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in the book, so I'll just begin 
in verse 1. Then the Lord spoke to Moses, 
saying, Speak to the children of Israel, that they bring me 
an offering. From everyone who gives it willingly, with his 
heart, you shall take my offering. And this is the offering which 
you shall take from them, gold, silver, and bronze, blue, purple, 
and scarlet thread, fine linen and goat's hair, ram skins dyed 
red, badger skins and acacia wood, oil for the light and spices 
for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense, onyx stones 
and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate, and let 
them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them, according 
to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle 
and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it. And 
they shall make an arc of acacia wood. Two and a half cubits shall 
be its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a 
half its height. And you shall overlay it with 
pure gold. Inside and out you shall overlay 
it, and shall make on it molding of gold all around. You shall 
cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its four corners. 
Two rings shall be on one side, and two rings on the other side. 
And you shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 
You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the 
ark that the ark may be carried by them. The poles shall be in 
the rings of the ark. They shall not be taken from 
it. And you shall put into the ark the testimony which I will 
give you. You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two and a 
half cubits shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. And you shall make two cherubim 
of gold. Of hammered work you shall make 
them at the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub at one 
end, and the other cherub at the other end. You shall make 
the cherubim at the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy 
seat. And the cherubim shall stretch 
out their wings above, covering the mercy seat with their wings, 
and they shall face one another. The faces of the cherubim shall 
be toward the mercy seat. You shall put the mercy seat 
on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony 
that I will give you. and there I will meet with you 
and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat from between 
the two cherubim which are on the ark of the testimony about 
everything which I will give you in commandment to the children 
of Israel. Amen. As I said, this is the 
third major division in the book I think when I introduced the 
book, I gave a pretty simple outline. I'm pretty sure I got 
it from Dale Ralph Davis. Basically, the book of Exodus 
can be summarized with three Ds. You have deliverance in chapters 
1 to 18. You have demand in chapters 19 
to 24. And then you have dwelling in 
chapters 25 to 30, 25 to 40. So God delivers the children 
of Israel out of the bondage that they're in in Egypt, brings 
them then to the foot of Sinai, and there he commands them or 
makes demands of them in terms of his covenant. We see the ratification 
of the last time we were here in Exodus, we saw the ratification 
of the covenant in chapter 24. And then this third division 
now shows God's intent to dwell with his people. So it's not 
just deliverance as an end, though that's certainly a wonderful 
thing. It's not just demand as an end, though that is a blessed 
thing as well. But it's God's dwelling in the 
midst of his people. He saves his people so that he 
can commune with his people. That's one of the chief promises 
and benefits of covenant. God says, I will be your God 
and you shall be my people. And you see that emphasis here 
specifically in chapters 25 to 40. So that's the outline, a 
most simple one, deliverance, demand, and dwelling. The ratification 
of the covenant, as I said, takes place in chapter 24. It leaves 
off at the end of chapter 24 with Moses on the mountain. If you notice in verse 18, Moses 
went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. 
And Moses was on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. And there 
he receives this detailed legislation concerning the construction of 
the tabernacle. He comes down later in chapter 
32 to see Israel dancing around the golden calf, engaged in covenant 
breaking, engaged in transgression, and completely reneging what 
they promised in chapter 24. They said, all that Yahweh commands 
we will do. And yet we get to chapter 32, 
we see them already reneging, we see them break that covenant, 
and we see Moses chide and chastise them under the blessing or under 
the leadership of God. So back to chapter 25. I want 
to again quote from Dale Ralph Davis. I think he makes a good 
observation. So in that beginning section 
of deliverance, God communicates to Moses through the burning 
bush. In the next section concerning 
demand, God communicates through Moses from the mountain. Now we see that he's not just 
the God of the bush or the mountain, but he's also the God of the 
tent. Davis says the God of 3-5 and 19-21 is also the God of 
25-8. That is, the God of the bush, 
who will rescue his people from slavery, and the God of the hill, 
who declares to his people his law, is also the God of the tent 
who dwells in the midst of his people, with his tent among their 
tents. Indeed, the climax of the book 
of Exodus is not at the sea, chapter 14, nor on the mountain, 
chapter 19, but in the tent, chapters 25 and following. The pinnacle of Exodus is 25.8. 
