SPIRITUAL
DIARY FOR 04-12-03
My
Worship Time Focus: PT-1Type of Something Better
Bible
Reading & Meditation Reference: Hebrews 9:2-3
Message of the verse: “For there was a tabernacle prepared, the
outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this
is called the holy place. And behind the
second veil, there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies.” (NASB)
“There were two rooms in this tent.
In the first room were a lampstand, a table, and loaves of holy bread on
the table. This was called the Holy
Place. Then there was a curtain, and
behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place.” (NLT)
In this
first section of Hebrews nine, which goes from verse one to ten, the theme is
the inferior of the Old Testament tabernacle.
These two verses are in a subsection showing that one of the reasons it
is inferior is because it was a type of something greater.
The people
of Israel built the tabernacle just after coming out of Egypt, and God gave the
directions to Moses. When He gave these
directions He told Moses that this was a type of the one in heaven. Now the OT tabernacle was divided up into two
sections and in the first section, or the Holy Place there were the table of
showbread, the candlestick (or lampstand), and the incense altar. There was then a curtain, which divided this
from the Holy of Holies, which I will talk about when the verses describe it. Jesus Christ is seen in these articles of
furniture for He said that He was the light of the world, and also that He was
the bread of life. The altar of incense
is a picture of prayers going up to heaven before God which is described in
Psalm 141:2 “May my prayer be counted as incense before Thee; The lifting up of
my hands as the evening offering.” It is
also described in different places in the book of Revelations: “Revelation 5:8 And when He had taken the
book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the
Lamb, having each one a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the
saints.
Revelation 8:3 And
another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much
incense was given to him, that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints
upon the golden altar which was before the throne. Revelation 8:4 and the smoke of the incense,
with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel's
hand.” This also pictures the Lord Jesus
Christ interceding for us in heaven.
This is written about in Romans 8:33-34.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Paul writes in one of his letters that the
things that happened in the OT were written for us as believers to see, and
thus we can grow by them. I think that
he may have been talking about some of the mistakes that were made by the
children of Israel, but I do believe that I can learn from the verses that the
author of Hebrews is referring to when writing about the OT tabernacle. I can see the patience of God as He planned
for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ by having different types of Christ in
the OT. These pictures of Him in the OT
are wonderful for me to look at and to better understand, but I must caution
myself that I will probably not know all of the significance of them, so I need
to continue to apply myself to learning.
The Word of God has been a learning experience for me today
as I studied it.
My
Steps of Faith Today: Continue
to ask the Lord work the qualities of courage and compassion into the fabric of
my being, and to continue to make me less selfish and less fearful over the
things of life.
Memory verse for the week:
Psalm 40:9
9.
I have proclaimed glade tidings of righteousness in the
great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest.
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