First Things First

First Things First

A black Methodist preacher was sent to a formerly all-white church in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was the most magnificent church his daughter had ever seen. It was a Gothic structure with beautiful, polished wood and had a beautiful crystal chandelier. Presidents had worshipped there, and a President had even been married in the sanctuary and the parsonage was so large that every one of his children could have their own room. Under the parsonage was a huge cellar, a dingy, dark place with a couple of dim light bulbs hanging from long wires, and cobwebs and shadows. One day, the pastor’s sons found a hole beside the furnace leading to a tunnel and when the pastor and his sons went over to the church building, they found that beside the furnace there were some old boards. As they removed them, they discovered another hole with other tunnels. They explored those tunnels and that night around the dinner table at the parsonage in Cincinnati, five blocks from the Ohio River their father told the story of the Underground Railroad, a network for helping slaves to escape to freedom. Slaves were hunted and would have been brutally punished if caught and it was against the law to help them, but the Underground Railroad helped slaves get to their freedom in Canada. The father said, “Children, I want you to remember this day as long as you live, for today we have found a station in the Underground Railroad.” He went on to say, “The greatness of this church is not in its gothic architecture, its beautiful furniture, its crystal chandelier, or even its social status. The greatness of this church is below us. We are on hallowed ground…” They were on hallowed ground because the tunnels beneath them represented the gift of freedom. Freedom from slavery.

Last week we started our study of the Hallowed or Holy ground of the Tabernacle of God. The Tabernacle was to be a sanctuary that was “a copy and shadow of what is in heaven.” This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: ‘See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.’” It was holy because it was where the Lord would dwell and “tent” among his covenant people. As I mentioned last week, there are two accounts of the Tabernacle. The first account in chapters 25-31 are the instructions given to Moses by God and the second account in chapters 35-40 will show the actual construction of the Tabernacle. Later, as the Tabernacle is constructed the most holy place will be last but now, first things first, the instructions for the only furnishing that would be in the holy of holies is given by God to Moses. This is because it was the most important furnishing in the entire tabernacle. It was the ark of the covenant, and it was the place where the law of God would be placed. It was the place where God would speak to Moses. It was the place where the sins of the people would be forgiven. It was the place where God’s power and presence would be manifested. That brings us to our big idea this morning that God desires that His power and presence be with His people.

Let’s pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for another day that you have made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. We praise you and give you all glory and honor for who you are and for what you have done. Thank you for creating us and breathing your breath into us. Pour out your Holy Spirit on us as we open your Word. Give us wisdom and insight from it and allow it to grow us spiritually into the people you want us to be. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Our first point this morning is God’s Holiness found in Exodus 25:10-16. Follow along as I read those verses. This is what God’s Word says, “Have them make an ark of acacia wood—two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold, both inside and out, and make a gold molding around it. Cast four gold rings for it and fasten them to its four feet, with two rings on one side and two rings on the other. Then make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. Insert the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it. The poles are to remain in the rings of this ark; they are not to be removed. Then put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law, which I will give you.”

God starts his description of the tabernacle, not with the tabernacle itself, but with the most important item that would be in it, the ark of the covenant. It was described first because it was the symbol of the presence of God with His people. Because God was holy and the Israelites were sinful, God designated a way that He could dwell in their presence without the possibility of them being slain. Because of his love for them and because he wanted to be in a personal relationship with them, he provided a way to be close to them. The word “ark” is an Old English word for “chest” or “box.” It is a different word than the one used for Noah’s ark and for the papyrus basket Moses was put in as a baby but all three were saving arks. There are many names for the “ark.” The ark of the covenant, the ark of the testimony, the ark of the Lord of all the earth, the ark of the Lord God, the holy ark and the ark of Thy strength. God commanded that the ark be made of acacia wood. If you remember from last week this was one of the offerings God asked the people to give for the construction of the Tabernacle. Acacia wood was one of the local sources of wood growing in the Sinai area. It grew to between 15-25 feet high and would have been suitable timber for woodworking. It was also resistant to insects, durable and would not decay.

God also gave specific measurements for the ark. It was to be two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. A cubit was the distance measured from a person’s elbow to their fingertips. Of course, the distance would vary per person but there were three standard sizes for a cubit in the OT: 17.5 inches, 20.6 inches and 21.85 inches. The 20.6 inches was known as the “royal cubit” in Egypt. This may have been the standard used by the Israelites since they would have been accustomed to it. So, if we go with the royal cubit the ark would have been about 4 ¼ ft. long and 2 ½ ft. wide and 2 ½ ft. high. It doesn’t matter that the size of the ark was. What matters is that Moses followed God’s instructions to the letter.

