Exo 25:1-9  Building According to the Pattern Shown

[Study Aired October 3, 2022]

Exo 25:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Exo 25:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. 
Exo 25:3  And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, 
Exo 25:4  And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair,
Exo 25:5  And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood, 
Exo 25:6  Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, 
Exo 25:7  Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate. 
Exo 25:8  And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. 
Exo 25:9  According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.

Introduction

This chapter and the subsequent ones show us how to build the temple or the house of God. As we are aware, this house of God is our body.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Individually, each of us represent a lively stone that the Lord is using to build a collective spiritual house with Jesus as the foundation to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

1Pe 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
1Pe 2:6  Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

As we know, we come to understand spiritual reality through the things that are made. When one stands at the edge of a stream or a river, one can see smooth, small and rounded stones at the bottom of the river or at the edges. These stones used to be large rocks which, through the passage of a flowing river or stream over them for several years, have gradually been broken down into small, smooth and rounded stones of various sizes. These stones serve as free and ready-made materials for building houses in the rural communities where they cannot afford using stone crushers or any technology.

Rom 1:20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Spiritually, we are these lively stones which through the work of a flowing river or stream, that is, the word of the Lord or Jesus Christ, have been broken down into small pieces (destruction of our proud old man) to be used to build the Lord’s temple.

Joh 15:3  Now ye are clean (broken down) through the word (the river passing over us) which I have spoken unto you.

It is insightful to note that those who make use of these stones are those who are poor. They are those in the villages who use these stones to build houses. We are those who are spiritually poor and make use of these stones at no cost. When we stand at the edge of a stream or river, we can never see that a flowing river or stream is having an impact on the rocks. However, after many years, we see the work of the river or stream. In a similar vein, we may not see what the Lord is doing through the trials He is taking us through now, but after many years, we can see that we are gradually being perfected!!  Oh, that men will see the wonderful works of the Lord!!

Psa 107:31  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
Psa 107:32  Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

One songwriter being amazed by the wonderful works of the Lord, puts it this way:

God Moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.

Let us therefore have confidence that what He starts, He is able to finish!! With this in mind, let us now take a closer look at how the Lord is building His house through us as follows:

Materials used in Building the Lord’s House

Exo 25:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Exo 25:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.

We are to bring the Lord an offering for the building of His house. This offering is our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord which is our spiritual worship.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

As indicated in Exodus 25:2, this offering of our bodies as a living sacrifice is to be done willingly. We know from the scriptures that it is the Lord who makes us willing to do anything, both good and evil. If we are left to ourselves, we cannot ever offer any sacrifice to the Lord.

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Joh 15:5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Every man giving an offering willingly in verse 2 therefore means that it is the Lord who is building His house by making us willing to offer our bodies as living sacrifices holy and acceptable to the Lord. This is what we are to offer willingly to the Lord:

Exo 25:3  And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, 
Exo 25:4  And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, 
Exo 25:5  And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood, 

The gold, silver and precious metals that we are to offer refer to the wisdom and understanding we have received from the Lord through His words.

Eze 28:4  With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures:

This means that to take away gold and silver means to take away the understanding and wisdom of the word of the Lord. This is what has happened to Babylon, the church system of the world.

2Ki 14:14  And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.

In building the House of the Lord, therefore, we are to have the mind of Christ which is His wisdom and understanding of His words.

In addition to wisdom and understanding, we are told in verse 4 to offer blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen and goat’s hair. In order to understand the meaning of these items, we need to comprehend how they are used in the tabernacle. An artistic impression of the tabernacle is shown at the URL below:

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse1.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.VxyZgpaNGDsuXON06hPQ8AHaE-%26pid%3DApi&f=1&ipt=17bc8a7553d9cac72ed3b00db71ceeb69412fcf8a40caf3d7eab5de6ad17fdb7&ipo=images

All these items mentioned in verses 4 and 5 are to be used in the outer covering of the tabernacle or the temple of God. These coverings are what outsiders see. It is our righteousness people see. If we are to build the house of God, then we must possess the righteousness of Christ. That is what people see that we are indeed the temple of God. The items mentioned, apart from the colors, therefore signify our righteousness of the saints in Christ as shown by the significance of fine linen which is one of the items mentioned.

