Latest / Scripture Central / A Kingdom of Priests and Priestesses | Exodus 19-20, 24, 31-34 Come Follow Me John Hilton Apr 20-26

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A Kingdom of Priests and Priestesses | Exodus 19-20, 24, 31-34 Come Follow Me John Hilton Apr 20-26 · Scripture Central

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The Tabernacle for Moses, the temple for us today.
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It's all about coming into the presence of God.
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It's a reminder that Jesus Christ needs to be at the very
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center of our lives. God knows your name, there is no
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doubt about that. God guides us at each stage in
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our journey. Jesus Christ is the true
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Tabernacle. He has come to dwell or
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Tabernacle among us. Friends, today we're going to be
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exploring several stories from Exodus, and we're going to be in
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the second-half, chapters 19 through 40.
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And I think normally when people think about these chapters in
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the book of Exodus, they remember the story of the 10
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commandments. Recently I saw this meme back in
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my day, Moses said we had tablets too.
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They were made of stone and filled with commandments.
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That's my kind of tablets. I also found this comic.
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It has someone saying to Moses, I like the idea of Moses, but
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simply calling them the 10 commandments won't help them go
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viral. How about 10 things you're doing
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wrong and you won't believe number six?
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Today we are going to talk about the 10 commandments, but that's
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only one part of the story in these chapters.
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We're going to see today how God is trying to help the people at
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Sinai become kings and Queens, priests and priestesses, and how
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He's trying to do that with us today.
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We'll see not only commandments, we'll also see covenants and
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connections between the Tabernacle and modern temples.
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We're going to do this by walking through 6 scenes, each
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of which is part of an unfolding story.
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Let's begin with a Kingdom of priests and priestesses.
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In Exodus chapter 19, God told Moses to say to the Israelites,
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If you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be My
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treasured possession out of all the peoples.
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Indeed, the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a
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priestly Kingdom and a holy nation.
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So the entire earth belongs to God.
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He lives all of his children. But the Israelites are separated
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out to be a distinct people of priestly Kingdom, a holy nation.
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Now, originally, the plan was for Israel to receive the
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ordinances of the Melchizedek priesthood and to prepare to
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enter into God's presence. But something didn't quite work.
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The Church's Scripture helps Manual says Latter Day
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Revelation clarifies that the Lord had intended for the
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ordinances of the Melchizedek priesthood to play an important
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role in the Israelites becoming a Kingdom of priests and a holy
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nation that could behold the face of God.
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However, because of the children of Israel's hard hearts, the
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Lord withdrew the Melchizedek priesthood while the Lesser
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Ironic priesthood remained. So although the Israelites in
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the time of Moses didn't become a priestly Kingdom, God's goal
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of having a Kingdom of priests remains to this day.
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In fact, the Scripture helps, Manuel continues, saying the
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Prophet Joseph Smith spoke of establishing a Kingdom of
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priests in our dispensation that would consist of men and women
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who had made covenants with God in the House of the Lord.
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Those who inherit the celestial Kingdom are called priests and
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kings, Queens and priestesses. So even though the Israelites
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didn't become the priestly nation at Sinai, God didn't give
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up on them. Instead, he met the people where
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they were and gave them what they were ready to receive.
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So that takes us to the 10 commandments.
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Now, if I were to ask you right now to name all 10 commandments
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in order, could you do it? I remember being a young
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missionary, and someone asked me if I could tell them what the 10
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commandments were. I was so embarrassed because I
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couldn't name the 10 commandments.
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And I found that if people know the 10 commandments, it's
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usually because they've learned some finger motions that can
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help them remember. All right, so let's practice
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together. 10 commandments first, hold up one finger.
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This is 1 God. That's the first commandment.
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One God. No other gods before me #2 Make
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a little ram. No graven images #3 Hold up
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three fingers. Thou shall not take the name of
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God in vain. Commandment #4 Two and two.
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Put them together. Make a little steeple.
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Honor the Sabbath day. 5th Commandment.
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You have two parents, 3 kids. Honor your father and mother.
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I don't want to see any of this. That's not the commandment.
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Just honor your father and mother.
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Number six. Thou shall not kill #7 Over
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here, these two or this is a happily married couple.
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Thou shalt not commit adultery that could split apart a
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marriage #8 Watch carefully. It's like a magic trick.
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Thou shalt not steal, You see what happens.
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Thou shalt not steal #9 Thou shalt not bear false witness and
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#10 Gimme, Gimme, Gimme. Thou shalt not covet.
