Pursue Intimacy with the Holy God

November 15, 2015

Vol. 15, No. 46

WORSHIP
SUGGESTED WORSHIP SONGS:
Rise and Sing, Endless Praise, In Jesus Name, Grace so Glorious

WELCOME
Pursuit of What? Everyone is pursuing something. What are you pursuing? Why?

WORD
EXODUS 25:8-9
8

Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. 9According to all that I am going to show you, as
the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct it.

God gave the Israelites the Ten Commandments; then

He gave them the Tabernacle. Tabernacle or miskan in
Hebrew means the dwelling place of God. It is also
referred to as the tent of meetings, the tent, the
house of the Lord and the sanctuary.
The Tabernacle was first mentioned in Exodus 25,
when the Lord gave everyone the privilege to give
from their hearts to its construction (vv. 1-2).

THE PURPOSE OF THE TABERNACLE

Humanitys biggest problem is sinfulness, rendering
law-breaking people not only unworthy, but also
unable to enter into the presence of the Holy God.
But God wanted to dwell together with the Israelites
so He provided the way to meet them through the
Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was for His chosen people
to pursue intimacy with Him.
The Tabernacle foreshadowed Gods provision for
mans salvation through Jesus. This Old Testament
picture was later revealed in the New Testament
(Hebrews 8:5). Because Gods revelation is
progressive (Hebrews 1:1-2), He did not reveal
Himself and His ways all at once. Many parts of the
Old Testament will not make sense until you connect
it with the New Testament.

THE TABERNACLE
The Tabernacle has an estimated value of P66 million
per square meter. God is worthy of our most precious
possessions, deserving the best. But if you do not
know God, you will never understand and care to give
your time, tithes or energy to be able to meet God
intimately.
As slaves, the Israelites could not have afforded the
materials needed to build the Tabernacle. But before

God asked them to construct it, He had already

provided what they needed, articles of gold, silver and
clothing from the Egyptians (Exodus 12:35-36).
The Tabernacle is from God, designed and specified
by Him. He gave Moses and His people a specific bill
of materials to build it including what furniture it
should contain for specific functions.
The Tabernacle has three sections: The Outer Court,
Holy Place and Holy of Holies. The Outer Court has
one Gate and two pieces of furniture: the Brazen Altar
and the Laver. The Holy Place has three: The
Lampstand, Showbread and Incense Altar.
The Holy of Holies is the Most Holy Place, where the
Ark of the Covenant is placed. Only the High Priest
can enter this compartment of the Tabernacle and
only once a year.

THE OUTER COURT

The Gate. Everything in the Tabernacle points to
Jesus. There is only one gate, only one door to
approach God. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the
Life (John 10:9; 14:6).
Truth is exclusive. Either Jesus told the truth or He
was a liar. The principle of logic is no truth claims can
contradict each other. Jesus proved His claims when
He died on the cross and rose again.
The Altar (Leviticus 4:22-26; 17:11). The Brazen
Altar is for animal sacrifice, animals without defect.
The animal is slayed as a sin offering, dying for the
persons sins as a substitute. The priest took some of
the blood of the animal and put it on the four horns
of the altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the
base of the altar as a place of worship.

WORD (contd)
The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). We cannot
pay by good works. Blood must be shed (Heb. 9:22),
but bulls and goats cannot really take away our sins
(Hebrews 10:4). The sacrifices in the Tabernacle were
a foreshadowing of Jesus, the perfect sacrifice who
takes away the sin of the world once and for all (John
1:29, Hebrews 10: 4, 9-10). Nothing can save us but
His blood (1 Peter 1:18-19).
The Laver (Basin) - Here the priest washed hands
and feet before entering the Holy Place. Even if we are
already saved by Jesus, positional sanctification, God
is still concerned about our life after we come to
Christ, practical sanctification. Jesus transforms us.
By His grace, he will give us a new heart to make us
progressively growing in the Lord.

INTIMACY WITH GOD IS WORSHIP

God told the Israelites how to approach Him through
the Tabernacle (Exodus 29:43-44). He consecrated
the Tent of Meeting and the Altar where He met
Moses face to face (Exodus 33:11). This is a beautiful
picture of intimacy with God.
Pursuing intimacy with God is our highest calling and
privilege. If you have God, you have everything. But if
you do not have God, you will end up with nothing. It
will be a life of regret at the end of your life.
God is pursuing you. What is keeping you from
meeting Him?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(Leaders: Please choose questions that are appropriate to the level of spiritual maturity of your members)
1. Tabernacles Blueprint. What do you observe about Gods instructions to Moses in Exodus 25:8-9?
2. Intimacy with God. What does intimacy of God mean to you? When are you most intimate with God?
3. In His Presence. Have you taken the first step to enter into Gods presence? What will you do to consistently
pursue Gods presence?

WORKS
ENTER HIS PRESENCE
This week, study the Tabernacle of God. Connect it to
the New Testament gospel of salvation. Write down
what you are learning.

WEEKLY PRAYER POINTS

I. Thanksgiving
Worship God for who He is, what He has done,
and what He will do in our lives
II. Country and the World
Upright and moral governance of Public
Servants and a God-centered Philippines
Repentance and Salvation
III. Church
That CCF Members would honor and love God
and make disciples
Elders, Pastors, Leaders, and Families
Ministries and Churches worldwide
IV. CCF Facilities
New Worship and Training Center
Prayer Mountain
V. Personal Concerns
Deeper intimate relationship with God
Righteous living
Salvation of family and friends