THE EARTHLY TABERNACLE. Hebrews 9:1-7.
Why do people feel discouraged and wonder why we are here? What is going to happen next? Why isn’t living for God what I had hoped it would be? Why doesn’t God make things easy instead of sometimes making them even harder? Why am I not happy?
The answer I am about to give might seem too simple, but as far as I can tell, you’re looking in the wrong place and in the wrong direction if any of those questions apply to you. We all tend to view things through our own preconceived notions of how life should be. We need to see things from God’s perspective, both within ourselves and around us. The book of Hebrews was written so that people whose “hands are hanging down, and their knees are getting weak,” would stop looking back, around, and down. Instead, they need to look ahead, focus on achievable goals, and look up.
Before our Lord Jesus Christ came into the world, people of faith in God couldn’t fully understand what He was like. They could tell from creation that He is very intelligent and powerful. They could see that He appreciated beauty and color. They could sense from their own consciences that He was serious about what was right and wrong. They could see from all the good things they had or that happened to them that God truly cares for people. But these things mainly reveal what God does. What is He like as a Person?
So, God gave instructions to Moses for the Israelites to build a tabernacle that would represent Him to them and that He could dwell inside with them, even though they couldn’t look at Him or they would die. That is sometimes called a sanctuary where holy things are done, and everything had to be exactly right. If they made everything perfect, then God would come and show them that He was with them. They built the tabernacle using the materials that God told them to use. It was 45 feet long, 15 feet wide, and 15 feet high. It had two rooms: one was 30 x 15, and the other was 15 x 15. There was a large cloth door that separated those rooms, running from the top to the bottom of the tabernacle, which is sometimes called “the tent of meeting.”
There was an outside door from top to bottom that opened into the big room. Inside that big room was a gold candlestick with seven lamps burning constantly to light the space. There were no windows. The light from the lamps reminded them of the Light of the Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus, who illuminates the entire dark world with His truth. There was a table covered with gold that always held twelve loaves of bread, symbolizing that God knows each of them and will care for them with spiritual nourishment. This kind of food was for their souls, but He also provided physical sustenance for their bodies with a special type of bread called manna, which appeared early every morning while it was still dark.
Right at the back of that large room was a veil or door, and in front of it was a low, square altar covered in gold, with a special kind of incense burning constantly, so it always smelled good inside. That was to remind them that when we enjoy fellowship and friendship with God, it is sweet to God and to those who love Him.
Behind that second veil or door was the mercy seat, like a lid, made of solid gold and shaped to look like two angels looking down on a gold box. That was called “the ark.” Inside the ark were two stone tablets engraved with the Ten Commandments. There was also a gold container of that special food called manna, which had everything needed to keep them healthy and strong. A wooden rod used by the high priest for special purposes was also in the ark to remind them that God can make dead things live.
So, that was the Sanctuary, the Service, and the Structure. Then there were Servants, called priests. Their job was to represent the people to God and God to the people. They had to do everything exactly as God commanded, or they would face death on the job. Even though almost no one ever saw any of these things, they knew they were there because a supernatural cloud covered the tabernacle during the day. A supernatural fire covered it at night. That reassured them that, even though they never saw all of these things or saw God, He was there, right with them. The sins they committed kept them from coming into His presence, just as they do for us.
The writer of Hebrews aimed to show those who had been practicing Judaism why they should move away from what was merely a shadow of the true tabernacle and not try to recreate what they had left behind in their meeting places. The tabernacle system of worship was impressive, beautiful, and glorious because God had designed it and dwelt there. However, it had limitations.
Only the high priest was allowed to enter the Holiest of all, and only once a year for a brief period. Ordinary priests and the people they served were never permitted to enter the place where God dwelt, even though they served God and His people. God intentionally designed the tabernacle with two distinct sections to send a clear message: access to God's presence was not open to sinners, nor would it be while the tabernacle remained standing as a shadow of things to come.
The Israelites were forgiven when they repented of their sins and brought their sacrifices to the altar. But animal sacrifices were only token payments, even though they were real and meaningful. Their forgiveness covered sins committed up to that point, but their consciences were never “made perfect” until the actual price of their sins was paid by Christ's sacrifice on the cross at Calvary.
Many professing Christians today still believe that by “doing the best they can,” “regularly confessing their sins” (sometimes to a spiritual advisor), praying for forgiveness again and again, and other personal acts, is the best they can hope for. Like one minister said to a dying man, “Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, and take what comes.” In the eyes of some people, it is presumptuous to say that our sins—past, present, and future—have been legally paid for by our Lord Jesus Christ, who “bore our sins in His own body on the tree.” What really happens when we repent of our sins to God and put our personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior is that we are forgiven of all our sins, given eternal life, sealed by the Holy Spirit, and accepted by God through our Lord and Savior, who is our Great High Priest.
Those who think they must earn acceptance through their actions are in the same position as the Jews who had to come repeatedly to the altar with temporary sacrifices. Those who claim to be Christians but have not accepted the finished work of Christ have not yet “Laid hold on eternal life.” When a person repents and believes the Gospel, they are freed from the fear and bondage of sin and self.
The tabernacle taught two truths that seem to conflict until we consider what God has done and tells us. God dwelt with man, but man could not enter the presence of God. Priests could serve in the Holy Place, but the veil of separation was necessary because they were still sinful people, and the holiness of God cannot overlook sin. God’s love called people near, but God’s holiness kept them from coming too close. The writer of the Hebrew epistle wants believers to realize that nearness to God has been possible only through the final sacrifice Christ made, and that our acceptance of Him as our Savior and Lord makes us acceptable to God because of His righteousness, which has been imputed to us. That had only been symbolized by the tabernacle and its service.
The first covenant featured the best type of Christ in the Tabernacle, where God dwelt with His people. The appointed priesthood conducted divine service. The rules for worship and the different kinds of offerings were clear and took place at the designated location. In the sanctuary, there were symbols of spiritual truths that signified God's fellowship with His people. The lampstand that illuminated the sanctuary reminded the priests of the holiness of the testimony they upheld. The table of showbread symbolized the people of Israel and their unity as a community dedicated to God. The altar of incense illustrated the importance of worshiping God and the need for His people to remain constantly aware of His presence. Inside the Holiest, there was the ark, the mercy seat, the tablets of stone inscribed with the law, a jar of manna, and Aaron's rod—all kept within the ark. The Aaronic priesthood served as a shadow of the reality that was to come. All of it was temporary. Even the earthly high priest could enter only once a year with blood for atonement for himself, and again with blood for the people.