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

The colors blue, purple and scarlet signify all those in whom the Lord’s spirit is working to transform them from the first Adam to the last Adam, who is Christ. In conclusion, what we are being told in verses 3 to 5 is that the offering of those whom the Lord’s spirit is transforming from the first Adam to Christ, the last Adam, is our bodies which we must offer as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. As we are aware, this offering of our bodies as living sacrifices is the righteousness of the saints which comes through the Lord’s judgment of our old man.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Exo 25:6  Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense,

The oil for the light and the spices for anointing oil all refer to His spirit which is His words. Our obedience to His words produces the sweet incense before the Lord.  All of these are required to build the house of God. We need to note that all of these items mentioned are available only to the priest who represents the elect.

Num 4:16  And to the office of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest pertaineth the oil for the light, and the sweet incense, and the daily meat offering, and the anointing oil, and the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that therein is, in the sanctuary, and in the vessels thereof.

2Ch 29:11  My sons, be not now negligent: for the LORD hath chosen you to stand before him, to serve him, and that ye should minister unto him, and burn incense.

Apart from the elect (the priests), all others are not given to receiving spices for anointing oil and sweet incense. The following scriptures show us who is qualified to offer incense to the Lord.

Luk 1:5  There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
Luk 1:6  And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 
Luk 1:7  And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. 
Luk 1:8  And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 
Luk 1:9  According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 
Luk 1:10  And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

In Luke 1:6, we are given the qualifications of those who are qualified to offer incense before God. They are those who are righteous before God and walk in all His commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. What we need to understand is that our righteousness comes from the Lord. He works within us to be able to walk blameless before God. The fact that they had no child in verse 7 affirms to us that they represent Jerusalem which is above and is currently barren.

Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 
Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.

It is also insightful to note that apart from the elect or the priests, all others worship outside as noted in Luke 1:10. The multitude worshiping outside represent Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children which is the same as Babylon, the harlot.

Exo 25:7  Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate. 

An ephod is included among the litany of sacred garments to be worn by the priests. Two onyx stones are to be mounted in gold and fastened on the ephod’s shoulder pieces. These stones are to be engraved with the names of the 12 tribes of Israel with six names on one and six on the other. These stones represent the elect and our works as we are mounted in the word of the Lord and fastened to the Lord’s shoulder. This means that we are carried on the shoulders of the Lord. Being carried on the shoulder means that it is the Lord who does the work – we are only resting on His shoulders as He does the walking (leads us).

Luk 15:4  What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? 
Luk 15:5  And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

Building According to the Pattern Shown

Exo 25:8  And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.

Since we are the temple of God, the sanctuary we are to make for Him is to be cleansed from all that offends from within us so that the Lord will come and sit in the throne of our hearts. This cleansing is the work of the Lord. We have made His sanctuary a den of thieves, but the Lord will surely cleanse His temple if we are called and chosen.

Mar 11:15  And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves; 
Mar 11:16  And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. 
Mar 11:17  And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Exo 25:9  According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.

This cleansing of our temple to make the Lord a sanctuary can only be accomplished if we are to follow after the pattern of the tabernacle that the Lord is showing us in His words.

Heb 8:5  Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.

We cannot disregard what the Lord is showing us about how to build His temple, which is our bodies. In the Bible, there are examples of those who did not follow the pattern the Lord has shown them and suffered the wrath of the Lord.

Lev 10:1  And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.
Lev 10:2  And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.

Let us now focus on the patterns that the Lord has shown us regarding how to make Him a sanctuary or build His temple. One of the first things we have learned from the Lord when we left Babylon is that it is the spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing.

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

The Lord has shown us that it is the spirit which gives life. All others do not give life. What this means is that behind the letter of the word is the Lord speaking to us in the spirit. Without understanding what the Lord is saying spiritually, we will not build according to the pattern and therefore are doomed to fail spiritually. In building the Lord’s temple, we must be able ministers of the spirit of the words of the Lord which gives life. Ministering in the spirit is therefore building according to the pattern we have been shown by the Lord.

2Co 3:6  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

Building according to the pattern also means we must focus our attention on the lost sheep of the house of Israel. This is what the Lord instructed His disciples to do – to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Mat 10:5  These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
Mat 10:6  But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 
Mat 10:7  And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mat 15:24  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

The question is, “Who are the lost sheep of the House of Israel?” To understand who the lost sheep are, let us take a look at the following:

1Pe 2:25  For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

Luk 15:3  And he spake this parable unto them, saying, 
Luk 15:4  What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? 
Luk 15:5  And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 
Luk 15:6  And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.
Luk 15:7  I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

This is what Jeremiah also has to say about the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Jer 50:6  My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.
Jer 50:7  All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice, even the LORD, the hope of their fathers. 
Jer 50:8  Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks.