That says, and let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell 
among them. So what was forfeit in the garden 
as a result of Adam and Eve's transgression against God is 
being recovered in God's mercy and grace. Remember, God communed 
with Adam and Eve in that garden sanctuary. The Garden of Eden 
was a sanctuary where God met with his people That was forfeit 
by their sin and their transgression. On the heels of that is the promise 
of the covenant, the new covenant, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, 
the seed of the woman that would crush the serpent. But now we 
have the institution of this old covenant that typologically 
points forward to that new covenant and the redemption that would 
come by our Lord Jesus Christ. So as we move through this particular 
section, it's a lengthy section, 25 to 40. You're not going to 
get a detailed explanation of all the furnishings in the tabernacle. There are guys that are more 
equipped to do that. There are guys that do that in 
great detail. That's probably not what I'm 
going to do, so I'm not sure how I'm going to cover the rest 
of the material. I do have 25.1 to 22 prepared 
for tonight, but essentially what you have is the instructions 
given for the construction of the tabernacle in chapter 25 
to 31, and then you have sort of that parentheses where Israel 
sins and God chastised them and then remakes the covenant, or 
remakes the two tablets of stone, and then you see the construction 
of the tabernacle take place in chapters 35 to the end of 
the book. The book ends with the tabernacle 
having been completed with the Shekinah glory of God dwelling 
amongst the people of Israel, but it ends with a tension. Even 
Moses himself can't enter into the presence of God, though God 
is there. It's a dwelling place for God, 
but it's not yet a meeting place. And that then brings, of necessity, 
the book of Leviticus. The book of Leviticus deals with 
the question, how does sinful man enter into the presence of 
a holy God? That's why there is detailed 
legislation concerning sacrifice. How do we gain access to this 
God who is now dwelling in the tent among us? We can't just 
wander in because we're sinful and he's holy. So Leviticus takes 
up that particular issue and prescribes the remedy, which 
is sacrifice, in order to approach a holy God. So tonight we'll 
look at the offerings for the tabernacle in verses 1 to 7. 
Secondly, the purpose for the tabernacle in verses 8 and 9. 
And then finally, the ark in the tabernacle in verses 10 to 
22. So look first with me at verses 
1 to 7, you see a divine command. Verse 1, Then the Lord spoke 
to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, that they 
bring me an offering. So the meeting took place on 
Mount Sinai, where God was, where Moses met Him, according to 2418. He's up there for 40 days and 
40 nights. He comes down, as I said, in 
chapter 32 to deal with the idolatry, the covenant breaking on behalf 
of the people of Israel. But notice specifically that 
God commands here. God doesn't leave it up to the 
Israelites how they're going to worship. God doesn't say, 
you know, I want you to find your best guys, your best musicians, 
your best sort of fellows that are good with the young people, 
and just go to the table and figure out how it is you're going 
to approach me. No, the Lord had delivered them, 
the Lord had demanded from them, and now the Lord intends to dwell 
with them, but the Lord will dwell with them on His terms. 
It is not on our terms, it is not according to our particular 
will, it is not according to our particular intention. When 
we look to the Word of God, God demands and God commands and 
God regulates how we are to worship Him. And that emphasis on worship, 
again, from chapters 25 to 40, and on and through the rest of 
the Pentateuch, emphasizes that worship is, in fact, a central 
theme in the Bible. The Westminster Shorter Catechism 
asks the question, what is the chief end of man? Man's chief 
end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. And the Bible 
definitely teaches that. One man, Stuart, the commentator, 
makes this observation concerning worship. Now, immediately after 
the conclusion of the presentation of the Covenant Code and Israel's 
response to it, God again required His people to pay attention to 
proper worship. We've already seen hints of that 
in the law code itself, going back to chapter 20, specifically 
verses 22 to 26. There was the law concerning 
the altar. So it's not that there's not 
been any instruction thus far, but here that's going to be the 
main emphasis. So Stuart goes on to say, worship, 
where it is done, how it is done, by whom it is done, with whom 
it is done, with what it is done, would dominate the rest of the 
Sinai covenant, that is, the law through the rest of Exodus, 
through all of Leviticus and up to Numbers 10.10. Not all 
of these materials are strictly legal in genre. Some are narrative. Some provide fulfillment descriptions 
relative to what had been commanded. And some partake of other genres 
and purposes. But the overwhelming emphasis 
of the rest of the covenant is worship. I think this is something 
that we as New Covenant believers can learn from. Because when 
we get to the New Covenant, you don't have as detailed legislation 
applicable to the church at worship. In fact, when you get to the 
New Testament, it's a lot simpler. Basically, the emphasis is that 
you sing the word, that you preach the word, that you read the word, 
that you see the word in the sacraments, and that you pray 
the word. It's word-based, it's word-central, 
to be sure. But you don't find a section 
in Paul's epistles, like Exodus 25-40, that gets into detailed 
legislation concerning the building in which we meet, the regulations 
and the manner in which we approach God. So I think in the New Covenant, 
at least what seems to be the case that can happen to the Church 
of the Lord Jesus Christ, is that we don't take worship as 
seriously as we ought. We were made to worship God. 
