears to be the more Christ-like that we treat others, the closer our relationship to God.

Mamie Adams always went to a branch post office in her town because the postal employees there were friendly.  She went there to buy stamps just before Christmas one year and the lines were particularly long.  Someone pointed out that there was no need to wait in line because there was a stamp machine in the lobby.  “I know,” said Mamie, “but the machine won’t ask me about my arthritis.” 

                                                                                    Dr, Mike Rouse 

What to do:

      ✞Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

The Tabernacle: A Place of Witness

 Bible Reading:  Numbers 17:1-9

Key Verse: Verse 7 – “And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness.”

Key Words: in the tabernacle of witness

 In the Tabernacle of Witness the people could “witness” the power of God.

J. Vernon McGee says:  Now God confirms his priesthood in a most remarkable manner. God had the prince of each of the twelve tribes bring a rod.  These rods were picked up out on the desert—probably whittled out and decorated by carvings—but they were dead wood.  Then these rods were placed before the Lord in the tabernacle.  Aaron’s rod was there among the others, and his rod was as dead as all the others.  But what happened?

“And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds” (Numbers 17:8).

This is life out of death.  Aaron’s priesthood was confirmed by resurrection.  Aaron’s rod brought forth buds, and blossoms, and fruit!  Life out of death.  Resurrection.  In the springtime the blooming of plants which have been dormant all winter does not illustrate life out of death.  Neither does the egg.  There is a germ of life in the egg.  The perfect illustration of the resurrection of Christ is Aaron’s rod that budded.

The priesthood of the Lord Jesus Christ rests upon the fact of His resurrection.  We are told very frankly in the seventh chapter of Hebrews that if He were here on earth, He would not be a priest.  He did not come from the priestly tribe of Levi. His resurrection made Him a priest.  Then it tells us that not every man becomes a priest.  “And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron” (Hebrews 5:4).   Aaron was God’s called priest.  The evidence was the budded rod—the resurrection.

The Lord Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and He became our High Priest.  He has an unchangeable priesthood and so “… he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).

Amen & amen!!

                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse 

What to do:

 Remember that we still serve the same God now that the witnesses of Numbers 17:7 worshipped.