As God's people, there is a certain amount of tension that we live with in our faith lives. We have been rescued from our sin by what Jesus did and endured for us, and yet, we still battle against sin in our daily lives. We are fully redeemed in God's eyes by what Jesus has done, and by virtue of our baptism, and yet, we are still sinful human beings, daily doing that which He says not to do, and failing to do that which He commands us to do.
One thing about us human beings, though, is that we simply do not do well with tension. We go out of our way to keep tension down in our lives. Tension even goes so far as to have physical effects on our bodies. Our heart rate elevates. Our blood pressure rises. We may even find ourselves sweating. In our minds, it creates that "fight or flight" instinct. Tension just isn't something that deal well with, even when it is something like wrestling with the fact that we have life in Jesus, and yet, we must die because of our sin.
In a way, the place of God's presence presents tension into what we think of God and how He comes to us. In one sense, we want a reliable place to know that "this is the place where I go to meet God." There is comfort in knowing that we have a place to go in which we meet God, and where others can share that same thing. That is the sense of the temple. Here is the place where God meets His people, and you can know that He is there, as He has promised.
Yet, we also want to know that God is with us wherever we may go. We want a God who is with us, regardless of where we may be. We want a God who travels with us on the roads of life, who goes before us, who goes under us to support us, and above us to protect us. This is the sense of the tabernacle, that God is with us in our travels, and not merely at one designated place, and that He promises that He is with us wherever we may be.
The reality that we find is that God desires both of these. God is a God of the tabernacle, which traveled with the people throughout the wilderness, and God is a God of the temple, establishing a place where He can be found on a somewhat permanent basis. And truth be told, there are times in our life where each of these is desirable. We want the temple, the reassurance that THIS is God's house. We also want the reassurance that God is with us when we are not in His house, but when we are fighting the good fight of the faith in our daily lives.
The nice thing is, our God is both of these. He doesn't feel the tension of wrestling with where He is found. He simply is found. He is present with us in all places, and He is present in His house for us. He is stable, giving us a place where we can know He is found, and He is flexible, with us everywhere we go in life. And that is a great thing for us, even if we cannot fully fathom it.
One thing about us human beings, though, is that we simply do not do well with tension. We go out of our way to keep tension down in our lives. Tension even goes so far as to have physical effects on our bodies. Our heart rate elevates. Our blood pressure rises. We may even find ourselves sweating. In our minds, it creates that "fight or flight" instinct. Tension just isn't something that deal well with, even when it is something like wrestling with the fact that we have life in Jesus, and yet, we must die because of our sin.
In a way, the place of God's presence presents tension into what we think of God and how He comes to us. In one sense, we want a reliable place to know that "this is the place where I go to meet God." There is comfort in knowing that we have a place to go in which we meet God, and where others can share that same thing. That is the sense of the temple. Here is the place where God meets His people, and you can know that He is there, as He has promised.
Yet, we also want to know that God is with us wherever we may go. We want a God who is with us, regardless of where we may be. We want a God who travels with us on the roads of life, who goes before us, who goes under us to support us, and above us to protect us. This is the sense of the tabernacle, that God is with us in our travels, and not merely at one designated place, and that He promises that He is with us wherever we may be.
The reality that we find is that God desires both of these. God is a God of the tabernacle, which traveled with the people throughout the wilderness, and God is a God of the temple, establishing a place where He can be found on a somewhat permanent basis. And truth be told, there are times in our life where each of these is desirable. We want the temple, the reassurance that THIS is God's house. We also want the reassurance that God is with us when we are not in His house, but when we are fighting the good fight of the faith in our daily lives.
The nice thing is, our God is both of these. He doesn't feel the tension of wrestling with where He is found. He simply is found. He is present with us in all places, and He is present in His house for us. He is stable, giving us a place where we can know He is found, and He is flexible, with us everywhere we go in life. And that is a great thing for us, even if we cannot fully fathom it.
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