We were made to glorify and enjoy Him forever. We were made to 
commune with Him. He has purchased us. He has bought 
us with a price, namely the shed blood of His Son, the Lord Jesus 
Christ. When He redeems us, when He saves 
us by His grace, it is so that we may serve Him, so that we 
may glorify Him, so that we may worship him and adore him." So 
we ought to appreciate this emphasis on worship that we find here 
in the Old Testament. Now again, I'm not suggesting 
there's no emphasis in the New Testament, there most certainly 
is, but you don't find the same sort of legislation regulating 
New Covenant worship that you do with reference to the Old 
Covenant. Now, notice specifically what 
we have in terms of law as well. When we consider the reformed 
view of the law, we've often noted that there is a threefold 
division. You've got the moral law, which 
is the Ten Commandments. You've got the judicial law, 
which was those laws based on the Ten Commandments, which would 
regulate the life of Israel in the land that they were going 
to inherit. And then you have ceremonial law, which regulated 
their worship. Note the progression in this 
section of Exodus. Chapter 20, moral law. Chapters 
21 to 23, we've got the judicial law of Moses, ratification in 
chapter 24, and now this heavy emphasis on ceremonial law, the 
things that were necessary in terms of the worship of our great 
God. The Geneva Bible says, after 
the moral and judicial law, he giveth them the ceremonial law, 
that nothing should be left to man's invention. Now I touched 
on that just a little bit earlier, but that is an absolutely crucial 
emphasis that we need to maintain, not just in Exodus 25 to 40, 
but all throughout the New Testament. In fact, if you turn for a moment 
to 1 Timothy chapter 3, 1 Timothy chapter 3, just to show that 
this principle abides. While there are differences in 
terms of ceremonial law or what we might call positive law that 
governs Old Covenant and New Covenant worship, there are some 
differences. We don't sacrifice. We don't 
have incense. We don't have the same sorts 
of instruments. that they were called upon to 
utilize in Old Covenant worship. There is a discontinuity in terms 
of Old Covenant and New Covenant with reference to our approach 
to God. The basic fundamental principle remains. We are not 
to be inventive. We are not to make up the worship 
process. We are not to be innovative or 
creative when it comes to worshiping God. We're to be obedient. we 
are to be responsive to His will. So notice in 1 Timothy 3.14, 
These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you 
shortly. But if I am delayed, I write, so that you may know 
how you ought. Now that how you ought isn't 
suggestive, it's kind of the thought in my heart, Timothy, 
that perhaps you might follow this. This is a divine necessity. I write so that you may know 
how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is 
the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the 
truth." So you see, Timothy was not supposed to be innovative 
or creative. Timothy was supposed to be obedient. 
He was supposed to worship in the manner prescribed by God. 
Turn over to the book of Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 12. Hopefully 
you're saying, wow, these are familiar passages. You've shown 
us these many times. Well, I hope that's the response. Notice in Hebrews chapter 12, 
specifically at verse 28. Therefore, since we are receiving 
a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace by which we 
may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. Now, 
if we ask the question, what's acceptable worship? We're supposed 
to ask that to God. We're not supposed to ask that 
to ourselves, because ourselves might say, you know, I like a 
10-minute sermonette so I can get home and watch football. 
I like a lot of good peppy music so I can feel good about myself. 
I only like positivity when I come to church, because I don't like 
that negative stuff. Well, if we ask what is acceptable 
to man, we're going to get a whole host of different answers. The 
acceptability here is to God. What is it that pleases God? That should be the question that 
the worshiper asks, not, what is it that pleases me? And then 
notice how he underscores this in verse 29. For our God is a 
consuming fire. Again, that principle carries 
over from the Old Testament. That's right out of Deuteronomy 
4, verse 24. So the our God is a consuming 
fire reality undergirded Old Covenant worship, it undergirds 
New Covenant worship as well. So we're not supposed to enter 
into the presence of God in any old way we so choose. We enter 
in in the manner in which God has commanded us in Holy Scripture. I think our confession does very 
well in defining this in chapter 22 at paragraph 1. It says, the 
light of nature, that's a reference to general revelation. Man is 
created in the image of God. When man looks at the created 
order, he learns certain truths about God. Paul highlights this 
in the book of Romans, Romans chapter 1. We learn something 
about the cause from the effect. When we see the effect in the 
created order, it leads us to the cause. The light of nature, 
or general revelation, is one of the books of God. It reveals 
to us true knowledge. It's not saving knowledge. It's 
limited in terms of its usefulness or profitability to us, but it 
nevertheless reveals true things about God and about ourselves. 
So that's what the confession means by the light of nature. 
It shows that there is a God who hath lordship and sovereignty 
over all, is just, good, and doth good unto all, and is therefore 
to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted in, and 
served with all the heart and all the soul and with all the 
might. So the confession and the Reformed tradition, this 
isn't unique to the Baptists, this isn't the Westminster, Savoy, 
it's pretty universal in terms of the Reformed confessions. 
They recognize that general revelation, the light of nature, teaches 
us true things. But it doesn't prescribe the manner by which 
we enter into the presence of God. You don't learn about blood 
atonement through a nice sunset. You don't learn about the necessity 
of an approach to a holy God through sacrifice through the 
world around you. So the confession goes on to 
say, but the acceptable way of worshiping the true God is instituted 
by himself. And again, this should be a no-brainer. I mean, we mess up everything. Do you think we're going to somehow 
fall into the proper way to worship the God of heaven and earth? 
