Our Old Testament reading is found in Exodus chapter 26. Speaking of the tabernacle, we're going to be looking at its construction or at least the instructions for the tabernacle itself tonight. We're considering tonight all of chapter 26. Hear now the word of God. Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with 10 curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns. You shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them. The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. All the curtains shall be the same size. Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. And you shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set. Likewise, you shall make loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set. The loops shall be opposite one another. And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to the other with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be a single whole. You shall also make curtains of goat's hair for a tent over the tabernacle. Eleven curtains shall you make. The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. The eleven curtains shall be the same size. You shall couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves. And the sixth curtain you shall double over at the front of the tent. You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set. You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the clasps together into the loops, and the couple the tent together, that it may be a single whole. And the part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. And the extra that remains in the length of the curtains, the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and that side, to cover it. And you shall make for the tent a covering of tanned ram skins and a covering of goat skins on top. You shall make upright frames for the tabernacle of acacia wood. Ten cubits shall be the length of a frame and a cubit and a half the breadth of each frame. There shall be two tenons in each frame for fitting together. So shall you do for all the frames of the tabernacle. You shall make the frames for the tabernacle, twenty frames for the south side, and forty bases of silver you shall make under the twenty frames, two bases under one frame for its two tenons, and two bases under the next frame for its two tenons. And for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, twenty frames, and there forty bases of silver, two bases under one frame, and two bases under the next frame. And for the rear of the tabernacle, westward, you shall make six frames, and you shall make two frames for corners of the tabernacle in the rear. They shall be separate beneath but joined at the top at the first ring. Thus shall it be with both of them. They shall form the two corners and there shall be eight frames with their bases of silver, 16 bases, two bases under one frame and two bases under another frame. You shall make bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one side of the tabernacle and five bars for the frames of the other side of the tabernacle. and five bars for the frames of the side of the tabernacle at the rear westward. The middle bar halfway up the frames shall run from one end to end. You shall overlay the frames with gold and shall make their rings of gold for holders for the bars and you shall overlay the bars with gold. Then you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it that you were shown on the mountain. And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twine linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. And you shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold on four bases of silver. And you shall hang the veil from the clasps and bring the ark of the testimony in there within the veil. And the veil shall separate for you the holy place from the most holy. You shall put the mercy seat on the ark of the testimony in the most holy place. And you shall set the table outside the veil and the lampstand on the south side of the tabernacle opposite the table. And you shall put the table on the north side. You shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twine linen embroidered with needlework. and you shall make for the screen five pillars of the Keshuv and overlay them with gold. Their hooks shall be of gold and you shall cast five bases of bronze for them. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Well, last week we looked at the instructions that were given for the golden lampstand that was to be put within the holy place If you remember, it was there to give light for the priests as they labored in God's presence and as they ate the bread of the presence each Sabbath day. So far, then, we've heard instructions from God concerning the contributions that are to be taken for the tabernacle's construction, as well as instructions about the Ark of the Covenant, the table of the presence, and then the lampstand Because of the heavenly origin of the tabernacle, each of the items within it was meant to teach Israel something about God, as well as point forward to Christ, the one who would come and fulfill all the types and shadows of the Old Testament. The Ark of the Covenant, you remember, was meant to teach the people that they were subject to God as their king. They were to be obedient to the law that he had set forth. He was their God and they were his people. And so they had to be obedient to the Ten Commandments and to the other laws that God had given. But in the ark itself, we saw a picture of God's mercy. He would sit enthroned above the cherubim and the blood of the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement would be placed upon the mercy seat, covering the sins of the people. Once we considered that image there, there within the Holy of Holies and the mercy seat, we considered that Christ is the final sacrifice for sins, as well as the one who perfectly keeps God's holy law. Likewise, the table pointed us to God's provision for his people, as well as the communion that they had with him. as the priests would partake of