The True Tabernacle

Jesus is the Greater Tabernacle in which the presence and glory of God dwell and manifest for all men to behold – John 1:14.

The Gospel of John presents Jesus as the ‘Logos’ (λογος), the “Word made flesh,” where the glory of God is manifested before all men. The Son of God is the Greater and True Tabernacle in which God’s presence dwells, not the portable tent carried by Israel in the Wilderness or the later Jerusalem Temple “made with hands.”

[Tent - Photo by Ihor Malytskyi (Lviv, Ukraine) on Unsplash]

With the arrival of Jesus Christ, the worship of men desired by the Father is no longer limited to dedicated structures, geographic locations, or only one nation. From now on, worship takes place “in the spirit and truth.” Men and women of every nation and people experience the majesty of God and behold His nature in the Nazarene:

• “For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for the sake of Jesus. Seeing it is God who said, Light will shine out of darkness, who shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” – (2 Corinthians 4:5-6).

The declaration in the Gospel of John that the ‘Logos’ became flesh echoes the incident at Mount Sinai when God inscribed His ten “words” on the stone tablets that were housed later in the Tabernacle or “the Tent of Witness.” The “Word” of God is now “tabernacling among us” in Jesus of Nazareth:

• “We beheld his glory, the glory as of an only-born from a father, full of grace and truth” – (John 1:14-18).

The Greek verb translated as “tabernacled” in John is ‘skénoō’, meaning “to tabernacle; to pitch a tent.” It is related to the noun ‘skéné’ or “tent,” the same Greek noun used for the “tabernacle” in the Greek Septuagint version of the Book of Exodus.

Thus, God “dwells” or “tabernacles” among His people in His Son, Jesus Christ. Yahweh commanded Israel to “construct a Sanctuary for me that I may dwell among them.” What the ancient Tabernacle foreshadowed has become reality in the Son of God - (Exodus 25:8-9, 33:7-11).

OVERFLOWING GRACE AND TRUTH

The presence of Yahweh was manifested in front of the ancient Tabernacle in the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night. Just as God revealed His presence among the people of Israel and dwelt in their midst in the Ancient Tent, so He now manifests His glory and makes His habitation among His New Covenant people through Jesus, the “Word become flesh” - (Exodus 40:34-35, Numbers 9:15-23).

This same Jesus is “full of grace and truth,” as declared in John 1:17. This continues the imagery from the Book of Exodus. Moses asked Yahweh to show him his “glory,” but no man could “see His face and live.” Therefore, God placed Moses in the “cleft of a rock” as He passed by, permitting him only to see His “backside” as He descended in the cloud and passed before the Great Lawgiver, proclaiming:

• “Yahweh, Yahweh, a God of compassion and grace, slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness and faithfulness” - (Exodus 33:17-23, 34:1-6).

Today, the glory and nature of God are revealed forevermore in Jesus rather than in glimpses of Him seen from a distance in passing clouds or momentary flashes of fire.

Unlike Moses, Christ’s disciples behold God’s true glory and not just His “backside,” and they do so in the Man from Nazareth, the Messiah who is “full of grace and truth.” God manifests His unfiltered glory, grace, and truth through His Son, Jesus Christ.

No longer is the presence of God restricted to man-made structures. Jesus is the fulfillment of everything that the original Tabernacle and the later Temple foreshadowed. However, this present and enduring glory is full, visible, and available for all men to behold.

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SEE ALSO:

• The Logos - (Jesus is the Living Word in flesh, the true Tabernacle where the Glory of God is revealed. He is the man who reveals God’s Grace and Truth – John 1:14)

• Seeing the Unseen God - (The fullness, grace, and truth of God are found in the Word made Flesh, Jesus of Nazareth, who alone has seen the unseen God)

• The Fullness of Time - (The previously hidden mysteries of God are revealed in Jesus, especially in his Death and Resurrection, the turning point of History)

• God is Speaking - (God has spoken His definitive word in His Son. All previous words given by the prophets were preparatory, promissory, and partial)