I don't think so, brethren. We've got issues and problems 
galore. Not to mention sin. So we're 
not going to intuit the way to worship God. We need to learn 
from God on the approach to God. So it says, the acceptable way 
of worshiping the true God is instituted by himself and so 
limited by his own revealed will. that he may not be worshipped 
according to the imagination and devices of men, nor the suggestions 
of Satan, under any visible representations, or any other way not prescribed 
in the Holy Scriptures." So basically what the Confession is saying 
is that you approach God the way that God demands, in the 
manner that is consistent with who he is, as he's revealed himself 
in Holy Scripture. So that's what we're seeing here 
in Exodus chapter 25 to 40. Now in terms of the specific 
instructions in 2B to 7, notice that it's a command to bring 
me, God, an offering. The offering was not for the 
tabernacle, but it was for God himself. And again, Stuart makes 
the observation, the tabernacle was symbolically God's house, 
intrinsically his property, and not merely a place he and the 
Israelites would conveniently use. It was known by his name. And so when he says, bring an 
offering to me, it is very specific that what they are doing is not 
first and foremost decorating or furnishing the tabernacle, 
but they are giving of their substance to God Most High. And that's why the emphasis is 
upon the free will of man, the free will nature of this offering. Notice, speak to the children 
of Israel that they bring me an offering from everyone who 
gives it willingly with his heart you shall take my offering." 
So again, a principle there that carries over obviously to the 
New Covenant. When we come to the house of 
God to worship God, it's not simply an external exercise. 
It's not just that we've checked off the box, we're in the right 
place, we're there at the right time, so we've satisfied the 
requirement for worship. No, we need to bring the heart. 
Remember the days of the temple during Malachi. Malachi prophesies 
and he rips into the people of God. And they deserve to be ripped 
into because they had engaged in a simply external, formalistic 
approach to the worship of God. They would bring the worst from 
their flock. They would steal animals on the way to the temple 
on the Sabbath day to present those to God. Imagine that. stealing an animal to offer up 
as your sacrifice. You've hit rock bottom if that's 
your religion. You're in a bad space if that 
is your religion. And so Malachi upgrades the people 
and calls them to repentance and faith. They were never, it 
was never the case that you could just show up, satisfy the requirement, 
and you have fulfilled the mandate with reference to worship. No, 
you need to bring the heart. The New Covenant sees that cheerfulness 
of heart in offerings and givings there as well. 2 Corinthians 
9, 7, So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not 
grudgingly or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. Which 
underscores that in the Old Covenant, though there was a difference 
in terms of the positive law governing worship, in terms of 
the particular realities involved, the sacrificial system, the bloodshed, 
the incense, the instruments, all those things unique to Old 
Covenant worship, there was still the demand by God to bring the 
heart. to worship Him in truth and spirit. Don't just fall into some empty 
formalism. So that when Jesus comes on the 
scene and He's reproving the nation of Israel, He's doing 
so in concert with that old covenant emphasis. When you trace through 
the prophets, they don't ever come along and say, you know, 
you're in the right place at the right time, so you've satisfied 
the requirements for worship. No, they upbraid them. They indict 
them for the sorts of offenses that we're outlining here. So 
they would bring these things to God. Now this would have been 
plunder, this would have been stuff they'd taken out of Egypt. 
This probably, not everybody would have had all of these items. 
You'd need the collected, you know, body politic of the children 
of Israel to pony up these various items. Now these items are going 
to come out later. in the actual construction or 
in the actual description of what they'll be used for, but 
they are grouped together according to type. Notice you've got the 
metals in verse 3, the fabrics in verse 4, the skins and the 
wood in verse 5, the lamp oil along with the spices for the 
anointing oil and for the incense in verse 6, and then the gemstones 
to be used on the high priest's breastplate in verse 7. Now, 
the high priest is going to be dealt with later. office is going 
to be dealt with later in chapter 28. It's going to describe the 
ephod and the purpose of those gems and that sort of a thing. 
So basically this is a call by God through Moses to the children 
of Israel to bring these materials. Bring them with a whole heart. 