the bread of the presence, they did so in place of the people. And the lampstand pointed to the light and life that God would send in the person of Christ. It is He who gives light and life to His people, even as we read in John chapter 1. So we turn our attention this evening to the tabernacle itself, at least the instructions concerning the tabernacle. And while they might seem to us to be Tedious. We do well to remember that this is the very place where heaven and earth would come together. Remember in the book of Genesis, as God created the heavens and the earth, and then he separates them. That was to be a temporary separation. We know it was to be temporary because we read in the book of Revelation about the day when God will bring the heavens and the earth back together in the new creation. As a shadow in type, the tabernacle was the place then where heaven and earth would come together. Temporarily it was earth because the priests who ministered there, they were there as, but, but also it was located in the midst of the people that it was heaven because it was to be a replica of what Moses saw on Mount Sinai in God's presence. Remember from. Chapter 24, verses 9 and 10, what the people saw. We read there that Moses and Aaron and Nadab and Abihu and 70, the elders of Israel went up and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet, as it were, a pavement of Sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. They were looking at nothing less than a glimpse of heaven. Moreover, it would be the place where God would meet with his people and he would dwell there in their midst. This is why the tabernacle is so important in understanding God's presence with His people in the Old Testament. Consider the psalm that we just sang, Psalm 15. It begins, O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? The tent of which David sings as nothing less than the word that we find here in our text for tabernacle. The temple was not built. It would not be built until after David was gone until under Solomon's reign. David knew God's presence through this tent. Other Psalms also connect the tabernacle with God's presence, Psalm 61 in verse four says, Let me dwell in your tent forever. Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings. And Psalm 27, verses four to five, we read, One thing have I asked of the Lord that I will seek after. that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple, for he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble. He will conceal me under the cover of his tent. He will lift me high upon a rock. The tabernacle was central, quite literally central to Old Testament worship prior to the building of the temple. As we look at this chapter tonight, then we'll consider first the tabernacle as a structure. What do we learn from the description that's given here? I'm not going to go into all the details necessarily, but I want us to understand generally the picture that we get from the structure of the tabernacle. And then we'll consider the tabernacle as a shadow of a heavenly reality. And then third, as we have done with all the pieces of the furniture, so we will do the tabernacle itself. we'll consider it as a type of the promised Messiah. So first, the tabernacle as a structure. The first thing that we have described in verses 1-14 are the coverings for the tabernacle. These were quite ordinary in many ways. They are described here as layers of tent coverings. We see everything was designed then to protect the Holy of Holies. That is why there'll be layer after layer. Moreover, the materials to be used in the construction of the tents were the very materials commanded earlier as contributions from those whose hearts moved them. The first curtains are described in colors. We see them blue and purple and scarlet yarns were to be used. The effect of these enormous pieces was to make a complete covering over the tabernacle. And we see that they were to be sewn into multiple pieces. Undoubtedly, this was so they could be taken apart and moved. That's not to say that it would be easy to do so. We can imagine just from the description of them, they would have been very large pieces of material. Even being sewn together would have been incredibly heavy. And yet it could be done. The second curtain described beginning in verse seven, acted as a protection against the elements for the inner curtain of the tabernacle. Not only would it protect the fabric, but it would also conceal the brilliance of what was behind the fabric, the glory cloud of God's presence. It would be there in the Holy of Holies that God would descend and he would sit enthroned above the cherubim. And so his the glory cloud, his presence would need to be concealed. From the people, less God's, as we learn later, less God's wrath break out against them. The outermost coverings described in verse 14 would have covered not just the Holy of Holies in the holy place, but the entire tabernacle that included the outer court. In this way, all those who entered to worship the Lord would find protection, would find that they were covered under that tent, under the shadow of God. In verses 15 to 30, we find a description of the frame of the tabernacle, like the ark and the table that was to be made out of acacia wood. Like both of those items, it was also to be dipped in gold, although this time we find it wasn't pure gold, but just regular gold, but nevertheless dipped in gold. Verse 21, we see that the tabernacle itself was to have bases and not one or two, but dozens of bases. If you remember, when we look at the the ark of the covenant, we looked at how it had feet that kept the ark itself from being set upon the ground. seems to be the same purpose here for the entire tabernacle. It was not to touch the ground. Remember the words of the Lord to Moses at the burning bush in Exodus three, five, when he says, do not come near, take off your sandals off, take your sandals off your feet for the place in which you're standing is holy ground. Indeed, the the tabernacle would be a holy place. And