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And doesn't that bring up another principle of true worship? Doesn't that remind us that worship is important to God? And what we give reveals what we care about, what we really care about. For God to ask former slaves to give lavishly to the construction of this tabernacle surely speaks of the importance of worship, surely speaks to the importance of the presence of God amongst His people, and the fact that He calls upon them to give lavishly, even extravagantly, reminds us that what we give reveals what we really care about.

Do you remember 2 Samuel 7:6? Do you remember what's happening in 2 Samuel 7? David has been burdened in his heart to build a temple for the Lord. He has sensed the disproportion, he has sensed the inappropriateness of the fact that he is now dwelling in a magnificent palace in Jerusalem and the Ark of the Covenant, the very symbol of the presence of God with Israel, is dwelling in a tent. And so he goes to Nathan and he says, Nathan this isn't right. I'm in a palace. God's dwelling place. This visible symbol of the meeting place between God and His people, it's in a tent. It's just not right for me to be in a palace and for God's Ark of the Covenant to be in a tent. So here's what I want to do, Nathan. I want to build a palace, a temple, a house for God. And Nathan says, the desire of your heart is good, David, go ahead and do it.

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The point is fellowship with God. The aim, the goal, the end of worship, the goal of the covenant of grace is everlasting fellowship with the living God. And notice, the building of that tent is right in the center of Israel with the tribes the twelve tribes surrounding it, is a picture of fellowship with God. God orders construction of the tabernacle that He may dwell among His people. And that shows us that God's purposes for the ordinances of worship is so that the people will understand that the great goal of His covenant is that they will be His people and He will be their God. The goal of worship, like the goal of covenant, is spiritual communion with the living God. And if our worship aims for anything less than this, it's not worship.

In worship we come to give to God the glory due His name and what do we come to get? Not our fancies tickled. We come to get Him. We come to get Him. We come to give our praise to Him and we come to get Him. It's like a husband who comes to get his bride. That's what he wants, he wants his wife. He comes for her. And we learn from Exodus chapter 25:8, that God wants a tent so He may dwell among His people, and remind them that the great blessedness of life and worship is everlasting fellowship with the living God.

God has always wanted to establish His dwelling with and among His people! This is for me one of those statements that require deep meditation as to its meaning. Just think: God the Creator desires to live in and among His creation.

John saw fit to introduce his portrait of Jesus in this way, and you might be among those blessed for believing it, without having personally seen it (John 20:29). But do you know what this means? Do you? It means you are ceremonially pure and holy, without trace of defilement from your past choices. It means you were not irrevocably disqualified by the abuse you suffered. It means God remembers you daily and singles you out for particular affection. It means you shine with his glory, your nakedness has been adequately clothed, and your life is never really in question.

And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people.

Of the two, qodesh is much more common, used 468 times in the Hebrew Bible. It is used to describe a number of things, such as the clothing of the priests, the animals offered for sacrifice, and the instruments in the tabernacle. The term qadosh, on the other hand, is only used 106 times, and the items considered qadosh are much more limited. Chief among them is God, the holy one (ha-qadosh). Certain locations where God may be present are also qadosh, though the sanctuary itself is qodesh. But second to God, qadosh is most commonly used in exhortations that man should become qadosh as God is qadosh.

Any person familiar with Hebrew Scriptures reading this text in Greek would see the connection. John is telling us that Jesus is like the ancient Israelite tabernacle that accompanied them through the wilderness and was the center of their religion until Solomon built the temple about 400 years later. The tabernacle and the temple both always pictured God dwelling with His people, God being in the midst of His people, leading them, loving them, interacting with them.

Ultimately, Anderson shows how the Old Testament can deepen our understanding of the gospel. For Athanasius and many church fathers, God's "indwelling" in the tabernacle offers a unique witness to the nature of incarnation, supplementing the story told in the gospels. Likewise, careful analysis of the purpose of sacrifice at the tabernacle clarifies the purpose of Christ's passion. Far from connoting penal substitution, sacrifice in the Old Testament demonstrates self-emptying as an antidote to sin. Theologians, pastors, and serious readers of the Bible will appreciate how Anderson's canonical and literary analysis of the Tabernacle Narrative illuminates Christian theology.

She really impressed our adult daughter, who offhandedly and with deep respect called her the angel. It wasn't a nickname like Angel. It was a noun, a descriptor: angel. And we all came to use it among ourselves.

What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for behold, I come and I will dwell in your midst, declares the Lord. And many nations shall join themselves to the Lord in that day, and shall be my people. And I will dwell in your midst, and you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you.

and he said to me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoring and by the dead bodies of their kings at their high places,

So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away. To this day they do according to the former manner. They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel.

The Torah tells us precisely what gifts the people are to bring: gold and silver and copper and blue and purple and crimson and more. These are the gifts. V'asu li mikdash v'shachanti b'tocham, "Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them" These are the gifts . . . and this is how you shall make it. "Exactly as I show you . . . ken ta-asu, so shall you make it" (Exodus 25:8-9).

As we contemplate this instruction in our homes or our synagogues, we think about bringing our gifts in hope that God will dwell among us. But what gifts do we bring? Ours are not made of colorful yarns or tanned skins or acacia wood. What exactly is expected of us, we whose hearts are so moved? I sometimes wonder where the Israelites got all that stuff in the wilderness. I picture them carrying it in their backpacks, along with the granola bars and first aid kits and sunscreen for their 40-year hike in the Sinai. I imagine the moms saying, "Just pack it, trust me, you just might need it along the way - you never know." How do you know what to pack for a journey into the unknown? And how do we know what gifts to bring to create a place for God to dwell?

God says of the Israelites: V'asu li mikdash v'shachanti b'tocham, "Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them." Theoretically, God did not need the sanctuary in order to dwell among the people. After all, does the God who created the universe and split the sea need a human-made dwelling place? No, what God is saying is that some human effort is required if the people want God to be among them.

As magnificent as some of our sanctuaries are, and as inspiring as our places of worship are, we still understand that it is not the place where we find God that is of primary importance. The physical space is but one tool, one means of reaching the sacred. We all know people who claim that they find God in nature rather than within the walls of any building. Our tradition recognizes this as well, especially in the alternate reading of a verse from Malbim (Rabbi Meir Leibush ben Yechiel Michel, a 19th Century commentator). He chose to read v'shachanti b'tocham, "I will dwell among them" as "I will dwell within them." He wrote: ". . . in them, the people, not in it, the sanctuary. We are each to build a Tabernacle in our own heart for God to dwell in."2

The gifts that we bring indicate that we want to give the offering of our hearts. We understand that we must be active participants in our relationship with God; that we must do something, bring something, in order for God to dwell in our midst. And we know that ultimately the most sacred dwelling place for God is within our own hearts. We offer, from our hearts, to bring God into our hearts. These are the gifts . . . from us and from God. 2351a5e196