Study Series
Lesson Three - Materials Needed For Construction; God’s Call To Stewardship
Exodus 25:1-9 - The LORD said to Moses, These are the offerings you are to receive from them: gold, silver and bronze; Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.
Man’s greatest need is to find the “place” where he meets God in an intimate way. The only solution for survival in life with its toils, heartaches and test is the help only God can give us. Man needs God to face moments of loneliness and despair, hopelessness and helplessness, emptiness and restlessness, unemployment and poverty, accident and disease, temptation and sin, aging and dying, hunger and thirst.
Man needs the presence and assurance of God throughout all life. That is how God created us – with the capacity in our hearts to only be satisfied by HIM and nothing else. That is why the vain pursuit of worldly wealth, fame and fortune is so futile. All the money in the world will not solve the cry of the thirsty heart in need of God. All the fame in the world will not bring the peace that only comes through having a personal relationship with Jesus through the intimacy of the Holy Ghost. God knows that man has these needs. Therefore, God established a very special place for His people –
· A place where He could live among His people
· A place where a special manifestation of His presence would dwell
· A place where His people could come to Him for worship and HELP
· A place where people worshipped and received forgiveness of God and committed their lives to God
· A place set aside or sanctified for God
That place was the TABERNACLE. The breakdown of this lesson on the materials, which were a type of Christ and were used in the Tabernacle, is as follows:
· The Architect of the Tabernacle: God Himself
· The Supplier of the Materials: The People
· The Materials Listed
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As we look at the materials used in creating this structure, we must understand that God’s revelation to man of Himself is always progressive. He always moves from the lower to the higher level. God moves from the ritual to the reality, from the SHADOW to the substance, from the type to the antitype, from the prophecy to the fulfillment, from the symbol to the spiritual truth, from the NATURAL TO THE SPIRITUAL, from the first to the second and from the earthly to the heavenly.
When planning and constructing any building, the most important person is the one responsible for the construction of a building. He determines whether a building stands or falls, functions or fails, is problem-free or loaded with problems, lasts of quickly needs repairs, brings joy or arouses disappointment. That type person is known as the architect. The Tabernacle was so important – so desperately needed by God’s people – that God Himself chose to be the architect of the Tabernacle. Only God knew what kind of building he needed and wanted for the manifestation of His presence. He knew what kind of building He needed to receive man’s worship, what kind of building He needed to teach people about Himself.
Heb 3:3 - Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself.
Rom 11:33 - Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
Ps 122:1 - I rejoiced with those who said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD."
Ps 27:4 - One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.
Isa 2:3 - Many peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from Zion, the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
The Materials to Build the Tabernacle Were Supplied By the People (Ex. 25:2)
Exodus 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.
Moses was to take up offerings from the people, and the people were to give willingly and generously. The word for “offering” (terumah) has the idea of a present, a gift that is given sacrificially; the giving of a special gift, a valuable, costly gift. As salves in Egypt for nearly 400 years the Israelites had accumulated little if any wealth. But now they had enough to give offerings to build the Tabernacle. Where did they get their wealth? The Egyptians! God has so stirred up the Egyptians to get rid of the Israelites they were willing to pay the Israelites to just get rid of them! Glory to God!
They paid them in gold and silver and other goods that would help the nation of Israel as they journeyed to the promised land of Canaan. (Ex. 11:2; 12:35-36) God had seen, as He always does today, that the needs of His people were met. Thus they were now able to give offerings to build the Tabernacle. The point is this: God had provided for the people. What they had was due to HIM; they had money – gold, silver, and possessions because GOD had moved upon the Egyptians to give them wealth. Now, God asked them to give back to Him WILLINGLY and SACRIFICIALLY and to give VALUABLE and COSTLY gifts!
There are several important stewardship lessons to be learned from this attitude the people had in building the Tabernacle:
Psalm 50:10 - For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
Haggai 2:8- The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.
Matthew 6:19-24 - Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: [20] But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: [21] For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. [22] The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. [23] But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! [24] No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Luke 9:23 - And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Ezra 2:69 - They gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work threescore and one thousand drams of gold, and five thousand pound of silver, and one hundred priests' garments.
Mark 12:42-43 - And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. [43] And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
Acts 11:29 - Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea:
Acts 2:44-45 - And all that believed were together, and had all things common; [45] And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
Acts 20:35 - I have showed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Luke 18:18-25 - And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? [19] And Jesus said unto him, why call thou me good? None is good, save one, that is, God. [20] Thou knoweth the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor thy father and thy mother. [21] And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up. [22] Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, yet you lack one thing: sell all that you hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. [23] And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. [24] And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! [25] For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
2 Cor. 9:7 - Every man according as he purposes in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loves a cheerful giver.
