A Holy Sanctuary

 Many of the things written in the Old Testament foreshadow things that will come to pass in the New Testament. We see this with the sacrifices of the Old Covenant pointing to Jesus' ultimate sacrifice on the cross and in many other ways. It is very helpful for us to read the Old Testament looking for these things and apply them to our Christian lives today. Of course, we need to make sure we have a solid reference in the New Testament, so we don't add anything to the Word of God.

As the people left Egypt and headed to the Promised Land, God gave them many instructions about all kinds of things. One of His main instructions was to construct the Tabernacle. He gave the instructions in great detail. (Exodus 25:8) He told Moses to have the people of Israel to build for Him a holy sanctuary so that He could live among them. This command shows us the heart of God for His people, and His desire to be close to them in all their travels. God hasn't changed.

The holy sanctuary was in the center of the Tabernacle. It was a place "set apart" just for God to reside above the Ark of the Covenant and the mercy seat. Holy means "set apart" for a particular purpose. The word sanctuary means "a set apart place." No one else could go into the  Holy of Holies, except the High Priest, and that was sonly once a year. The rest of the time it was God's residence. He was always right in the middle of His people as they traveled and when they camped.

Now, God does the same thing for His people, all believers. He has declared our bodies to be the temple of the Holy Spirit who comes to reside in us when we get saved. (I Corinthians 6:19,20) He did not just want to forgive our sins. He wanted to be close to us all of the time. Therefore, we need to honor our bodies as holy sanctuaries. They are the dwelling place of God, the Holy Spirit. We need to take care of our bodies, so we can serve God well, as He directs us, and we need to listen to the Holy Spirit as He directs us every step of our lives.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read Exodus 26-28.