The ark was not to be left as a wooden chest or box. It was to be overlaid with pure gold, both inside and out with gold molding around it. Mackay says, “Pure gold, as the most valuable metal available, was employed in those parts of the Tabernacle that were closest to the special presence of the LORD.” Pure gold was probably attached to the inside and outside of the wood in some way and the molding probably went around all the corners of the ark to seal it completely with gold. Next, we learn about another feature of the ark. It seems that there were feet attached at each corner to keep the actual chest from resting on the ground. Also, four gold rings were cast and attached to each of the four legs, two on one side and two on the other. These rings would hold what God commanded Moses to make next. God commanded Moses to make poles from acacia wood and overlay them with gold. The rings and the poles were to keep all human hands from touching the ark. Those who transported the ark would only touch the poles as they carried it. The poles were to remain in the rings and were never to be removed from them. This probably signified the readiness of the Lord to move with His people. Lastly, God commanded that Moses put the tablets of the covenant law or the “Testimony” in the ark once they had given to him. In this way, the ark was a box used to store the Ten Commandments as a testimony and witness to the covenant established between God and His people. It was a visible reminder to the Israelites of their covenant obligations and of who God is. They were to be holy as the Lord is holy in their conduct toward him and each other.

That brings us to our second point called God’s Mercy found in Exodus 25:17-22. This is what God’s Word says, “Make an atonement cover of pure gold—two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends. The cherubim are to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the cover. Place the cover on top of the ark and put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law that I will give you. There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.”

At this point the ark was just an open chest that was to hold the tablets of Testimony after God gave them to Moses. But now God commands Moses to make a cover for the ark. The ark of the covenant was actually made of two pieces, the ark and the atonement cover. When the Israelites would come into the Tabernacle to worship the Lord, they would be faced with His Holiness signified by His law, and they would be reminded of how they had fallen short in their obedience to His covenant. Of course, this was one of the purposes of the ark of the Testimony. But there was another important part of the ark and that was its atonement cover. The atonement cover is also called the propitiatory or the mercy seat. Propitiation means to appease. And the mercy seat was not used in the sense of a “chair” but meant the place where mercy was to be found. Atonement means “a process by which estranged parties are “at one” or “made as one” with each other. The Hebrew word means “to cover.” The fact that the atonement cover would “cover” the tablets of the Law made it clear that what was being covered was the penalty for the people’s disobedience to God’s holy commands.

They would not be able to keep His holy law and deserved condemnation, but the atonement cover pointed to the possibility of this death sentence being dealt with in a different way. The atonement cover played an important part on the Day of Atonement when it was sprinkled with the blood of the sacrifices to cleanse the nation of Israel of their sin and appease the wrath of God. Leviticus 16:15-16 says, “He (Aaron) shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it. In this way he will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been.” It wasn’t the cover that brought a commuted sentence. It was the blood of the sacrifice that was sprinkled on the cover itself. The atonement cover foreshadowed the work of Christ on the cross. He lived a perfect life, obeying God’s Law completely and perfectly and was the perfect lamb of God who willingly, once for all, poured out his blood for the ransom of many. With the atonement cover, the Lord was teaching His people about the coming Messiah who would take away the sins of the world. Guzik says, “It is remarkable that even before God gave Moses the tablets of the Ten Commandments, God made provision for Israel’s failure under the law.”

God commanded Moses to make an atonement cover out of pure gold the same size long and wide as the ark. The intimate connection between the ark and the atonement cover is shown by the use of pure gold in their construction and that they were to be the same size. This would show that the holiness of God and His wrath on sinners symbolized by the Testimony or the Ten Commandments was completely covered by the atonement that was made. God’s holiness and his mercy were equally displayed in his character that he made central to his worship at the tabernacle. Next Moses was commanded to make two cherubim out of hammered gold at each end of the atonement cover. The cover and the cherubim were to be made out of the same piece of pure gold. The cherubim were to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the atonement cover. And they were to be facing each other with their faces turned down looking toward the cover of the ark.

As I said last week, the tabernacle was to reveal the realities of heaven and cherubim are real creatures that reside in heaven. Ryken says, “They function as guardians of the sacred and throne attendants of the Almighty.” They are the highest among the angelic order of creatures and are mentioned over ninety times in the Bible. The first time was in Genesis 3:24 when they were to guard the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. Their likeness will also be embroidered all over the inner curtain of the Tabernacle. Their wings are outstretched, overshadowing and protecting God’s throne. Their faces were to be turned downward in adoration, reverence and awe that would be appropriate when the presence of the Lord descended upon the ark and was enthroned between the cherubim. Psalms 80:1 says, “Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock. You who sit enthroned between the cherubim.” And Psalms 99:1 says, “The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble; he sits enthroned between the cherubim.” These verses emphasize that the ark was considered the throne of God on earth.