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It's so easy if you can just remember these hand signals,
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practice them, teach them to someone else.
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Later today, you'll be amazed at how easy it is to remember the
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10 commandments. Now, we've actually been talking
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about the 10 commandments already.
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You remember back when we were discussing the story of Joseph
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and Potiphar's wife, we examined Thou shalt not commit adultery.
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And in the future class, when we come to the book of Deuteronomy,
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we'll see the 10 commandments again and look at some of them
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in greater depth. But today I want to focus on the
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3rd commandment. Do you remember what's the third
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commandment? Don't take the name of God in
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vain. I love what Elder Renlin taught
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about this. He said at baptism and when we
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partake of the sacrament, we witness that we are willing to
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take on ourselves the name of Jesus Christ.
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In this context, let us be mindful of the Old Testament
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commandment. Thou shalt not take the name of
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the Lord thy God in vain. To our modern ears, this sounds
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like a prohibition against irreverently using the Lords
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name. The commandment includes that,
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but its injunction is even more profound.
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The Hebrew word translated as take means to lift up or carry
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as one would a banner that identifies oneself with an
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individual or group. The word translated as vain
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means empty or deceptive. The commandment to not take the
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Lord's name in vain can thus mean you should not identify
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yourself as a disciple of Jesus Christ unless you intend to
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represent him well. In other words, we might say
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that to take God's name upon us is to act as his representatives
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in the world, in a sense, to be his priests and priestesses,
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leaders in his Kingdom. So consider this statement from
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Elder Remnant. You should not identify yourself
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as a disciple of Jesus Christ unless you intend to represent
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him well. What do you think?
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How could we apply this principle in our lives today?
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Well, as someone who has dealt with perfectionism before, this
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could to my perfectionist self, that would be like, well, if you
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don't intend to just go all in, then don't go.
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But this made me think of when President Ogdor said then if we
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are measuring ourselves like against the perfect Savior and
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say that we failed, then we are all hypocrites.
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But I don't think that is what the message here.
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The message is if I am, if my heart and if I am willing to be
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with the Savior even in my imperfect attempts, as long as
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I'm honest and I'm trying and I'm holding on and looking to
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the Savior even when I make mistakes, then I think I'm doing
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well here. And and not trying to go into
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toxic perfectionism and say if I didn't do it perfectly, then why
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should I do it. That's not a reason to stay away
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from God. And that has been really helpful
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for me. That's a great perspective.
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Here's I think about my life. I have a little frame around my
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license plate that says Jesus wins.
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I just like to have that reminder.
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But then I consider my driving habits and sometimes I'm a
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pretty aggressive driver and there might be some people
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driving around me that are like, I don't want to be Christian
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because I've seen the way this guy drives.
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So I need to do a better job of representing Jesus Christ and
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how I drive. Now, the 10 commandments are
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definitely important, and I think it's good to know all the
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finger signs. But what really counts is if the
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commandments are written in our hearts.
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And God wants more than just commandments for us.
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He wants covenants. He wants a deeper relationship
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with us. And in the ancient world,
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covenants weren't created by signing a form or a handshake.
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They were sealed with blood. So that takes us to our next
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scene, the blood of the covenant.
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This is a story that we sometimes skip because it's
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pretty graphic. Let me show you a picture that I
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never saw in Primary. This is an actual depiction of
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what's taking place in Exodus chapter 24.
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Shortly after Moses received the 10 commandments, he wrote the
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words down and he built an altar.
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He gathered some young man who sacrificed oxen, and Moses took
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half of the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he
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sprinkled on the altar. So remember half the blood on
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the altar, half the blood in the basins.
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Then Moses took the book of the covenant and read it in the
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audience of the people, and they said all that the Lord has said
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we will do and be obedient. Then Moses took the blood from
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the basins and sprinkled it on the people.
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That's the moment that you're seeing depicted in that image
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there and said, behold the blood of the covenant which the Lord
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hath made with you. So notice how Moses takes half
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the blood, puts it on the altar representing God, and then the
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other half is thrown on the people.
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So this is showing how in a sense the people in God now have
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a blood relationship. They're deeply connected in this
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covenant. Now keep your eyes on the phrase
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blood of the covenant. I want to take us to two cross
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references. First, let's go forward several
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centuries to about the year 600 BC with the prophet Jeremiah.
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The Lord tells Jeremiah, the days will come that I will make
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a new covenant with the House of Israel, not according to the
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covenant I made with their fathers.
