The Tabernacle the Temple and You

Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly --mere infants in Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:1 God created mankind spiritual beings like Himself, and God's intention was to live forever with them. Because of man's rebellion against God, man died spiritually and now lives under the powerlessness of his soul --intellect, emotion, and will. Man's intellect gathers information from the senses of the body and processes it, his emotion decides what he desires to do, and his will carries out his soul's evil intent. Even though man was spiritually separated from Him, God still desired to live among His people. God's first dwelling place was a tent called the tabernacle, and His second dwelling place which replaced the tabernacle was the temple in Jerusalem. Both dwellings shared three distinct parts: the courtyard, the Holy Place, and the Holy of Holies --where God dwelt above the Ark. The tearing of the temple's curtain at Christ's death signifies God leaving the temple to dwell within man, His new sacred temple. Man's soul with its intellect, emotion, and will forms the new Holy Place and corresponds to the lampstand, the altar of incense, and the table of showbread. Man's re-born spirit with its intuition, conscience, and communion forms the new Holy of Holies and corresponds to Aaron's staff, the two stone tablets, and the gold jar of manna --all of which Moses placed in the Ark. Now through Christ man no longer has to live by the powerlessness of his soul because God dwells within man. The Holy Spirit's presence enables Christians to be spiritual, experiencing the power of Christ's resurrection. The intent of this book is for people to understand their past, identify their spiritual position, and grasp what God desires them to become.