by Derek Packard | Jun 11, 2012 | How to Pray Tabernacle Prayer
Not just an Old Testament Idea, The Tabernacle is an Eternal Reality.
When I first started out with the Tabernacle prayer, I stumbled over praying through something in the Old Testament. I’m not alone. Many Christians look at the Tabernacle in the Wilderness as Old Testament history that’s a story about the Israelites in the Wilderness. In Exodus we are told of how Moses was up on the mountain and was instructed by God to build a sanctuary where God could dwell with his people. But… it had to built according to a very specific design and pattern.
Every detail was communicated to Moses from God. And Moses did what he was told. As most read the Old Testament, especially Exodus, Numbers, & Deuteronomy, they stop at the historical presentation of what happened. In years past, I would glean a lesson or two from a chapter, and move on, because those books are so tedious in their detailed explanation of how God prescribed worship to happen for His people.
But What does that really have to do with me today? And besides we are not under the law anymore right? The thing I didn’t realize is that the pattern that Moses received from God was a replica of the actual Temple in heaven. And that changed everything for me.
So what Moses built was a portable replica using the materials and technology he had at his disposal in 1500 BC. Moses Tabernacle was a replica of what has existed in heaven for all eternity, It’s the same Temple that exists today in heaven and it’s the same Temple that we may see one day when we enter eternity. The Tabernacle or Temple is a heavenly reality. It is not just an Old Testament idea. Get your mind around this.
Before the earth was created….the Temple was. Before the physical realm described in Genesis 1 happened, the Temple was functioning as God’s house in heaven. When Jesus ascended in Acts 1 he went to prepare a place for us in his father’s house, the Temple in Heaven. When Hebrews describes Jesus as the High Priest who actually carried his own blood to the Mercy seat in real Temple Heaven, he’s talking about Jesus putting his own blood on a real Mercy seat on the real Ark of the Covenant in the Permanent Tabernacle in Heaven. When Paul says we are seated with Christ in heavenly places….he means in the Throne room in the Temple in heaven. When John describes the Throne room in Revelation 4 … he’s talking about the Holy of Holies in the eternal temple in heaven that Moses saw when he built the Tabernacle in the Wilderness. Are you getting this?
What about today? Today we have temples built by God and not by the hands of men. As a faithful believer in Jesus Christ, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit today, another replica of the Temple in heaven! And you need to understand the implications of this reality. The principles of Temple or Tabernacle worship are to be practiced in my temple (my body) today. In John 2 Jesus said his body was the temple. Today the scriptures tell me that I am a Temple of God.
The Temple is the original house of worship, it’s permanent, and is the source of all things in the physical universe and the center of all things in the spiritual dimension. It’s where God, the Father lives. It’s the House where Jesus hangs out. The Holy Ghost has his own wing there. Anything in the Bible that refers to the Temple, the Tabernacle, Throneroom, Tent of David, Tent of Meeting, Bethel, Secret place, etc. is ultimately pointing out some aspect of worshipping God according to pattern permanent established in the heavenly Temple. And this is good news for you. Because these principles of worship are keys to you worshipping God fully today.
Today as Evangelicals, we totally focus on Jesus Christ. We want to know Jesus. We want to love Jesus. Jesus called his own body the Temple. And we are made in that image. We worship Jesus in our temples. Do you want to really study Jesus and his ministry? Then pray through the tabernacle prayer because it’s a picture of who Jesus is, and what he did for us, so we would be prepared to “come boldly before the Throne of Grace.” By the way all this I’m writing to you came not through bible study per say. Nor was I told it by a bible teacher. This is an example of what the Holy Spirit teaches you as you pray the Word, the Scriptures, according to the Tabernacle worship pattern or tabernacle prayer.
by Derek Packard | May 4, 2012 | tabernacle prayer testimonies
I started praying the Tabernacle or Temple Prayer in 2002. After 10 years of blessing, I can say without hesitation, that this Tabernacle Prayer is the best discipleship method I’ve ever seen. By praying the way Pastor Cho teaches, the Holy Spirit has ministered to me in very powerful ways and it has happened consistently for years. And it’s not just me, my wife saw the change in me, and she started praying it with a similar effect. Then my teenage daughters caught onto it. Tabernacle Prayer has grounded us in God’s Word as a family in a way nothing else could….through prayer. We have seen miracles. We have grown deeply in our love for Jesus Christ and our desire to keep him first and foremost in the center of our lives. We highly recommend that every Christian incorporate Tabernacle prayer into their devotional lives. You can read more about our family testimony here.
