The Spirit of God dwells in us as His desire has always been to simply fellowship with His beloved people. The Lord said to Moses, Exodus 25 “Tell the Israelites to bring Me an offering. You are to receive the offering for Me from everyone whose HEART PROMPTS them to GIVE. “Then have them make a sanctuary for Me, and I will dwell among them.” If we listen with ears to hear, we can follow the thread of God’s unequaled love for us. He masterfully weaved living words from Genesis to Revelation so that we find His everlasting promise of eternal life. Extraordinary!
Our Savior asked for a tent, a body, to walk around among us. Once a year God calls His people outside to live in a booth, a tent, a hut with branches and leaves to eat and sleep in for 7 days. Leviticus 23 The Feast of weeks is celebrated as Sukkot which means temporary shelter. In obedience His people go out to camp in the city with roofs thick enough for shade and thin enough to see stars. God asks that His people with comfortable homes, shelter in a hut that they can see Him out of. Once a year He asks all to humbly camp out with Him. Deuteronomy 16:11 a feast of weeks with rejoicing so that we can be all together joyful. Lev 23:40 God said to rejoice before the Lord for 7 days. To sleep in a shack for a week and be happy with His sufficiency. Lev 23:43 So that your generation may know that God had His people live in tents when He brought them out of Egypt.
To remember 40 years of having nothing while being commanded to enjoy it. David in 2 Sam 7:1-6 looks out of His palace window and sees the Ark of God’s Covenant and tells Nathan this is not right; I will build God a house. Nathan gives a word from God. “Are you the one to build Me? I have not lived in a house since I brought the people out of Egypt, even unto this day, as I have been moving about in a tent.” God is telling king David that He has been in a tent.
2 Samuel 11:11 Uriah refuses king David for a noble reason. The ark is in a temporary shelter (Sukkot) and my troops are in tents, I will not return home to eat and drink while God is outside. God uses Uriah to convict the king of his motives. 1 Kings 8:1-27 The ark is brought into a stone temple on the festival of the living hut, Sukkot. A cloud filled the house of the Lord and the priests could not stand. King Solomon says with pride, “I have surely built God a place for His dwelling forever.” The temple was destroyed.
2 Kings 8:27 King Solomon announces at the ribbon cutting of the temple that the whole earth cannot contain God’s presence, His glory. Peter sees Jesus face shining with Elijah and Moses standing by His side in Matthew 17. Luke 9:31 reveals that they were talking about the Exodus of Jesus on a mountain. Peter bursts “If You wish I will build three Tabernacles.” Peter offers to build a Sukkot, a memorial for the first exodus as the 2nd exodus is being planned.
While Peter was still speaking a bright cloud interrupted him. “This is My beloved Son, listen to Him.” People keep trying to put a roof over God; and God answers with a cloud. Matt 8:20 “The foxes have holes, birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” But God reminds us that we are His temple.
In John 17 just hours before His arrest, with the basin still on the floor, Jesus lifts His eyes and talks to His Father about you and me. Jesus asks His Father for one last thing before the cross. “Father I desire that those You have given Me, that they can be with Me where I am.” Jesus reminds His Father of His love before the foundations of the world. Before there was dirt, the Father loved us. Ephesians 1:4. Jesus desires to be with us where He is, in eternity, forever.
