Family Camp LessonsLast week our family went to East Texas for a week
long "Family Camp"
Each evening there was a "camp meeting" worship /
teaching session. The main theme for this years Family Camp was the Wilderness
Tabernacle - the "tent of meeting" that God commanded Moses to build and
institute the Jewish mode of sacrifice. Of course later the pattern of the
tabernacle was built in to Solomon's Temple.
The points that were driven home to me
were:
1) The 4 sections of the Tabernacle and their
purpose
a) Alter of sacrifice
b) Laver of cleansing
c) Holy Place
d) Holy of Holies
2) How God was RELATING to his people through these
parts and purposes
3) How God used this as a pattern for His
post-resurrection relationship to us
First ...
The early Jewish nation sacrificed continually on
the Alter for the sin, guilt, thanks, etc. offerings.
The priests would then wash in the laver to purify
themselves BEFORE they entered the Holy place.
AND .. only once a year ... ONE of them would go
into the Holy of Holies - into the presence of God
Second ...
God lived among His people but there were all these
barriers and processes they had to go through for ONE of them to get into the
same room as He was in.
Third ...
Of course, after the ONE sacrifice that Jesus
provided for us - and the rending of the veil between the Holy Place and the
Holy of Holies and Jesus now being OUR High Priest who gives us
CONCLUSIONS:
1) We are to spend more time between the Laver
(washing ourselves / cleansing ourselves from the dirt of the world/flesh that
we pick up daily) and the ( now ) one room - Holy Place/Holy of Holies
fellowshipping in prayer (incense), eating the Word (bread), following the light
(menorrah/Jesus) and having that one on one - face to face - heart to heart
relation with our GOD that He had with Adam/Eve before the fall.
2) Historically the people spent most of their time
coming into the courtyard of the Tabernacle to hand over their sin, guilt, etc.
sacrifices for the Priests to perform their duties with.
3) Two points:
a) Post resurrection we should spend most of our
time between the Alter and the combined room Holy Place/Holy of Holies
fellowshipping with our God as individuals and not continually focusing on our
sacrifices. Yes, we need to recall how the ONE sacrifice paid for ALL our sin ..
but
b) We should focus on who He is TODAY (Paul, Peter,
John epistles and Revelation) ... while remembering what he did way back at the
alter in the past. Instead of focusing on what He did in the past
(BIG TOE STEPPING HERE ... When we focus on the
past (babe in manger, continually preach to the choir about our salvation,
celebrate Christmas with all its TRADITIONS and trappings) WE ARE JUST LIKE THE
JEWS WHO REJECTED CHRIST because they did not see the pattern of the
Tabernacle and feared leaving the comfort level of what they had instead of
embracing what they were being given going forward. | 
Daddy, I saw your comment on my post and yes, I can't help stepping on escargot when they position themselves all over the garden! Besides, most of them were too small to eat -- you'd have to get about 20 before you got a decent mouthful. 