by Derek Packard | May 2, 2012 | How to Pray Tabernacle Prayer
Here are some tips for getting your kids involved in praying the tabernacle. We believe the key concept in learning the tabernacle is the VISUAL and PRACTICAL and ORDERLY aspects of Tabernacle worship. To help convey that we have developed a few visual tools. The most popular video we have right now for kids focuses on teaching kids what the ten commandments are. Reflecting on the ten commandments is part of the laver in the Tabernacle Prayer. This brief video is fun and great for everyone (even though it’s designed for kids) to learn the Ten Commandments. With each of our 4 kids, first they learn what the commandments are, then the commandments become a key basis for prayer and discipline in family life. For example when a child tells a lie, they are reminded about commandment 9… thou shall not lie (bearing false witness) They realize that God tells to be truth tellers, not liars, so as a Christian family, in a very lifegiving way, we repent when we tell lies and receive forgiveness for breaking a commandment of God. We have found that in using this approach, telling the truth becomes a high priority with the children and this serves them well as they grow up.
Here is a simple way set up a tabernacle for kids from Rose Publishing who has some excellent Tabernacle Materials.
How to Create a Tabernacle Model in 10 minutes:
Hello fellow Kids’ Ministries leader (If you don’t work with kids, then please forward this e-mail to your Kids’ Ministries leaders),
- Set Up Tabernacle Boundaries Use masking tape to draw out the boundaries of the Tabernacle’s main areas, such as the courtyard, the Holy Place, and the Holy of Holies. If outside, try using sidewalk chalk instead of tape.
- Create a “Veil” Barrier for the Holy of HoliesUse 2 cardboard voting booth barriers (or something akin: room barriers, hung blankets, etc) to block the Holy of Holies from the rest of the areas. DON’T let kids see what’s behind this barrier before the object lesson. This will automatically create a “buzz” of anticipation amongst the kids before the lesson, “Oooh”.What’s behind there?”
- Enthusiastically Explain the Israelites’ Pattern of WorshipDesignate several kids as priests and one student as the High Priest. Explain the Israelites’ pattern of worship. For more information on this, check out Rose Guide to the Tabernacle.Allow all the kids to enter into the courtyard. Then, only allow the designated students to enter the Holy Place. Emphasize that only these “special” priests may enter the next section. Kids will usually whine, “That’s not fair!” “Why only them?” etc.Then, talk about how God’s presence dwelt in the Holy of Holies and how only the High Priest once a year could go into the Holy of Holies. Describe the various sacred furnishings in the Holy of Holies, such as the Ark of the Covenant, and explain how the priest made a sacrifice to pay for the Israelites’ sins. (I brought a stuffed lamb).Ask the kids, “Do you think it’s fair that only one person only once a year got to go into the room where God’s presence stayed? Who wants to go in there?” My kids answered with a resounding, “Yes, it’s unfair because we want to go in there too.”
- Connect the Tabernacle to JesusExplain how Jesus paid the ultimate price and gives us direct access to God, so we don’t have to go through this specific pattern to worship Him anymore. As you explain how Jesus died on the cross, have two other leaders dramatically slide (“rip”) the two cardboard barriers apart, symbolizing how Jesus took away every barrier separating us from God’s presence.
- Make It RelevantEmphasize that during worship we directly enter into God’s presence. I will always remember that after I emphasized this point a first grader exclaimed, “I want to go in there with God.” I pray this stays the anthem of her heart and all of our hearts: “I want to go into God’s presence.”
At first glance, teaching the Tabernacle to kids may appear as a lofty, unrealistic, and unnecessary goal. However, when kids understand how worship used to be, they are able to better appreciate worship now.
Imagine how your kids’ attitudes and behavior will change when they realize worship is all about Him!
Here is a link to all Dr. Cho’s Best Books
by Derek Packard | Apr 3, 2012 | How to Pray Tabernacle Prayer
The Jewish culture has always centered on temple worship. It is we gentiles who are ignorant of it. Yet we know from Ephesians that Jesus died to make one new man out of the two. (Jew and Gentile) In our ignorance we have thrown the baby out with the bathwater. Our modern form of worship pales in comparison to simply following the pattern established by God in temple worship. That does not mean we sacrifice animals. It means we honor the process of worshipping Christ according to the same pattern he himself fulfilled according to Hebrews.
