The Tabernacle: A Lesson On Salvation

Bible Reading: Exodus 38:15-31

Key Verse: Verses 15,18,31 – “And for the other side of the court gate, on this hand and that hand, were hangings of fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three.  And the hanging for the gate of the court was needlework, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen: and twenty cubits was the length, and the height in the breadth was five cubits, answerable to the hangings of the court.  And the sockets of the court round about, and the sockets of the court gate, and all the pins of the tabernacle, and all the pins of the court round about.”

Key Words: court gate, gate of the court, court gate

The Tabernacle had only one gate or one entrance way, which is a picture of salvation …only one way.

Jesus said, “I am the way” (John 14:6).

“Enter ye in at the strait gate” (Matthew 7:13a).

“Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:14).

I was in Washington, DC, on September 11, 2001.  As a matter of fact, I was in the White House on the morning of September 11, 2001.  A day that those of us who were alive and old enough to recount that day, will always remember.

I was stranded in DC…no planes were going out, no trains were traveling…so I heard an advertisement on television that Greyhound busses were all still running.  So I caught a taxi, went to the bus depot, and purchased my ticket to Birmingham.  It was literally the only way to get to where I wanted to go. 

So it is with Heaven!  If you want to go there, there is only One Way, and Jesus is the Way, not our baptism, good works, or our church membership.  One gate leads to Heaven and Jesus is the Way.  Are you going through the Gate to Heaven?  If so, it must be through Him.

 

                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do: 

✞Ask Jesus to save you.  He is the Only Gate that leads to Heaven.

The Tabernacle: A Lesson About Christ

Bible Reading: Exodus 36:8-13

Key Verse: Verse 8- “And every wise hearted man among them that wrought the work of the tabernacle  ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work made he them.”
 

Key Words: blue, and purple, and scarlet

The three colors, blue, purple, and scarlet, represent different aspects in regard to Christ.  Blue is the color of heaven and speaks of Christ’s divinity.  The Heavenly One veiled in flesh living among men (John 1:1, 14, 18P).  Purple is the color of royalty and speaks of Christ’s kingly power (I Timothy 6:15).  Scarlet is the color of blood and speaks of Christ’s sacrifice (I Peter 1:19-20).

Christ is our sufficiency.  He is our Heavenly One, our Kingly One, and our Savior, all of which can be seen through the color of the Tabernacle.

Respirators are machines that do the breathing for you. If you are laid down on the hospital bed and there is a problem with your breathing, they put you on a respirator.  If you insist on breathing on your own, the respirator does you no good.  There’s only one thing you can do with the respirator – cooperate.  Now, you are involved because it’s your lungs  going up and down.   It’s your mouth and nose that are taking in and expelling the oxygen.  The two of you are working together but the respirator is doing the work; you are just cooperating with it rather than resisting it.  Christ wants to express His life through you and be your respirator.  He does not want you being your own respirator because then you don’t need Him.   He doesn’t want to do it apart from you, so you must cooperate.  You must yield yourself to the person of Christ.  We have too many Christians today hyperventilating in the spiritual life.

 

                                                                                    Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞Understand that Christ is your sufficiency.

The Tabernacle: Another Lesson In Giving

Bible Reading: Deuteronomy 16:9-17

Key Verse: Verse 17 - “Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.”

Key Words:  Every man shall give

Giving is a vital part in our worship of God.  I am convinced that there is no genuine worship of God when one fails to give.

One of the first things that Ezra taught the people after the rebuilding of the temple was the importance of giving.  (See Nehemiah 10:34-39.)

Dr. R. E. Neighbour was in the baptismal pool with a railway engineer.  The pastor was ready to proceed with the baptismal service.  "Wait!" whispered the engineer; "I forgot something.  I want to return to the robing room, and get my pocketbook and let you baptize it with me!"  Oh, that more of our pocketbooks were "baptized."  O, that more of God's children were taking with seriousness their financial responsibilities to God's work!

Let me close by giving you a “Rouseism”….where your “pleasure” is, there will be your treasure also.

 

                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞Truly believe that it is more blessed to give than to receive.

The Tabernacle- A Lesson In Disobedience

Bible Reading: Leviticus 10:1-7

Key Verse: Verse 2 – “And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

Key Words:  And they died before the Lord

This happy atmosphere was now saddened, however, by unexpected, serious sin on the part of Aaron’s two older sons, Nadab and Abihu.  They had just been highly honored by inclusion in Israel’s priesthood, but now offered what is called “strange fire” on the altar of incense.

Satan has blinded the eyes of many to the importance of obedience.  Adam and Eve failed to obey, and as a result, all men die.  Israel failed to obey and wandered in the wilderness for forty years, and here Nadab and Abihu disobey and are devoured.

