SPECIAL PLACES
God has made special places for man to meet with Him.
The Special Places
Eden Gen:2.
Tabernacle Ex.25 to 29, built according to God’s pattern, Ex.40:
Temple I Kings 6
Church Matthew 16:18 built by the Lord Jesus Christ
1. In Genesis God prepared Eden... soon destroyed by man’s sin.
2. After redemption by blood and brought out of Egypt by power (God and man reconciled) we see God
prepared a special place Israel to meet with Him; the Tabernacle.
3. Note the instructions in Ex. 26 to 29: the building Ex 40.
4. The Tabernacle for the wilderness. In the land God designed the Temple something more permanent.
5. Today, in the church age, the Lord is building His church for the heavenlies.
Both the Tabernacle and the Temple has to do with the earth, and is a type of both Christ and the church.
Two Things About the Tabernacle and Temple
1. It had to be built according to the pattern
2. The only place of worship was the Tabernacle or the Temple.
We repeat the dwelling place of God, from the exodus from Egypt to the crossing of Jordan, was the tabernacle. We must particularly note that the tabernacle was not only constructed exactly to the dimensions given by God, but also was the only place of public worship. To worship anywhere else was rebelling against God.
PREPARING FOR THE LAND
When the children of Israel were about to come to their permanent home in the land, God set out very strict commandments as to their worship. It was above all else exclusive to be completely separate from all that was carried out in the land. Furthermore every vestige of the land’s religion was to be totally destroyed never to be remembered or mentioned again. In addition they were told that this religion would be a snare for them. It is most interesting to note that God waited for over 400 years for the iniquity of the Amorites to be full, and it is only after this period of time that the original people of the land were to be totally destroyed. Their depravity was evidenced by their religion which God could no longer tolerate.
In contradistinction to all that pertained to the land God issued clear commandments which emanated from His eternal purposes, and expressed His character. As we study the New Testament we will see these immutable purposes and principles quite clearly set forth.
LESSONS FOR US
It behoves us to clearly understand the mind of God and His requirements for our acceptable worship today. We will study the pattern set out IN THE Old Testament and then find that the New Testament instructions for the church follow the same divine principles. What we most emphatically find is that no worship is left to man’s imagination or devices, but is clearly defined in scripture.
OLD TESTAMENT PRINCIPLES
First we will look at Deuteronomy chapter 12 where these divine principles are clearly laid out, and secondly proceed to look at examples of departure. Further we will then find the relevant New Testament passages supporting the Old Testament principles, and note recent departure from them
The Place of His : Place for Israel to: . .
Book Choice Name Dwelling Seek Offer Joy
Deut.12: 5, 6 X X X X X
14 X X
18 X X
21 X
26/27 X X
Deut.14: 23 X X X
24 X
25 X
Deut.15: 20 X
Deut.16: 2 X X
6 X X X.
11 X X X
15 X X
16 X X
Deut.17: 8 X place for judgement
10 X
Deut.18: 6 X for Levitical service
Deut.26: 2 X X
Deut.31: 11 X to read the Law
. .
19 6 1 1 7 2
The above verses there are six important associated commands and description of the place to be noted. Above all note very well the repetition used to reinforce the paramount importance of these points related to the place. Not only from the frequency of the mentions of most of the points, but also from the context we come to the following conclusions about Gods commands:
1. This place was exclusively His ONLY dwelling place, and it was the place of His choosing. It is mentioned
in every one of the 19 references to the place. Man has NO SAY in the choosing of that place.
2. Six times of the nineteen God stressed it was the place where He placed His name.
3. Once He stated it was the place of His dwelling.
4. Israel was commanded to seek this place not to MAKE it or NOMINATE it
5. Eight times it is stated to be the only place of the offering of sacrifices. It was the only place of coIlective
worship and service.
6. Three times it stated it was the place of rejoicing.
The most important thing is to note the repetition above which demonstrates, without question, the vital importance to God of the place He chose. It is as clear as the noon day sun that God Himself will choose it was the only place of worship, He will place His name there, He will dwell there and it will be exclusively the only place of public worship. Man was not to choose the place, but was to seek the place, and was to worship there. About 475 years later the first king of Israel, Jeroboam after the division from Judah, led the people directly and deliberately against the commandments in Deut. 12.