Acts 4:34-35 - Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, [35] And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
Deut. 16:17 - Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord thy God which he hath given thee.
The materials for the Tabernacle are listed in Exodus 25:3-7. There were derived from the MINERAL Kingdom, the PLANT Kingdom, and the ANIMAL KINGDOM.
Exod 25:3-7 - These are the offerings you are to receive from them: gold, silver and bronze; blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair; ram skins dyed red and hides of sea cows; acacia wood; olive oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense; and onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastplate. (NIV)
Rev. 3:18 - I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Exodus 25:17 - And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof.
Job 23:10 - But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
1 Peter 1:7 - That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
2 Peter 1:4 - Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
Rev. 21:21-22 - And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass. [22] And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
The mercy seat that we will study in detail later was pure gold. It represented the throne of God, the very place where the presence and mercy of God were symbolized as flowing out to God’s people. The point: gold is the symbol of heaven.
Exodus 30:12-13, 16 - When you take the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when you number them; that there be no plague among them, when you number them. This they shall give, every one that passes among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord. And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls.
Numbers 18:16 - And those that are to be redeemed from a month old shalt thou redeem, according to thine estimation, for the money of five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.
Zech. 11:12-13 - And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. [13] And the Lord said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord.
1 Peter 1:18-20 - Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; [19] But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: [20] Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
Deut. 28:13-23 - And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them: [14] And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them. [15] But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: [16] Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field. [17] Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store. [18] Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. [19] Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out. [20] The Lord shall send upon thee cursing, vexation, and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thou perish quickly; because of the wickedness of thy doings, whereby thou hast forsaken me. [21] The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto thee, until he have consumed thee from off the land, whither thou goest to possess it. [22] The Lord shall smite thee with consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. [23] And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
Rev. 1:12-15 - And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; [13] And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. [14] His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; [15] And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.
Hebrews 9:13-14 - For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies to the purifying of the flesh: [14] How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Hebrews 9:19-20 - For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, [20] Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.
Hebrews 9:23 - It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Hebrews 9:28 - So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;
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.
Rev. 3:5 - He that overcomes, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
Rev. 3:18 - I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see.
Rev. 4:4 - And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
Rev. 7:9 - After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
The goat, in scripture, is mentioned in connection with the sin offering and sinners. (Lev. 16:5-28, Num. 28:15, Matthew 25:32)
Exodus 26:7 - And thou shalt make curtains of goats' hair to be a covering upon the tabernacle: eleven curtains shalt thou make.
Leviticus 16:5-28 - And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. [6] And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. [7] And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. [8] And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat. [9] And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the Lord's lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. [10] But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. [11] And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself: [18] And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the Lord, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. [19] And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. [20] And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: [21] And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness: [22] And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. [23] And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there: [24] And he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering, and the burnt offering of the people, and make an atonement for himself, and for the people. [25] And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar. [26] And he that let go the goat for the scapegoat shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp. [27] And the bullock for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall one carry forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. [28] And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp.
Numbers 28:15 - And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the Lord shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.
Matthew 25:32 - And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
Jesus became the “scape-goat” for the world. Instead allowing the sting of sin to rest upon sinners, Jesus Christ offered Himself as a Sacrifice, as the Substitute and Saviour of the world. HE is the SIN-BEARER for all people for all generations, past, present and future.
Isaiah 53:12 - Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Galatians 1:4 - Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
Hebrews 9:28 - So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
1 Peter 2:24 - Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
1 John 3:5 - And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.
Rev. 1:5 - And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
Exodus 36:19 - And he made a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red, and a covering of badgers' skins above that.
Even though He doesn’t have outward beauty, He protects us the N.T. Tabernacle, the believer, from the elements of fear, guilt, sin, evil, death, loneliness, emptiness and the enemy. He is our protective separation from the world. He does this by:
Isaiah 11:1-3 - And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: [2] And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; [3] And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
In a world filled with corruption, Jesus Christ is the only person who is incorruptible. His nature in us is changing us from corruption to incorruption. As the acacia wood and tree speaks of durability and strength Jesus is the perfect picture or durability and strength.
1 John 2:27 - But the anointing which ye have received of him abides in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teaches you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Judges 9:9 - But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Psalm 52:8 - But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.
Jeremiah 11:16 - The Lord called thy name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken.
Song 4:16 - Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.
Galatians 5:22-23 - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, [23] Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Psalm 141:2 - Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Luke 1:10 - And the whole multitude of the people was praying without at the time of incense.
Romans 8:26-27 - Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. [27] And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Rev. 5:8 - And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.