Elisabeth Elliot, at Urbana 76, told of her brother Thomas Howard. Their mother let him play with paper bags she’d saved if he put them away afterwards.  One day she walked into the kitchen to find them strewn all over the floor.  Tom was out at the piano with his father singing hymns.  When confronted, he protested, “But Mom, I want to sing.”  His father stated, “It’s no good singing God’s praise if you’re disobedient.”

 May we truly understand the importance of genuine obedience to God.

                                                                                Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞Both obedience and disobedience pay.  From which “payroll” do you want to be paid?

The Tabernacle- A Lesson in Consecration

Bible Reading: Leviticus 9:1-24

Key Verse: Verse 13 - “And they presented the burnt offering unto him, with the pieces thereof, and the head: and he burnt them upon the altar.

Key Words: And they presented the burnt offering unto him

The inaugural day was most impressive.  Several offerings were presented to God, both for the priests and the people, before Aaron was escorted by Moses into the Tabernacle for general orientation.  When the two came out, miraculous fire appeared on the brazen altar, apparently consuming the offerings that were on the altar in an instant.  This was not the initial kindling of altar fire, however, as sometimes believed, for offerings had been made all during the prior week of priestly consecration.  This fire served more to climax the eight days of festivities, showing God’s approval, both of all that had been done and what would be done in days and years to come.

The Tabernacle teaches us a lesson in consecration.  We seldom use the word consecration anymore.  We use the word dedication.  They were dedicating to the Tabernacle of God.

I think of David Livingstone, the pioneer missionary to Africa, who walked over 29,000 miles.  His wife died early in their ministry and he faced stiff opposition from his Scottish brethren.  He ministered half blind.  His kind of perseverance spurs me on.  As I run, I remember the words in his diary:  “Send me anywhere, only go with me.  Lay any burden on me, only sustain me.  Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to Your service and to Your heart.” 

Now, there is consecration!  There is dedication!

 

                                                                                        Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞Remember, it doesn’t take great men to do great things, it just takes dedicated ones.

The Tabernacle- A Lesson In Service

Bible Reading: Exodus 40:17-19 and 34:38

Key Verse: Verse 17 - “And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up.”

Key Words: the tabernacle was reared up

Israel remained at Sinai for the construction of this Tabernacle.  Work began shortly after Moses returned from the mountain, which would have been about three months after the people’s first arrival at Sinai.  The date of completion is given as the first day of the first month in the second year (Exodus 40:17), which means about five and one-half months later.  On the day of completion, the cloud, which otherwise led the people, settled over the Tabernacle and the glory of God filled it (Exodus 40:34).

The Tabernacle teaches us a great lesson in our service for God.

During World War II, England needed to increase its production of coal.  Winston Churchill called together labor leaders to enlist their support.  At the end of his presentation, he asked them to picture in their minds a parade that he knew would be held in Piccadilly Circus after the war.

First, he said, would come the sailors who had kept the vital sea-lanes open.  Then would come the soldiers who had come home from Dunkirk and then gone on to defeat Rommel in Africa.  Then would come the pilots who had driven the Luftwaffe from the sky.

Last of all, he said, would come a long line of sweat-stained, soot-streaked men in miner's caps.  Someone would cry from the crowd, “And where were you during the critical days of our struggle?”  And from ten thousand throats would come the answer, “We were deep in the earth with our faces to the coal."

Not all the jobs in a church are prominent and glamorous.  But it is often the people with their "faces to the coal" who help the church accomplish its mission.  

 To those who serve in areas of the “unseen:” thank you and remember, God sees the “unseen.”

                                                                                   Dr. Mike Rouse 

What to do:  

✞Remember, there are no little ones in God’s service.

The Tabernacle- A Lesson on Free Will Offerings

Bible Reading: Exodus 35:4-29

Key Verse: Verse 22 - “And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered offered an offering of gold unto the LORD.”

Key Words: And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted

Freewill offerings of the people quickly provided ample building material, though the amount needed was large and of great value.

A mother wanted to teach her daughter a moral lesson.  She gave the little girl a quarter and a dollar for church.  "Put whichever one you want in the collection plate and keep the other for yourself," she told the girl.  When they were coming out of church, the mother asked her daughter which amount she had given.  "Well," said the little girl, "I was going to give the dollar, but just before the collection the man in the pulpit said that we should all be cheerful givers.  I knew I'd be a lot more cheerful if I gave the quarter, so I did."

Unfortunately, I am afraid a lot of adults feel the same way.  But the building and supplying of the Tabernacle reveals that there were those who had a willing heart.

 

                                                                                    Dr. Mike Rouse

What to do:  

✞Your giving reveals your heart.  Do you have a willing heart?