Exodus 36:10 And he coupled the five curtains one unto another: and the other five curtains he coupled one unto another.
11 And he made loops of blue on the edge of one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling: likewise he made in the uttermost side of another curtain, in the coupling of the second.
12 Fifty loops made he in one curtain, and fifty loops made he in the edge of the curtain which was in the coupling of the second: the loops held one curtain to another.
13 And he made fifty taches of gold, and coupled the curtains one unto another with the taches: so it became one tabernacle.
14 And he made curtains of goats’ hair for the tent over the tabernacle: eleven curtains he made them.
15 The length of one curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits was the breadth of one curtain: the eleven curtains were of one size.
16 And he coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves.
17 And he made fifty loops upon the uttermost edge of the curtain in the coupling, and fifty loops made he upon the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second.
18 And he made fifty taches of brass to couple the tent together, that it might be one.
19 And he made a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering of badgers’ skins above that.
In Exodus chapters 26 & 27 God gave Moses detailed instruction on the building of the Tabernacle. Here in chapter 36 we read that the men that God chose assembled that Tabernacle exactly as God had instructed Moses.
God is a God of order. There was much detail given in the materials that needed to be gathered for the Tabernacle. There was also much detail given in the construction of that Tabernacle. The men chosen by God were interested in detail. They were prepared for the work by God. They did not skip over anything. They paid attention to detail.
This again is a picture of the true servant of God. The false teachers do not care about detail. They work in approximates. That is what the Pharisees did and that is what the false teachers do today. They know they cannot support their teaching from the Scriptures, thus they pull a little here and little there and they twist that which they take. They know they are working with lazy and careless people. They know they can pull the wool over their eyes.
Most people are not that interested in detail, not when it comes to their souls. It is a strange thing, but that is the fact. There are people who like to make sure they cover all the bases when it comes to an insurance plan they are signing up for. They want to make sure the house they are purchasing is in good shape, but they are very careless when it comes to their souls.
There is no justification for that careless nature. It just proves what God warns of in II Corinthians 4:
II Corinthians 4:3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
The Bible tells us there is a spiritual battle taking place. That battle began to be revealed to man in Genesis 3. It was the devil who was seeking to keep man from knowing the peace and blessing of God. He was able to convince Adam that God was not telling him the truth. Adam was not created a sinner. He was created without sin, but he was a man. He had the capacity to sin and he chose to sin. The rest of humanity is born in sin and we sin because we have that sin nature from birth. We look for ways to justify our sinfulness. We are willing to believe a lie if it sounds good to us.
Paul tells us:
I Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
From the start we all reject the truth. We find it far fetched. We stumble across a lie and that sounds much more plausible to us than the truth. A few people will listen to the Spirit of truth — the Holy Spirit and be saved. The majority of mankind is content to believe the lie until death.
Back in our study of Exodus, we have noted that the Tabernacle was a type of Jesus Christ. God gave great detail for that structure, because He wanted the people to see the precious nature of the Lord Jesus Christ.
That Tabernacle had several layers of skins as Its covering. No natural light would get into that tent. The only light in there would be that of the candlestick. This is important to understand. The only true light available to us today is that from the Light of the World. That Light is Jesus Christ. The Bible warns us that the devil comes across as an angel of light.
God wants to shield us from that deception. That shield is found in Christ. When a person is saved, his eyes are opened and he can see the Light. He is drawn to that Light and once he has the Light, he wants more of it. God gives His true child the ability to discern truth from error through the indwelling Holy Spirit.
A person that is truly saved, does not want to be lied to. He wants the truth. He appreciates the Truth. Jesus Christ is the Truth. There is no lie in Him. Those who put their trust in Him have eternal life and they will be led the right way. They need to choose to follow that way every day.
The picture of the Tabernacle points to that fully capable Saviour Who will never lead anyone astray. The men God chose to assemble that structure needed to pay attention to detail. God helped them to be able to do that. He equipped them for the task at hand.
God will also equip His child today for the task at hand. He will save the person and give them eternal life. He gives each saved person the Holy Spirit who is there to guide the saved person into all truth. The Tabernacle was not about glitz and glamour. It was about holiness and purity. It was a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was a picture that presented the promise of the seed of the woman in a visual form, preparing the people for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. God would later call John the Baptist to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah.
In the Old Testament, most Jews rejected the blessing of following God. In the New Testament, many Jews rejected the message of John the Baptist. Later they would also reject the message of Jesus Christ. Today as well, most people reject the message of the Scriptures. They love a doctored version of the truth. It fits better with the sinful nature of man. The few who will submit to the truth will know His blessing now and into eternity.
Pastor Bartel