As Peter said, we are the lost sheep of the house of Israel. In other words, the lost sheep represents those who have come to know that they are spiritually poor and that the church system of this world (ninety-nine sheep or Babylon) cannot help them. As a result, they have come out of Babylon. This was the experience of the prodigal son who wasted his father’s resources but later came to know that He was the worst sinner and therefore came out of Babylon. We are therefore called to minister to those who have come to realize their sinful state and are depending on the Lord. This is the church of the firstborn to whom we are sent.

Luk 15:11  And he said, A certain man had two sons: 
Luk 15:12  And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. 
Luk 15:13  And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. 
Luk 15:14  And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. 
Luk 15:15  And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. 
Luk 15:16  And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. 
Luk 15:17  And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 
Luk 15:18  I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, 
Luk 15:19  And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. 
Luk 15:20  And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

The statement in Luke 15:17 that the prodigal “came to himself” means that he came to see that he was spiritually poor. The other brother represents the ninety-nine sheep who need no repentance. These represent Babylon out of which we admonished to come.

Someone may ask, “Didn’t the Lord command the disciples to go into the world and preach the gospel which has nothing to do with the lost sheep of the house of Israel?”

Mar 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Mar 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Mar 16:17  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 
Mar 16:18  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

To understand what the Lord is saying, let’s take a look at how the word of the Lord defines the word “world”.

Joh 1:9  That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
Joh 1:10  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
Joh 1:11  He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 
Joh 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 
Joh 1:13  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 

As we can see from John 1:10-11, ‘He came to His own, and his own did not receive him’ is the same as ‘he came to the world and the world knew him not’. This means that the world and His own (the lost sheep of Israel) are the same. We are the lost sheep (His own) who rejected Him but later received Him and became the sons of God (John 1:12). We know that Jesus’ ministry was centered around Israel and that he didn’t travel around the world. The world as spoken by Jesus therefore refers to the lost sheep of Israel. This is confirmed by the following verses: 

Joh 8:25  Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning. 
Joh 8:26  I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him. 

Rom 10:18  But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.

If we are to build according to the pattern, then we must not waste our time ministering or preaching to the people of this world, including Babylon. Our focus must be on the lost sheep of the house of Israel. That is why we are commanded not to pay attention to a “heretick after the…second admonition”. ‘An heretick’ is one who belongs to the ninety-nine sheep or Babylon who is blinded by his false doctrines, such that he thinks he is spiritually rich.

Tit 3:10  A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject;

Another pattern we have been shown by the Lord in building His house is that we must not neglect the assembling of the saints as some are in the habit of doing.

Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 
Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 

We need revelation from the Lord to know the important role the church plays in helping us to present our bodies as living sacrifices. It is through what every joint supplies that we are able to make a sanctuary for the Lord. That is when we become mature in the things of God and are not blown about by every wind of doctrine. This is because the church is the pillar and ground of the truth. Many have downplayed the role of the church in their spiritual development and have pierced themselves with many sorrows.

1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 
Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 
Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 
Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. 

Another pattern that we have been shown is that we do not build the Lord’s house in our own strength. We need to learn to rest in the Lord. Scriptures tell us that those who ministered before the Lord in the inner court were not to wear anything made of wool that would cause them to sweat. Sweat signifies man’s effort!! 

Eze 44:16  They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.
Eze 44:17  And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. 
Eze 44:18  They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat.

In building the Lord’s temple, we have to rest in the Lord and let Him do His work in us. Resting means ceasing from our own strivings.

Heb 4:6  Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:
Heb 4:7  Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. 
Heb 4:8  For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. 
Heb 4:9  There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. 
Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. 
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

If we are to build according to the pattern, then we must leave Babylon!! Many of us have left Babylon physically but are still under the sway of Babylon because we are still finding it difficult to let go of some of its delicacies – false doctrines, worldly wisdom, traditions, etc.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

Jer 50:8  Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks. 

May the Lord help us to continue to build on the foundation He has laid so that we can make a sanctuary for Him with our bodies as we will continue to build according to His pattern!! Amen!!