Scripture Reading: Exo. 25:8-40; 30:1-10; John 1:14; 6:35; 8:12; Rom. 8:34; Col. 2:9
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In the Old Testament Christ is typified by the tabernacle with all the furniture—Exo. 25:9; John 1:14; Heb. 9:1-5; 10:20:
A
The tabernacle that God charged Moses to build is a type of the incarnated Christ, Christ in the flesh—Exo. 25:8-9; John 1:14:
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Through His incarnation Christ put on human nature to be God's concrete expression in humanity; from the time that Christ became incarnate, the fullness of the Godhead began to dwell in a concrete way in Him as the tabernacle—Col. 2:9.
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Through His incarnation Christ not only brought God into humanity but also became a tabernacle to God as God's dwelling place on earth in humanity; through incarnation God became a man, mingled Himself with humanity, and became His own dwelling place—John 1:14.
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Christ, the incarnate God, as the embodiment of God became the dwelling place of God in humanity as the means by which man could contact God and thereby receive and enjoy God—v. 14.
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The fullness of the Godhead has been embodied in Christ as the real tabernacle so that we may enter into God and enjoy Him—Col. 2:9:
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In Christ, the real tabernacle, God was embodied for our enjoyment— John 1:14, 16:
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God's dwelling place is the place for Him to be the enjoyment for His people, the place where God's people may participate in the full enjoyment of God Himself—v. 17.
⑵
Christ in the flesh was the tabernacle that brought God to man so that man might enjoy Him—v. 14.
ｂ
The type of the tabernacle indicates that in His incarnation God has become enterable—14:20:
⑴
Originally, God was mysterious, invisible, unapproachable, and untouchable (1 Tim. 6:16), but now God has been embodied in a tabernacle that can be entered; thus, He is the enterable God.
⑵
Our enterable God is Christ, the God-man, the incarnated Triune God and the embodiment of the Triune God—Col. 2:9.
⑶
After we have experienced the altar (the cross of Christ—Heb. 13:10) and the laver (the washing power of the life-giving Spirit issuing from the death of Christ—1 Cor. 15:45b), we are qualified to enter into the incarnated God, signified by the tabernacle—Exo. 27:1-8; 30:17-21.
B
The Ark of the Testimony is a type of Christ, the true testimony of God, who is the embodiment and expression of all that God is—25:10-22:
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As the embodiment of God's testimony (the law—20:1), the Ark typifies Christ as the embodiment of God—Col. 2:9.
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The Ark as a type of Christ indicates that God's redeemed people can contact God in Christ and through Christ—Exo. 25:17-22; John 14:6; Heb. 10:19-20.
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As the center and content of the tabernacle, the Ark also signifies that Christ is the center and content of the church, that Christ has the place of preeminence, and that the church, the Body of Christ, comes out of Christ— Col. 1:18.
C
The table of the bread of the Presence signifies Christ as our life supply—Exo. 25:23-30; John 6:35, 57:
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In particular, the table of the bread of the Presence signifies Christ as the nourishing feast for the believers as God's priests—1 Pet. 2:5, 9; Rev. 1:6.
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In Exodus 25 the table comes after the Ark and is connected to the Ark:
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When we meet with God upon Christ, enjoying fellowship with God and hearing words from His mouth (v. 22), the Ark becomes the table of the bread of the Presence, where we enjoy a nourishing feast.
ｂ
This means that Christ as the embodiment of God's testimony issues in our enjoyment of Him; furthermore, in experience our enjoyment of Christ always brings us back to Him as God's testimony.
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Within Christ, His humanity (acacia wood) is the basic element for our enjoyment, and upon Him is divinity (gold) as the expression of God; the more we enjoy Him as the life supply, the more we express Him—vv. 23-25.
D
The lampstand signifies that Christ in His divinity is the light of life that shines over God's redeemed people—vv. 31-40:
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The fact that the lampstand comes after the table of the bread of the Presence indicates that the light comes out of the life supply; when we enjoy Christ as our food, we have the light of life—John 1:4; 6:35; 8:12.
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As a type of Christ, the lampstand portrays Christ as the resurrection life growing, branching, budding, and blossoming to shine forth the light.
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The lampstand implies the Triune God: the gold signifies the Father as the substance, the stand signifies the Son as the embodiment of the Father, and the lamps signify the Spirit as the expression of the Father in the Son.
E
The incense altar signifies Christ as the Intercessor to maintain the relationship between God and His people—Exo. 30:1-10; Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25:
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The altar itself is a type of Christ's person, not a type of His prayer; it signifies Christ praying, Christ interceding.
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For the maintaining of our relationship with God, we need Christ as our Intercessor—Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25.