Bring them with a willing heart. and bring them to me as we build 
this house together. Now in terms of the actual tabernacle 
itself, the Apostle Paul, I believe Paul wrote Hebrews, he deals 
with the old covenant tabernacle in Hebrews chapter 9 verses 1 
to 12. He says that it was a copy of 
the heavenly original. Now, I'm not sure that he means 
that exactly what you find in terms of this square box with 
the holy of holies, and the holy place, and the laver, and the 
bronze incense offering place, and then the laver, and then 
the outer court. I don't think he means that specifically. But 
it's set up in such a way as to evoke the concept of fellowship. When you look at this structure, 
it is sort of a house. It is a place for God and his 
people to meet together. There's a place where there's 
intimate communion in the Holy of Holies. There's a place for 
sort of gathering in the living room. There's the table of showbread 
we saw in the ratification of the covenant in Exodus 24. Verse 11, on the nobles of the 
children of Israel, he did not lay his hand, so they saw God 
and they ate and drank. Eating and drinking was commonplace 
in religious observance. You see that. set up in such 
a way that this sanctuary, this mobile sanctuary, this tabernacle 
that is being constructed evokes the concept of intimacy and communion 
and fellowship, the children of Israel with their God. He's 
going to dwell in their midst. So this is his house, this is 
his place, this is where they will come to meet with their 
God. And then notice, secondly, the 
purpose for the tabernacle in verses 8 and 9. It is, in fact, 
the dwelling place of God. So verse 8, let them make me 
a sanctuary. Now, it's not the dwelling place 
of God by virtue of his essence. His essence fills all. God is 
omnipresent. It's not as if he's locally present 
only in the tabernacle. Remember at the dedication of 
the temple. The temple is the permanent structure. So the tabernacle is mobile. 
It corresponds to the wilderness wanderings of the children of 
Israel. They are transient people at the time of the Pentateuch. They are traveling to the promised 
land. And so this tabernacle is not 
a permanent structure. It is something, as you'll notice 
later with reference to the Ark of the Tabernacle, there's rings 
so they can put the poles in it so that they can carry it. 
There needs to be portability about this tabernacle because 
Israel is transient. So God is going to accompany 
them on their march to the Promised Land. Now when they get to the 
Promised Land, And when David consolidates the kingdom, and 
David centralizes Jerusalem as both political and religious 
capital of the nation, it's on the heels of that that the temple 
is built under David's son, Solomon. That's the permanent structure. 
But it's primarily the same emphasis. It's the place where God meets 
with his covenant people. You approach through sacrifice. 
You approach by the means that he has ordained. So there is 
this command to build a sanctuary. Now when you consider the theme 
of sanctuary or dwelling from Genesis to Revelation, there 
is a heavy emphasis. As I mentioned earlier, a lot 
of people think Adam's job in the garden was that he was a 
farmer. Adam's job in the garden was that he was a priest. He 
was a priest serving God Most High. That was a sanctuary. He 
was given the task to extend that garden sanctuary to encompass 
the entirety of the earth. Certainly he farmed and certainly 
he cared for the ground and all that sort of thing. But Adam's 
activity was primarily priestly to meet with his God. You see 
that emphasis here, and let them make me a sanctuary that I may 
dwell among them. As you move on through redemptive 
history, the temple, same emphasis. You see it in the incarnation 
of the Son of God. The Word became flesh and tabernacled 
among us. He dwelt among us. What's the 
final sort of act in all of redemptive history? It's the book of Revelation, 
where the new Jerusalem descends out of heaven like a bride adorned 
for her husband. It's no accident that it's described 
as a temple. It's no accident that it's described 
in that manner, with all of that biblical data and revelation 
behind it, to show that this is ultimately the pinnacle of 
redemptive history. God and his people dwelling together 
in a redeemed earth. A new heavens and a new earth. 
It is a glorious thing. It is a wonderful thing. For 
the blood-bought child of God, there is nothing better than 
communion with God. And we have that communion in 
and through our Lord Jesus Christ in this new covenant era, We 
get it corporately in the church. We get it as well in our private 
worship and family worship. We get to commune with God Almighty. But corporately, it is the church 
of the Lord Jesus. We've seen that heavy emphasis 
in Ephesians chapters 2 and 3, where we come to the Father through 
the Son in the Spirit on the Lord's Day when we're in the 
house of God. So this idea of God dwelling 
with his people is most excellent. So the gift of deliverance was 
not the end. The gift of law was not the end. It is dwelling. It is the fact 
that God will be with his people that is emphasized in this particular 
section. So let them make me a sanctuary 
that I may dwell among them. If you haven't reflected upon 
this, I encourage you to do so. God dwells with us. Christ is 
in the midst of the lampstands according to Revelation chapter 
1. That's where he's at on the Lord's Day. John is in the Spirit 
on the Lord's Day and he's given this vision of these seven lampstands. Revelation 1.20 tells us the 
seven lampstands are the seven churches of Asia Minor. Well, 
where's Jesus? He's in the midst of that. That 
should encourage us to not miss public worship. It should encourage 