so as God would descend there, it could not itself remain on the ground. It had to be lifted up off the ground. So God provides for those bases, the silver bases and the bronze bases to be used to keep it up. This reminds us of the fact that while the tabernacle was in many ways an ordinary tent. Think about that. The Israelites could look out from their tents, constructed from many of the same materials, and they could see the Lord's tent. And so it was in many ways ordinary. And yet quite a few of these descriptions tell us that it was ultimately extraordinary as it was the place where God's presence would dwell. This is seen perhaps most clearly in the closing verses there, 31 to 33, where we learn about the curtain of separation. It is this curtain of separation that that really becomes a symbol of God's separation from his people throughout all of scripture. And our translation is referred to as a veil picking up. There's this. You shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twine linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. And you shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold on four bases of silver. And you shall hang the veil from the clasps and they bring the arc of the testimony in there within the veil. The veil shall separate for you the most the holy place from the most holy. We learned from extra biblical texts that the veil was approximately four inches thick, woven from side to side, and it required upwards of 100 priests to move it from place to place. It would serve the purpose of separating God's holy presence, even from the priests who would minister in the holy place. Consider that the priests, who themselves would be ceremonially clean, would offer sacrifices for their own sins as they came into the presence of God to partake of that bread. They were still kept from the presence of God's glory cloud there in the Holy of Holies. They had to remain within the holy place. Once a year, one priest could enter into that holy place, could walk behind that veil, The final verses speak of the placement of the items that we've covered so far, as well as the instructions for what is called a screen that would serve as an entrance into the tent. That's the structure itself. Again, we're told quite a bit about the tabernacle, and we didn't look at all the details, the 50 clasps and all the rings and everything that goes into it. I don't believe that we're supposed to find spiritual significance in every single little detail. And yet, and yet it is significant in itself to give us an understanding of at least what this tabernacle would have looked like, although we're reminded again that we do not have enough information to reproduce it perfectly. That would require seeing it as Moses did. That brings us then to the tabernacle as a shadow. We see that the tabernacle was to be the shadow of something real in several verses. Looking back through our passage, we learn in the beginning and in the end, that there were to be cherubim woven into the cloth and the veil itself. The cherubim, remember, were to be on either side of the Ark of the Covenant, looking down away from God's presence, and yet he is said to be enthroned above the cherubim. Remember the purpose of the cherubim. When we look at the Ark of the Covenant, they are the angels throughout Scripture that are associated with guarding the presence of God. The first time we read of them is in Genesis three, when God stations the cherubim with a flaming sword at the entrance to the Garden of Eden to ensure that Adam and Eve cannot go back here in the tabernacle. They will continue to guard the presence of the Lord, guarding not only his presence there in the Ark of the Covenant, where God himself would sit, but even guarding God's presence signified there and being woven into the veil itself. Of course, that's not the only place the cherubim were to be. We read of them also on the tent that would surround the holy place itself. The presence of these angels or the images of the angels might be why we read in Hebrews 2 that the old covenant was declared or set in place by angels. Moreover, we see the colors that are used in the tabernacle. They emphasize that God would serve as king over his people, again pointing to the heavenly reality that we find here in the tabernacle. These were expensive and labor intensive colors, blue, purple and scarlet. They were the colors of royalty. They would take a great deal of money as well as time in order in order to produce these colors. Coming into the tabernacle then, and especially into the Holy of Holies was was going to be coming into God's throne room, coming into the very place where God would dwell. this relationship that God has with his people, he himself verifies in Isaiah 43, 15, where he says, I am the Lord, your Holy one, the creator of Israel, your king. Remember when the people of Israel demand a king from Samuel in the book of first Samuel, God himself is said to be their king, and yet they want an earthly king to sit over them. Everything in this tabernacle was a shadow of this reality. This is also shown in the way that God tells Moses in verse 30, then you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it, that you were shown on the mountain. This gives us an idea that Moses wasn't just given a glimpse of this tabernacle. He was given the plan, the design, the outline of this tabernacle. This is the third of four times that God tells Moses to be careful to construct it all according to what he saw. This will be confirmed in the New Testament by Stephen in his indictment against the Sanhedrin in Acts 7. And again, twice in the book of Hebrews, Hebrews 8, 5. Speaking of this tabernacle said they serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. And in 923, we read, thus, it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rights, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. The tabernacle was then a shadow of heaven. What this is driving home is the heavenly reality of these signs. It was not the case as some suppose that