God delivered to Moses a blueprint concerning His dwelling among His people. Every detail of the Tabernacle was given attention and was baptized with significance. This transportable structure would be stationary at particular points in the wilderness. The Tabernacle would dwell at the centermost part of the camp with each tribe of Israel strategically situated around it. The presence of God was to be the center of the Israelite’s life.
The blueprint of the Tabernacle began with the interior and worked out to the exterior (Ex. 25-27). So it is with the Christian. Salvation begins in the inner man, in the heart, then sanctification works from the inside out.
The order of the Tabernacle, as it would be approached, is as follows. The Brazen Altar was used for offering sacrifices. The Laver, filled with water, was the place where the priesthood washed ceremonially. Just inside the Holy Place, prayer was offered at the Altar of Incense. Fresh bread was to be eaten at the Table of Shewbread. The only light shining in that holy space illuminated from the Golden Lamp Stand. A veil separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, which housed the Ark of the Covenant. Above the Ark sat the Mercy Seat decorated with two cherubim. On the Day of Atonement blood was sprinkled upon the Ark. The Glory of God would descend and fill the Holy of Holies once the High Priest correctly fulfilled the process.
Brothers and sisters, the Tabernacle in the Old Testament was only a type and shadow of heavenly realities (Heb. 8:5). It pointed to a better Tabernacle and a better dwelling. Jesus Christ was the Word of God tabernacled in flesh (Jn. 1:14). He was the Lamb of God offered as the sacrifice for sins (Jn. 1:29). He is the Bread of Life (Jn. 6:48) and the Living Water (Jn. 4:10-14). He is the Light shining in the darkness of sin (Jn. 9:5). He has a Name that can be used in prayer and supplication (Jn. 14:14). He was the Mercy Seat which brought grace upon grace (Jn. 1:16). What could be better than Christ being tabernacled among us? Jesus said He would come to dwell in us as the Holy Ghost (Jn. 14:16-17)!
Behold, the Tabernacle of God!