us to bring hearts with expectation to public worship. It should 
encourage us that this is, in fact, the purpose for which God 
made us and redeemed us. And then in terms of the typology, 
as I mentioned, we see the teaching of the Apostle Paul in Hebrews 
chapter 9. It says this was a time of reformation until the coming 
of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was the pedagogue, this 
was the covenant that was typological, did point forward, but it served 
a very important function for its time in Old Covenant religion. Again, Stuart says, the tabernacle 
was a symbolic representation of the realities of heaven, a 
relatively simple earthly reflection of God's actual dwelling place, 
designed to point to the greater and more eternal opportunity 
to live with God. So as we move through this particular 
section, as I said, the various furnishings of the tabernacle 
are designed to evoke communion or fellowship. The table with 
bread, mention that. The light of the gold lampstand. The ark which contained the covenant 
law that bound the parties together. And intriguingly, that's where 
this presentation of the tabernacle begins. So look at the ark in 
the tabernacle. Well, verse 9, let's not pass 
through that too quick because it reinforces what I've already 
tried to enforce. According to all that I show 
you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern 
of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it. Again, 
notice that God doesn't say, you know, Moses, I want you to 
just take creative liberties. I want you to, you know, express 
yourself. No. Moses could express himself 
in Moses' house. I don't know of a chapter in 
Exodus where God says, okay, Moses, in your house, you got 
to put the fridge over here, you got to put the stove there, 
put, you know, the kids over in that corner, and you and the 
missus can have, you know, he doesn't do that. Why? because 
he gives us liberty to decorate and furnish our houses the way 
that we want. He doesn't give us liberty to 
decorate and furnish his house the way that we want. He calls 
us to obey and to do with his house as he demands, and that's 
the emphasis. According to all that I show 
you, that is the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of 
all its furnishings, just so you shall make it. Now you might 
think I'm making a big deal out of this. Well brethren, in light 
of what we see in terms of church worship today, I'd suggest there 
needs to be a big deal made out of it when you see the sorts 
of things that pass for Christian worship in the professing church 
today. It's shameful. Later on in the 
book of Leviticus, chapter 10, after the detailed legislation 
concerning sacrifices in chapters 1 to 9, with them even giving 
a proper sacrifice and God sending fire down to accept that sacrifice, 
and all the people shout with joy. Well, then Nadab and Abihu 
take it up to be innovative and creative, and they offer up strange 
fire to the Lord. What does the Lord do? The Lord 
sends fire, but this time not upon the sacrifice, but upon 
Nadab and Abihu, and He consumes them. What's the take-home message? God is holy. By those who come 
to me, I must be regarded as holy. So in New Covenant worship, 
just because we don't have an Exodus 25 to 40, there is a better 
than excellent case to be made that New Covenant worship is 
as regulated, it is as clearly defined, it is as clearly specified, 
just not in as much detail, and I think there's reasons for that. 
But the New Covenant Church is duty-bound to obey God, not to 
add to His Word, not to take away from His Word, but rather 
to obey His Word. This principle is called the 
Regulative Principle of Worship. Albert N. Martin said it well. 
He says, nothing more, nothing less, and nothing else than what 
God has commanded for New Covenant worship. Terry Johnson, in his 
very helpful little book called Reformed Worship, says what I 
said earlier. We pray the Bible, we read the 
Bible, we preach the Bible, we sing the Bible, and we see the 
Bible in the sacraments. That's what New Covenant worship 
is all about. And so God, in the Old Covenant, 
says they need to obey, and you need to make it in the manner 
in which I tell you. Now, as we move to verses 10 
to 22, you see the ark in the tabernacle. Probably if it were 
us, we'd describe first the tabernacle, you know, get the outer structure 
in place, the materials that you're going to need, and then 
we'll sort of hone in on to that holy of holies and what goes 
in there. But God starts with the holy 
of holies and what goes in there. Again, I think Stuart's right. 
He says, although it might seem more systematic to begin with 
a description of the design of the tabernacle and then to address 
the particular furnishings that fit within it, the importance 
of the ark as the item that would symbolize God's presence among 
his people far outweighs such considerations. And its design, 
therefore, was described first, even before that of the tabernacle 
that would house it. So he goes right to that arc 
of the testimony. He deals with the construction 
of it and then the function of it. the construction. We've got the dimensions. Essentially, 
you've got 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, 27 inches high. So that's verse 10. And then 
you've got the gold plating on the ark. And again, the commentators 
will get spiritual here, and they'll say the gold represents 
Jesus and the divine nature and the spotlessness of his humanity. 
I don't doubt they're right. I don't doubt for a moment that 
that's good stuff. It's just there are time limitations 
that I have and am not able to quite get into all of those particular 
details. But I would commend John Gill. 