Moses was simply following the temples of the ancient near east in the constructing of this tabernacle. That is what some commentators will say, because there may be similarities between this tabernacle and other structures that we find therefore, but that's not the case. Nor was it the case that he simply made up what it was to look like because it represented the heavenly realities. It had to be made exactly the way that the Lord commanded. And this, if there's no other reason for it, this is why it deserves our attention. As we study through the book of Exodus, this is so important that when we will turn to the fulfillment of these instructions, the building of the tabernacle, we will read about those who constructed are filled with the Holy Spirit in their labors. Not only would Moses do according to all the instructions that God would give him, but even the laborers who would weave the tabernacle coverings and make the golden items, they too would be inspired by God's spirit. Another indication of the heavenly reality is the shape of the Holy of Holies itself. The tabernacle was in the shape of a rectangle and the same with the holy place. But the Holy of Holies wants to be, as we read, 15 by 15. by 15, forming a perfect cube. It's important because as we go on to read later in Scripture, we read about another cube, a heavenly cube. In Revelation 21, in verse 16, we read there of the New Jerusalem. The city lies four square, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. Its shape is the same as the Holy of Holies. in the tabernacle. We also see a shadow of heaven in the setup of the tabernacle. Verses 22 and 27 both indicate that the rear of the tabernacle is to be westward. This is notable for two reasons. First, ancient Near Eastern temples faced west so that the priests would enter going east toward the rising sun. This is because most of those false religions revolved around worshipping the sun, and they had rituals that were performed during sunrise. We can think most notably of Egypt, out of which Israel had come. When God had set them free, he triumphed over Ra, the sun god, by blotting out the sun. But the tabernacle was to face east, so that God's people would go west when they entered it. This is significant, not just because it's the complete opposite of the way all other ancient Near Eastern temples were set up, but it's also significant, I believe, biblically because of what we've already learned from Genesis. When Adam and Eve are expelled from the garden, Genesis 324, we read, he drove out the man and at the east of the garden of Eden, he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. They are forced to go east of Eden. In fact, we were told other times in the opening chapters of Genesis about various judgments against those who rebel and how they lead the people to go further east, perhaps think most memorably of Tain. East is symbolic then for going out of God's presence, away, if you will, from that which symbolized heaven. Here we see that God's people will go west as they enter into the tabernacle. going past the cherubim, the cherubim that stood guarding the entrance to to to to Eden there signified in the cherubim that guarded the entrance to God's presence. They would go west past the cherubim into God's presence where the tree of life stood signified in the lampstand. And we look at that last week and we noted how the lampstand itself was in the form of a tree. It is symbolic of Eden, which itself was God's throne room on earth. It was itself a replica, if you will, of heaven. It was where heaven met earth prior to the fall. As one commentator said, heaven is where God is. So when God came to live with his people, he brought heaven down with him. The tabernacle was a microcosm of the universe. Inside was heaven and outside was earth with God at the center of it all. The heart of the tabernacle was the Holy of Holies where God reigned in glory. The tabernacle in turn was at the heart of Israel, with all the 12 tribes surrounding it. And Israel was the heart of the world, the centerpiece in God's plan for saving the nations. The tabernacle was the most important place in the world, a little bit of heaven on earth. And while the tabernacle speaks to us of God's presence in the midst of his people, even as we read it, it speaks of something else equally significant separation. The description of the tabernacle leaves one lasting impression, that of the number of coverings and entrance curtains. Though Israel had had this tremendous privilege of the divine presence in their midst, there was to be no doubt that he is the holy one and that access to him was no easy matter. Even though his palace and his temple were right there at the center of the camp, there were so many things that separated God from his people. This is signified in everything about the tabernacle, from the base that the tabernacle itself would sit upon, keeping it from touching the ground, to the coverings, and the fact that only the Levites could enter into the holy place and the high priest into the holy of holies only once a year. Remember Psalm 15, who shall sojourn in your, in your presence. Oh God, who shall enter into your tent? Hear the rest of Psalm 15. He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart, who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend and whose eyes, a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the Lord, who swears to his own hurt and does not change who does not put out his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent, he who does these things shall never be moved. And that is why the tabernacle, as glorious as it is, is a structure in the midst of Israel and as glorious as it is, as as as a shadow of a heavenly reality, the tabernacle must push us forward to look at it as a type, a type of Christ who would come Unsurprisingly, when the New Testament turns to the tabernacle, it affirms that Christ is the fulfillment of the tabernacle in every way. The holiness of the tabernacle points to him who is who is the one who is