The ark was to be finished by putting the atonement cover on top of it and by putting the tablets of the covenant law in it that again God would give to Moses. The ark of the covenant was to be the throne of God on earth, symbolizing His presence with His people. It was also to be the place where His holiness and His mercy resided as symbolized by the Ten Commandments and the atonement cover. We now see another purpose for the ark of the covenant: it was also the place where God would meet with Moses and give all His commands for the Israelites. The word “meet” reflects the name Tent of Meeting given to the Tabernacle. These encounters between Moses and God would not be casual ones but arranged for the definite purpose of meeting together. Moses would continue his special role as covenant mediator between God and the Israelites even after the institution of the priests. It is important that the space above the ark remains empty. One of the Ten Commandments was to not make any graven images of the Lord and so that space had to be empty. It would be where the cloud of God’s presence or the shekinah glory of the Lord would rest when He entered the holy of holies in the Tabernacle.

Another interesting fact that we all probably know is that no evidence of the ark remains. There are many hypotheses about what happened: it may have been lost at the time of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. Others have argued that it was lost during the invasion of Shishak shortly after Solomon’s death. Some believe that it was probably taken by refugees to Egypt during the time of Manasseh’s oppression, and afterwards brought to Ethiopia. Some believe that it could still be buried someplace below the Temple in Jerusalem. We do not know and we are probably not supposed to know.

How can we apply the ark of the covenant to our everyday lives? As I said, the tabernacle was not permanent; it was made to move. And when the people were commanded by God to move, they would take the ark of covenant with them leading the way. In this way, the presence of God was always with them and always leading them. There are three different places the ark was that reminds us of God’s presence.

The first place the ark reminds us of God’s presence is at the Jordan River as the Israelites were getting ready to enter the Promised Land. The ark at the Jordan shows God’s prevenient or “preparing” presence. The priests carrying the ark were to go ahead of the people and walk into the Jordan River which was at flood stage. Joshua 3:15-16a, 17, says, “Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” This is a picture of the prevenient presence of the Lord; the Lord going before His people and preparing their way. Do you believe that God’s presence goes before you in your life preparing the way for you? Do you believe that He will be there at every crucial time in your life? We don’t need to worry about something happening that may never happen. We don’t need to worry about going to places where we’ve never been before. F. B. Meyer asks, “Do you ever ask what you will do at the swellings of Jordan? Do you ever fear that heart and strength may fail? There is a presence with us – a divine companionship, the angel of the covenant, the Christ of God. Shall we have the faith to answer, “Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou are with me?” The Lord goes before us preveniently, preparing the way, and meeting us at every overflowing Jordan and at every swelling river of our lives. That brings us to our first next step which is to Trust in God’s prevenient presence to go before me at every swelling river of my life.

The second place that the ark reminds us of God’s presence is at Jericho. The ark at Jericho shows God’s powerful presence. The Israelites were to walk around Jericho in a procession of the priests carrying the ark of the covenant followed by seven priests blowing their trumpets and the Israelite fighting men. They were to walk one time around for six days and then seven times on the seventh day. On the seventh time around the priest made a long trumpet blast and all the people shouted, and the walls of the city came tumbling down. What caused the city walls to crumble? Was it the priests? Was it the trumpets? Was it the army? Was it the shouts of the people? No, it was the presence of God signified by the ark of the covenant that brought the walls down. It was the powerful presence of the Lord. God’s presence is power for those who are fearful and discouraged. God’s presence is power for those who are sick and in pain. God’s presence is power for those who are separated from loved ones, lonely and in despair. God’s presence is power for the rest of us as well. We all need to stay alive to God's presence. We all need to cultivate His presence in our lives. Let us be people who make a willful decision to start each day acknowledging God’s powerful presence and allow it to transform our lives. That brings us to our second next step which is to Trust in God’s powerful presence to enable me to overcome any obstacle in my life.

There’s one other place that the ark was that we must study as a warning to us and that is the ark in captivity. This is the passing presence of the Lord. This signifies times when the presence of the Lord is not necessarily in our lives due to our disobedience and sin. After arriving in the Promised Land, the Israelites grievously sinned against God and were unfaithful to Him. The presence of God departed from them and the ark was captured by the Philistines. The point is we make our own decision about God’s presence in our lives. We either cultivate it or we don’t. He is always near but due to our sin and unfaithfulness, His presence is not evident in us. We must continually respond to the Lord and be obedient to Him. The vital presence of God depends upon our obedience, response, receptivity and cultivation of His presence. That brings us to our last next step which is to Cultivate God’s presence in my life by being obedient and responsive to Him. ​​ 

As Roxey comes to lead us in a final song and the ushers collect the tithes and offerings, let’s pray: Lord, thank you for the privilege of learning from your Word and hearing from your Holy Spirit this morning. Thank you for your power and presence in our lives. Thank you for your preparing presence that goes before us in every swelling river of our lives. Thank you for your powerful presence that helps us to overcome any obstacle in our lives. Help us to cultivate your presence in our lives by being obedient and responsive to you and help us to trust in your power and presence every day of our lives. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Opening: Jeff Strite, sermoncentral.com, The Secret of the Hidden Room

Closing: The Communicator’s Commentary, Maxie Dunnam, pgs. 316-321 (selected)