Matthew Poole's a lot briefer. Gill gets more into that sort 
of thing in terms of seeing the particular correspondence or 
seeing the typology that's involved in each part of the furnishings 
and that stuff. That's very helpful. It's very 
edifying. It's very encouraging. So we've got the gold plating 
on the ark, and then notice the portability of the ark in verses 
12 to 15. As I mentioned, there will be 
detailed regulations as to who can carry the ark. Remember Uzzah? Uzzah reached out his hand to 
steady the ark when he thought that it was going to fall into 
the mud, and God killed Uzzah. Now, we might think that's a 
bit strict or a bit harsh. Nope, God said us it wasn't supposed 
to. He wasn't in the class of priests 
that was enabled to touch it. The take-home lesson there is 
that the mud, had it fallen into it, wouldn't contaminate it the 
way a sinner would. Ma does what Ma does. Sinners 
are the rebels against a holy and glorious God. So there were 
detailed specifications and regulations in terms of carrying these pieces 
of furniture. And again, we'll see that as 
that stuff is divvied up among the priests. But it was a portable 
thing. And if you look, well I don't 
want to get too far afield here, but this whole idea of portability. This is something that you see 
during the exile and post-exilic. You'll see that God comes to 
the people of Israel that are in Babylon to show that he's 
not confined to Judah. that wherever his true faithful 
people are, wherever his remnant is, he will come to them and 
dwell in the midst of them. So the idea here is on portability. Turn to 2 Samuel 7. 2 Samuel 
7. We looked at this just before 
Christmas, sort of as a lead up to Christmas. It's the Davidic 
covenant. But we saw that very thing in 
terms of the transient nature of Israel and the stability of 
Israel once they come to the promised land. So God, or rather 
David, wants to build a house for God. He wants to build a 
temple for God. Nathan says, go do all that is 
in your heart, verse 3, and then verse 4. It happened that night 
that the word of the Lord came to Nathan saying, go and tell 
my servant David, thus says the Lord, would you build a house 
for me to dwell in? For I have not dwelt in a house 
since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from 
Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and 
in a tabernacle. See, it's a portable structure. 
It's a mobile structure. It corresponds to the transient 
nature of Israel as they are wandering in the wilderness prior 
to their arrival in the promised land. Wherever have I moved about 
with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to 
anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd 
my people Israel, saying, Why have you not built me a house 
of cedar? Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David, 
thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from following the 
sheep to be ruler over my people, over Israel. And I have been 
with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies 
from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name 
of the great men who are on the earth. Moreover, I will appoint 
a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they 
may dwell in a place of their own and move no more. Nor shall 
the sons of wickedness oppress them any more as previously. 
Since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, 
and have caused you to rest from all your enemies, also the Lord 
tells you that He will make you a house. So you see what God 
is essentially saying. I'm going to make sure you're 
planted firmly in the land before I'm planted firmly in the land. I am content to be in the tabernacle, 
to dwell alongside of the people in tents. Once they come and 
get stabilized in the nation, or the land of Canaan, they develop 
this nation, they've got Jerusalem as that central place, then God 
says, under Solomon, to build that temple. So it needed to 
be portable, and thus the rings on the side of the ark. And then 
notice the contents of the ark according to verse 16. You shall 
put into the ark the testimony which I will give you. There's 
other items in there according to Hebrews chapter 9 and other 
places in the Pentateuch, but the emphasis here is on the testimony. The testimony according to Exodus 
31 18 are the two tablets of the law of God. Now, this is 
consistent with the ancient Near Eastern world. Robert Alter says, 
the stone tablets of the law are the document of the eternal 
contract between God and Israel. And their placement here reflects 
a common ancient Near Eastern practice of placing documents 
of solemn contracts within sacred precincts. So basically, I think 
it's pretty typical, we talk about two tables of the law and 
that's legit. You've got the first table that 
deals with our duty toward God and then the second table which 
deals with our duty toward man. Now we typically visualize the 
first four on one tablet and the last six on the other tablet. Probably better to see all of 
them on both tablets. One's God's copy, one's Israel's 
copy. Remember, they just swore covenant 
before God in Exodus chapter 24. These are covenant documents, 
and so as Alter says, they're put in sacred precincts. They're 
put in this Ark of the Testament, or this Ark of the Covenant. 
It holds these documents as a sort of a statement concerning God's 
part to the covenant and the people of Israel's part to the 
covenant. So the testimony concerning the 
covenant between God and Israel is deposited in the Ark of the 
Covenant. And then notice the function. 
We see this emphasis on the mercy seat in verses 17 and following. The concept here is atonement, 
propitiation. The concept is covering, you'll 
see later in Leviticus specifically with reference to the Day of 
Atonement, the one day out of the year where the high priest 
went into the Holy of Holies. So the Holy of Holies, where 
the Ark of the Covenant was, wasn't accessed or accessible 
by the garden variety Israelite, not even by the garden variety 
priest. It was only the high priest that one time of the year, 
according to Leviticus 16, he would take off all his priestly 
robes and just have on a linen garment. And he would go into 
that place and there he would do the sacrifice of atonement. He would take blood and pour 
it on that mercy seat. And the concept or the imagery 
was on propitiation. It was on expiation. It was on 
sacrifice or atonement for the removal of sin such that the 
children of Israel would have cleansed consciences to enter 
into the presence of God. So the mercy seat was made of 
pure gold. Again, the spotlessness of Jesus 
Christ certainly is evoked as we consider that. The cherubim 
were set on either side of the seat. Now, cherubim are a class 
of angels. We see them before this in Genesis 
3.24. It's the cherubim that wields 
the sword such that the man can't come to that tree of life. And 
so it's the cherubim that we see sort of imaged here on the 
mercy seat. Later on in the book of Ezekiel, 
you'll see more description given of these cherubim. So the mercy 
seat is then placed on top of the ark with the testimony inside. So you've got the Ten Commandments 
inside the box. You've got this mercy seat on 
top of the box. And if you remember, you may 
not, probably because you didn't look at this book, but I did. 