Six Vital Points
The matrix on page 2 quite clearly show that emphasis is placed on the
following six very points in order of importance:
1. It is the place of His choosing
2. It is the only place for offering to God
3. It is the place where He places His name
4. t is a place of our rejoicing.
5. It is the place of His dwelling
6. It is the place which we must seek.
Departure
Jeroboam was made king of Israel when Rehoboam acted unwisely and was left only the kingdom of Judah. We will take special note of Jeroboam’s actions on becoming king.
1Kings 12:26-29.
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of
this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me,
and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much
for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of
Egypt.
29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.
The Six Points of Departure
1. It was the place of Jeroboam’s choosing
2. It was the place where Jeroboam placed his own name
3. It was the dwelling place of idols and the demons behind them.
4. The people were directed to it by Jeroboam
5. It was the place of offering to the golden calves
6. There was no rejoicing only bondage to Satan and demons
Jeroboam’s Evil Reasoning
First we note Jeroboam was the leader and was determined to keep that position.
1. He knew full well that Israel was not to be divided.
2. He knew that should they obey the Lord’s commandments they would reunite in obedience to God’s word
thus loosing his position.
3. He knew that the human heart would not follow God.
4. He set up two false places of worship, Dan and Bethel
5. He led the people and set the evil example thus maintaining his power base.
When we study what Jeroboam did we see that almost everything he did was directly contrary to the revealed mind of God in the scripture.
Disobedience - The Type - Gods Thoughts
There is no doubt that Jeroboam was a type picturing man’s evil, and disobedience to God’s commands regarding public worship. It is of interesting to see just what Word of God has to say about him.
There are about 100 references to Jeroboam the son of Nebat who made Israel to sin in the Old Testament of which at least TWENTY REFERENCES use words like, Jeroboam the son of Nebat who made Israel to sin.” Jeroboam’s sin described above was to deliberately turn men from the dwelling place of God and the place of collective worship to some man’s substitute. Furthermore he created a separate class of false priests who served the idols in the place Jeroboam appointed. It was deliberate rebellion against God which is “as witchcraft”. There are few sins of men mentioned in scripture more or worse than that of Jeroboam yet Christians know virtually nothing about it, and follow his evil way.
The Six Vital Points Repeated in the New Testament
We will now study the relevant passages in the New Testament where we find that the same six principles mentioned above still apply, and can be clearly seen. We may at the same time see if the sin of Jeroboam is committed today in the church age.
THE PLACE OF HIS CHOOSING
When we study the Old Testament we find that the place of collective worship, that is both the tabernacle and the temple, were built strictly according to the plans and instructions given by God. In summarizing the heading above we can read it the place of God’s building and choosing. Precisely the same thing applies in the New Testament. The New Testament temple first of all is built according to the pattern in His word, Mat.1 8:20, 1 Cor.3:1 6, 1 Pet 2:6.
Let us note
1 Pet. 2:5-8
5. Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices,
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
6. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious:
and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
7. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the
builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,
8. And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being
disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
Here we read the believer is a “living stone”, and collectively: Verse 5 “Ye (plural) as living stones are:
1. Built up a spiritual house
2. Made a holy priesthood
3. Offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Christ Jesus.
Here we find that we come to the Living Stone the Lord Jesus Christ, and collectively we are built up a spiritual house. There as priest we offer up acceptable sacrifices
Verse 9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
In the place He chooses:
1. Ye are a chosen race or nation
2. A royal or kingly priesthood
3. a peculiar people (peripoiesis) own possession; “God’s own possession”
These two passages clearly teach that the believers are made into a spiritual temple of the Lord. Not only are they the temple, but also they are royal and holy priests engaged in its service. That this temple is on earth is certain as the priestly function does not seem to be applicable to the eternal state of the believers in heaven. The purpose of all this is that we should show forth the praises of Him who hath called us. This passage in scripture does not stand alone as there are at least two others which both amplify and support the two verses above.
I Corinthians 3:16
“Know ye not that YE are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in YOU?” (Note: ye and you are second person plural - not singular). This statement is made of the “church Of God which is at Corinth”, chapter 1:2. The context clearly shows that it is not the individual mentioned here but the group.
Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
We might point out that in Matth.18:20 the Lord Himself is in the midst of His gathered people. Further we must note that the verb (sunago passive voice clearly indicating that the two or three do not do the gathering. This is the building work of the Lord.
In support we have seen above that ‘we are built up a spiritual house” again passive voice with the subject not doing the action. In both cases there is a third party at work doing the gathering and building, no doubt the Holy Spirit.
Apology must be made because of the brevity of these notes, but we believe that for those who are exercised this is enough information to begin an in depth study of the Word to confirm the points made.
What we also find in this passage is that the believer is gathered together unto the person of the Lord Himself who is in the midst. It is His dwelling place, it is His d house, and it is His temple.
How He Chooses
Let us take note:
1. “Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you”, “I have chosen you out of the world”, John 15:16 & 19.
2. We are gathered together by the Holy Spirit to the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, Mat.18:20
3. We are the temple of God, 1 Cor.3:16.
4. We are built up a spiritual house, I Pet.2:5-1O.
It is abundantly clear that we did not choose the Lord. The Lord chose to gather us to Himself. We are built, by God, a spiritual house, and we are the Temple of God. Each and every action is carried out by the triune God without any effort on our part. On our part we exercised non-meritorious faith, and commands as moved by the Spirit of God. We took no active part in choosing the place whatsoever.
THE PLACE OF HIS NAME
In the sections above we have discovered that the Lord chooses the place, and the first description of that place is that it is the place of His name. for where two or three are gathered together in (eis) unto MY NAME there am I in the midst of them.” Mat.18:20.
It is most important to note that the word translated “in” in the verse above is from the Greek word (eis) meaning motion toward. This is consistent with the stated principal of God which we saw in Deuteronomy. God chose the place to place His name and to dwell there. It is fitting to make the following comment at this point. It is only an ignorant, carnal, and evil mind that could presume to dictate to God the terms on which they would accept God in their midst. The place of His name indicates that the place is characteristic of Him and all that He stands for. This we can understand as the same thing applies in our lives as well.
If it is our place we organise things so that all that is in it is suitable to us and expresses our character. In addition that place will have a code of acceptable behaviour which is suitable to us as the owners of the place.
Some of the Characteristics of that Name
Mat.18:20 states that we are gathered together unto His name and we find that it is His dwelling place. Just as we would expect visitors to adhere to our standards in our place so also does the Lord. It is only natural to expect that all that pertains to His place is characteristic of our Lord. This can only be so, where we gather in as much as we obey His commandments
We now find that we can make it characteristic of Him and holiness by obedience or characteristic of us and evil by our disobedience.
Some of the holy characteristics are:
1. He is the absolute Lord of His house
2. His commands are obeyed
3. The Holy Spirit is allowed sovereign operation through the gifts given to each member
4. The word of God is final and the sole authority
5. Leaven is pureed out of the house by way of scriptural dis9ipIin
6. The guides and leaders keep scriptural order
7. Each believer is an active priest.
HIS DWELLING PLACE
We will find that the place of His name and His dwelling place have much in common. First we have seen that collectively the believers are built a spiritual house. We know that houses are dwelling places. In 1 Cor.3:16 we are clearly told that, “the spirit of God dwelleth in you”. 1 Cor3:16. Again “there am I in the midst of them”.Mat.18.20.
It is the eternal purpose of God that He dwell among His redeemed people. In type in Exodus 25:8; 29:45-46; 1 Kings 6:13 Ps.68:13 God states it is His purpose to dwell among His redeemed people. Finally in revelation 21:3 we read, “And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Re 21:3* Finally and eternally He dwells among His redeemed people. In this church age He will dwell with us, and we shall be His people; a redeemed people taken out of the miry clay and rock. Our redemption price is the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have been adopted into His family and brought nigh on the basis of redemption. Our Lord dwells among us here as we are gathered to Him by the Holy Spirit in a collective capacity.
SEEKING THE PLACE
We would have noticed in Deuteronomy that His people were to SEEK the place, not to MAKE or BUlLD. To the obedient heart the word of command was to seek the place in the Old Testament. We now ask is there an equivalent today.