Eastern Gate – Jesus Christ the only way,
Brazen Altar – Jesus Christ our Savior,
Laver – Jesus Christ our Lord (reflect on the Ten Commandments).
The Candlestick – The Holy Spirit, Jesus the Light of the World.
Table of Showbred – Jesus the Word and the Bread of Life.
Altar of Incense – Worship the Father in Spirit and Truth.
The Veil – Jesus body was broken for us.
Holy of Holies – Intimacy with the Father through Jesus the Ark of the Covenant.
If a new pattern of worship was established when Jesus died on the cross then surely Jesus would have made it known. Instead he honored the old ways. He taught in the Temple. He did come down on the religious leaders for turning sacred worship into religion. And He did drive out the money changers from the Temple, saying, “my Father’s house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”. He honored and was jealous over the temple because he viewed it as symbolic for the real temple in heaven, and the pattern of worship which was symbolized by the Jewish customs was symbolic of the requirements for anyone to access God the Father.
by Derek Packard | Apr 2, 2012 | How to Pray Tabernacle Prayer
Prayer is
the easiest to perform yet the most under utilized spiritual discipline. You can do it most anywhere and at many different times during the day. It requires only that you focus on God
for a few minutes. Yet our busy and distracted lives prevent prayer from having it’s transforming impact in our lives.
Now I’m talking about any kind of prayer here. There are many different kinds of prayer. And the Tabernacle Prayer is my favorite by far. But TP is like a college education vs. a grammer school assignment. I believe all prayer is good. And more prayer is better than less prayer.
This week, a familar verse… an often lost subtlety…revealed in the Amplified version. These kinds of things only apprehend your soul when you are praying them. Review in Matthew where the Lord is encouraging us to be prayers:
Mat 7:7 Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.
There are several profound lessons in this verse that become very clear in the Amplified. “Keep on” is one. Your pastor has probably mentioned this from the pulpit a time or too. “Keep on” means “keep on” asking until something happens. “Keep on” until there is peace about it. “Keep on” until a specific answer is clear. Or “keep on” until your heart sees things differently. So keep on praying every day about it until something happens.
One or two prayers about a situation vs. “keeping on” could be a key to how faith is activated in us.
“Keeping on” in prayer lends itself to the Tabernacle prayer because by practicing the Temple prayer, the Holy Spirit (your best teacher) teaches us to develop a daily prayer discipline so we get maximum benefit from our time with God. And more importantly the Lord experiences a blessing from your focused and consistent worship of him according to His pattern of worship.
But there is more in the (amplified) version of this verse: Mat 7:7 Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you.
Whoa… knock reverently…. what is that? Here the Lord is revealing a secret to approaching Him. God your father, the creator of heaven and earth, the one who formed us in our mother’s womb, he deserves reverence.
Dictionary says: reverence – 1 : honor or respect felt or shown : DEFERENCE; especially : profound adoring awed respect 2 : a gesture of respect (as a bow) synonym see HONOR
We Americans are very poor at honoring or being reverent to anyone. Yet God says that if you want to really please him, show him the reverence that is due his name… even in prayer.
Now I could write a book about this but suffice it to say in this blog that there is a proper protocol to approaching the president of the United States. And there is a proper protocol to approaching God.
I believe that the biblical pattern of reverence is best revealed in the Tabernacle of Moses and best exemplified by Jesus Christ. It is by far the best and most throughly documented pattern of worship in Scripture.
So give it a try and watch what God does when you approach him reverently.
Until next time … stay in His House!
It’s where the action begins!
Derek
by Derek Packard | Mar 29, 2012 | How to Pray Tabernacle Prayer
Patterns are very important to God and they should be to us. He gives us patterns in scripture so we can apply them to our lives and learn how he wants things done. God provides patterns for how we should live life.
One of the most pervasive patterns throughout Scripture is the pattern of how to approach God — how to experience His presence in our midst. This is known as the Temple pattern.
The Temple pattern is derived by studying the pattern God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai. This was the only pattern God would allow for worshipping Him. He would dwell in the Holy of Holies in the heart of the Tabernacle only if everything was done exactly according to His pattern. This included how the Tabernacle was made and set up, what sacrifices were required, how and when to perform those sacrifices. It included how the priests were to approach Him and every aspect of their service to Him. In exchange for following His pattern of worship, He would dwell with His people. He would take care of them. He would fight their battles. He would provide food and water. He would be their God and they would be His people.
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