Exodus 37
In Exodus 37, the craftsmen make the Ark, the table, the lampstand, and the altar of incense. These are four different pieces of the Tabernacle, all playing a different role. The Ark will become the Ark of the Testimony, the table is where the bread of the presence will be, the lampstand will be lit, and the altar of incense will hold the anointing oil and incense. I took this today as an opportunity to think about testimony and specificity.
A testimony is the evidence given by a witness. When we testify for something, we are making a statement based on personal knowledge or belief. When we give our testimony, we are giving evidence for God based on our personal experience. The Ark becomes the Ark of the Testimony when Moses puts the tablets of the Ten Commandments into it, because he is placing the evidence of God into the Ark.
A testimony is powerful because it is the evidence or the proof that something exists. When we share our testimony with somebody else, it is an opportunity to show them the power of God and what He can do in each of our individual lives. In the same way, when Moses puts the Ten Commandments into the Ark, the testimony becomes a reminder to the people of Israel that God has provided for them.
All of the items made and put into the Tabernacle have significance and serve a purpose. They are all laid out with a detailed way to build them and a detailed account of how they were built. It shows that God has a care for detail and a care for perfection. There is a way that He wants us to worship Him, and there is a purpose behind everything He has commanded, from the way the holy anointing oil is used to the way the incense smells.
It is a little bit difficult to understand the Tabernacle in some ways, because under the new covenant we have a direct relationship with God. We don't need the curtain that separates us from Him. We are directly connected with Him, and what a blessing that is. But the Tabernacle also reminds me of how holy God's presence is and how important it is to treat what He has created as holy. He has clearly created it with specific design, specific intelligence, and specific wisdom for specific reasons. Overlooking the specificity of how God is and how He created things undermines His power and doesn't allow us to experience His full presence.
My response to this passage is to really think about my testimony and the evidence that I give for God. It is also to think about life with more specificity, and when I pray, to be specific about what I am praying for. What wisdom am I praying for? What do I really want? What am I really seeking?