What we have said before about the place need not be repeated except to say that the New Testament church is constituted only as outlined in Math.18.
What we will repeat is that nowhere in the New Testament do we find that man has anything to do with setting up of any church. It is a thing built the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Mat.16:18, “upon this rock I will build my church”. This is the church which is His body, and is in the heavens.
The Church in Local Testimony
For the church in local testimony we see that the Holy Spirit gathers believers to the place which the Lord has chosen with Him being in the midst Mat.18.20. It is stressed that NO ONE has the authority or power to call down the Lord from heaven in CHURCH capacity. It is a common error which is now implied in scripture. That should be clearly understood.
Let there be no confusion about the Holy Spirit indwelling every believer, and also the Lord said, “Lo I am with you alway.” The place of the Lord dwelling among His people is entirely another thing and very special, a thing of His doing.
The Sin of Jeroboam Today
What is not clearly understood is the fact that man has copied the sin of Jeroboam and set up altars complete with "golden calves" or idols to represent a god or gods of man’s imagination, and a false class of priest, minister, pastor etc. where ever they feel so inclined.
Just as Jerusalem was the gathering centre in the Old Testament, so is the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. The problem for new convert is to tell the difference.
The True Place
In the first place it will be a place which stands the close scrutiny of the Word of God and it will have the following marks
1. Believers are gathered by the Holy Spirit to the Lord Jesus Christ alone, using no other name but His.
2. The Word of God is the whole and sole guide of the gathering
3. The absolute Lordship of Jesus Christ is acknowledged with no person, or class of person between
believers and the Lord
4. The gathering depends on and allows the sovereign operation of the Holy Spirit to exercise the gifts given.
That is, no human director of operations.
5. Every believer is a holy and royal priest offering up sacrifices to God with no human intermediary.
6. The gathering is guided by Holy Spirit gifted elders in the power of the Holy Spirit but not directed by them.
7. They use and need no other name but His to distinguish them, that is no denominational label of any kind.
8. Each gathering will have no formal or informal connection with any other. Each stands on its own base.
We may further add that those so gathered never refer to any building as the church. They are clear on the point that the believers gathered to Him is church in local testimony.
The Wrong Place
Little need be said about this except probably three things:
1. Almost invariably the group will give itself a distinguishing name which in itself is both divisive and
unscriptural.
2. It will have a person or persons directing all the activities of the group. It may even be democratic which is
Satanic in the extreme.
3. The Word of God will not be the final authority, but tradition, and just plain error will be the standard.
4. Each group will be connected to the other by a formal or informal organisation.
It is indeed a sad state of affairs when the sin of Jeroboam is generally accepted as being the mind of God for today. Our prayer should be we get back to the simplicity which is in Christ.
It is the Only Place for Collective Worship
What is worship? One would get all kinds of answers, but it simply means adoration. In absolute reality the only ones who adore the Lord are conscious of the fact that God gave His son for them, and the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ died for them. This is in stark contrast to religious ceremony. This is not adoration it is merely a salve for the conscience. It is even sometimes called a service indicating the attitude, ‘look what we are doing, aren’t we good”.
True worship commences with a deep heartfelt praise for what God has done for the worshipper. Each individual worshipper offers up “sacrifices” continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name Heb. 13:15.
Collective worship includes not only praise, but includes the breaking of bread, and the exercise of spiritual gifts as directed and empowered by the Holy Spirit for exhortation, and edification of the whole church. Not anywhere in the New Testament do we read that these activities took place on an individual basis or partial church basis. They were conducted when the whole church come together. Read in particular 1Cor. chapters 11, 12, 1 3,and 14.
It is the Place of Rejoicing
Immediately a person is saved by faith in Christ they are baptised by the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, 1 Cor.12:13; filled with the Spirit and a member of the body of Christ, 1Cor.12:12. This is that which gives joy and rejoicing.
This is most particularly so when the bread is broken which brings to mind the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord. Most particularly we are reminded that He is coming back again for us, 1Thes.4:13-18.
Exhortation
Please leave the place set by the Jeroboam’s of this world and seek the place where the Lord has placed His name for true worship and service. How, by simple obedience to His Word
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