DAY 181- BIG PICTURE IN A YEAR - THE WILDERNESS
When Moses finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed it and consecrated it and all its furnishings...
Numbers 7:1
Reading: Exodus 40:18-33, Ephesians 2:18-22.
Imagine living with the tangible presence of the Almighty God in your midst! What would that do to your mentality, to your sense of identity?
So far we have noted that the sacred feasts and the law were given by God to His people to change their mentality from being slaves, to being His chosen and free people. The feasts and the law were given so that they would remember that they were no longer a loose collection of families and disconnected clans, but a whole nation under God.
Today we examine the third element of unity-formation - God instructed them to do was build a home for Him to inhabit.
The Tabernacle.
It would stand in the centre of the camp during all their Wilderness journeys. The people made contributions of many different materials and services to get this tent made, and the priests carried it and set it up every time they stopped their journey. It served as a visible testament to the reality that God lived in the midst of His people. God manifested His presence to His people in the form of a cloud that would settle over the tent. In this way, the Lord who lived among them reshaped their mentality and helped them to understand their call to be His children.
Church was designed to be a very similar experience. When you ‘go to church’, what you are actually doing is joining with other believers to become a house, a tent, in which God can display His glory. It is only possible to be transformed from a slave to a child when you get to witness God manifesting His glorious presence among His people.
Prayer
Thank You Lord that You have sent the Holy Spirit to live among us as we assemble. Open my eyes to see Your glory amid Your people.
For the family
For the next 3 nights, explain the studies in an age-appropriate way. Then watch this representation of the Tabernacle and explain what the different elements and pieces of furniture mean.