We went through a book by Sinclair Ferguson. I actually have it 
written in my margin. That's why I have a wide margin 
Bible here. It's good for note taking. But 
when we went through the whole Christ by Sinclair Ferguson, 
I thought he had a very helpful comment, and it's relative to 
the Ark of the Testimony. He says, the Decalogue's location 
in the Ark and under the mercy seat or covering is surely expressive 
of the way in which the blood sprinkled on the mercy seat symbolically 
atones for the breach of the commandments underneath it. So 
there is great symbolism involved here, and especially when you've 
got a sort of New Covenant mind full of Jesus Christ and the 
sacrifice of atonement, and you look at these sorts of things 
and you can see, oh, wow, now I get it and how it points forward 
to what Christ does. Here's what John Gill says, he 
says over it as a covering for it, talking about the mercy seat. 
This situation, the mercy seat above the ark where the law was, 
signifies that there is no mercy but in a way of righteousness 
or of satisfaction to the law of God and in a consistence with 
the honor of it. And the cherubim over the mercy 
seat, making a throne for the majesty of God, in which he sat, 
and the ark below is kind of a footstool for him, shows that 
Christ, the mercy seat and propitiatory, stands between God and His law, 
and is the mediator between God and men, the transgressors of 
that law, and by fulfilling it has covered the sins of His people, 
which are violations of it. and being above it, and having 
magnified and made it honorable, is able to suppress its charges 
and accusations and secure from its curse and condemnation." 
Again, some very good and suggestive thoughts in terms of the typology 
involved relative to this ark and relative to the mercy seat 
on top. And then notice the emphasis 
in verse 22, again, is on God's presence. And there I will meet 
with you. The you there is singular, so 
it refers specifically to Moses, but it would certainly hold subsequent 
to Moses, the high priest when he entered in to the Holy of 
Holies. There I will meet with you, and 
I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between 
the two cherubim which are on the ark of the testimony about 
everything which I will give you in commandment to the children 
of Israel. So the Lord will meet and the 
Lord will speak to the children of Israel through ultimately 
the mediation of Moses in this particular instance. But it shows 
us God dwelling with his people, God speaking with his people, 
God directing his people, God leading his people, God governing 
his people. All of these themes are emphasized 
throughout the book of Exodus. So it's a great book in terms 
of God's relation to his people. So, in conclusion, three-fold 
division of the law. Don't miss that. That's, you 
know, it's not a sort of reformed construct that's been imposed 
on the Bible. See, that's a reformed emphasis, 
but there are those outside of the reformed community that say, 
oh, there's no three-fold division of the law. That was, you know, 
Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century. He's the first to come up with 
that. Well, historically, in the history of the church, it 
goes back before Thomas Aquinas, but we see it all throughout 
scripture. When, you know, Jesus says, or 
points the Pharisees back to Hosea, I desire mercy and not 
sacrifice. He's showing the priority of 
moral law over ceremonial law. Not that ceremonial law is not 
important. What does Paul say concerning 
circumcision in 1 Corinthians? It's not important, but what 
is important is keeping the law of God. So you've got the moral 
law, chapter 20, you've got the judicial law, 21 to 23, and you've 
got ceremonial law, 25 to 40. As well, the regulative principle 
of worship. Let us learn from Exodus that 
we're not to be creative or innovative, but obedient to our God. And 
then, please, let us understand the dwelling place of God, that 
I shall dwell among them, and let us be or count ourselves 
blessed and privileged that we get to enjoy these things each 
Sunday when we gather together, and each day when we commune 
with our God in private or with family, when we fellowship with 
the Lord, this is what He intended for us. When He made Adam and 
Eve, He communed with them in the cool of the day. It was our 
sin, our rebellion in Adam that drove us away, but in and through 
our Lord Jesus Christ, we now have access to the Father through 
the Son in the Holy Spirit. So let us pray. Our God and Father, 
we thank you for these themes that we find in the book of Exodus. 
We thank you for the typology that's involved here, pointing 
forward to the new covenant and the reality that we have in our 
Lord Jesus Christ as that great high priest, that one in whom 
we have forgiveness and a righteousness that avails with you. We ask 
now that you would go with us. We pray that you would watch 
over all the brothers and sisters in our local church and help 
us to glorify and honor you. And we pray through Christ our 
Lord. Amen. Any questions or comments? Good 
hymn choice by the way, Arise My Soul Arise, that fit well. 
275. No? No? Alright.