very God of very God. Because of his incarnation, Christ is the ultimate bringing together of heaven and earth. Christ is, in a real sense, the tabernacle. Remember again, John in verse one, chapter one in verse 14, The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. But the tabernacle also stands as a reminder to us of where Christ went. Because the tabernacle is a shadow of heaven, Hebrews tells us that it was into the real and true tabernacle in heaven that Christ went to make atonement for our sins. Hebrews 9, 12 tells us that he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of bulls and goats, of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood, thus securing eternal redemption. In a sense, we can say that the shadow on earth could only receive the blood of the shadows of the true sacrifice, the blood of bulls and goats. But the true tabernacle, the true presence of God in heaven could only have access to the blood of Christ. Christ is the true presence of God who goes into his Father's presence once for all to make atonement for our sins with his own blood. Perhaps that can be seen best as we reflect upon our chapter of the tabernacle and the descriptions. It can be seen best if we Look at the veil that stood in the tabernacle as a wall separating the holy place from the holy of holies. This was that four inch thick veil that the high priest would go behind only once per year to make atonement at the mercy seat. We read of what happened to that veil in Matthew 27 verses 45 to 54 at the death of Christ. We read there now the sixth hour. Now, from the sixth hour, there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, lemma sabachthani. That is, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? And some of the bystanders hearing it said, this man is calling Elijah. And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him. And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and the earth shook and the rocks were split. The tombs also were open and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection. They went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him keeping watch over Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, truly, this was the son of God. This moment in redemptive history, the most significant one of at least the most significant moment in redemptive history is important for us, for we sit here so far away from anywhere that the tabernacle or the temple would have been constructed. We do not know what that veil was because Christ has removed it with his death and opened up the way to the Holy of Holies. That veil of separation that separated God's presence from his people was torn in two. And this has incredible implications for us as God's people. This is what the Apostle Paul reflects on when he writes to the Ephesians in Ephesians 2 verses 13 to 18. He says, but now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility And he came and preached peace to you who are far off and peace to those who were near for through him We both have access in one spirit to the father now remember Paul is writing there to the Ephesian Christians who are who are dealing with this division between Jew and Gentile and Which one really is represents true Christianity and Paul is telling them that what God was doing in Christ in tearing that veil down was bringing the two together and And in doing so, in tearing down that veil, that wall that divided them, God, God offered peace or brought peace through Christ to his people. And so in Christ's death, we are given access to God by faith. This brings us then to consider how this passage about the tabernacles construction can bear fruit in our lives. When we first hear it, we might think, wow. A lot of detail. What does that mean for us at all? Well, the first way is as we consider the fact that the tabernacle was where heaven met earth. It was where God's people would gather to worship him, even as they traveled through the wilderness. That's why, remember, it could be torn down and moved and then put back up. They would gather there and worship him at the tabernacle. And yet they only worshiped at the shadow of heaven. We are told in scripture that when we worship, we do so in the very presence of our God. The veil is gone. This is what the author of Hebrews affirms in chapter 10 verses 19 to 22. He writes, therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain that is through his flesh. And since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith with our hearts sprinkled clean from the evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Simply put, our worship as we gather, whether we're large, whether we're small, is heavenly worship. We may meet in a rented hall that seems to change week by week, but the reality is we gather together and we are brought into the presence of our God. Our worship is other worldly and therefore We do not need to adorn it with the styles and fashions of this world. We have access to God, to the work of Christ, and by the ministry of his Holy Spirit. The call then for us, we read in Hebrews, that we understand from Exodus and the tabernacle is that we ought to come boldly. before our God. Now that term boldly that we find used in Hebrews as the implication of everything we've been talking about as Christ as the fulfillment is a word that I spent the week studying, wondering, is this really what God means? Because it means without any concern whatsoever, sort of a rushing in to God's presence without any thought for the consequences. Indeed, that is what the word means. That is how it is used. And it is only because that veil is torn into, and because we come into God's presence through the merits of Christ, that we can come into the throne room of our King boldly. Boldly knowing that He welcomes us. Boldly knowing that as we confess our sins, that He has, in fact, forgiven us. And so the call to us is to worship boldly, and to hold fast to the confession that we have made. The confession of our hope without wavering for he who promised his faithful.