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And the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the
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land of Egypt, which my covenant they break.
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So there's the old covenant. That's what we've been reading
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about. Now the Lord says there's going
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to be a new covenant. Let's flush forward a few more
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centuries to the Last Supper. Here we read Jesus took a cup
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and after giving thanks, he gave it to his disciples, saying,
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drink from it all of you. For this is my blood of the new
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covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of
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sins. Can you see what's happening
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here? There was an old covenant made
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with blood that the people broke.
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Now as Jesus institutes the sacrament, he says, this is my
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blood of the new covenant that I will shed for you.
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Remember that in the scriptures anytime it talks about blood
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being shed, it's not talking about bleeding.
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That's a reference to death. Think about our modern sacrament
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prayers. We read, Oh God the Eternal
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Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son Jesus Christ, to
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bless and sanctify this water to the souls of all those who drink
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of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy
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Son which was shed for them. So the blood that's being
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sprinkled at Sinai, it's a shadow.
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It's a type pointing forward to the blood that Jesus Christ
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would shed for us on the cross. You know, we don't sprinkle
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blood on ourselves today, but we are in a sense covered with the
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blood of Jesus Christ through his atonement.
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And so as we remember Christ's blood that was shed on the
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cross, Christ strengthens us to keep the covenants that we've
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made. But unfortunately, in the story
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of the Exodus, the people are not able to always remember
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Jesus Christ. They stumble in their covenant
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keeping. And that takes us to the story
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of the golden calf. So after sprinkling blood on the
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people, Moses went up to Mount Sinai to receive more
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revelations from the Lord. But he's gone for a long time.
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So the people start to wonder what's going on.
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The people said to Aaron, come, make gods for us.
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Who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who
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brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has
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become of him. I mean, in a way, this is kind
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of a confusing verse, right? Just recently they had
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covenanted to keep all of God's commandments, including no
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graven images. And now they're like, please,
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please make us a graven image. And you would think that Aaron
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would say, no, absolutely not. But instead he says, OK,
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everyone, give me your gold earrings.
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And he gathers them all together and makes a golden calf for
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them. Aaron says, these are your gods,
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O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
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Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord.
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Now there's something really interesting happening here.
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Notice that Aaron says that tomorrow will be a feast for
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Jehovah. So he's not letting go of
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Jehovah, but he's also created this golden calf.
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Do you remember back in Exodus 3, Moses asked the Lord what his
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name was, and God said it is I am.
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Contrast that with Aaron's words here.
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These are. Do you see the difference?
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The people are turning the I am the one true God into These are
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plural worship. And this is a key danger that we
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face. We want to believe in God, but
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we want to worship something else as well.
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That's the danger of the these are.
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So the people begin to party around their golden calf.
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Moses comes down from the mountain.
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He can't believe what's happening.
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He says to Aaron, what did this people do to you that you have
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brought so great a sin upon them?
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Now go back a couple of verses and let's see what actually
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happened. We read Aaron said, bring your
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gold earrings to me. Aaron took these gold earrings
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and formed them in a mold and cast an image of a calf.
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Aaron built an altar before the calf.
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Aaron made a proclamation. Who's doing all the acting in
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these verses? It's Aaron.
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But when Aaron responds to Moses, he says, you know the
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people, they are wicked. They said to me, make gods for
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us. So I said to them, whoever has
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gold, take it off. So they gave it to me.
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I threw it into the fire and out came this calf.
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Do you notice the total lack of an active agent in what Aaron's
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saying Just threw it into the fire?
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I don't know, boom, pop down the calf.
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I have no idea how it got here. Now we can't make fun of Aaron
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too much because we probably do the same thing.
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But you can see in this passage how Aaron is totally trying to
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avoid responsibility. He's blaming.
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He's shifting the responsibility to someone else.
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I know that none of you would ever make excuses or
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rationalize, but think for a moment.
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In general, think about what Aaron's doing.
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How do people do similar things today?
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And I remember the guarding of of hearing since the very
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beginning, we are blaming another people for things that
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we do. I remember when I don't think
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the women that you gave me, if you give me another kind of
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woman, maybe more obedient, I wouldn't eat of the fruit.
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So today we just do the. Things.
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It's been a pattern since the fall in the beginning.
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Yes. Thank you.
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I think if we look deep within ourselves and if we're not right
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with God, we avoid accountability.
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We have to always be right with God and be honest with ourselves
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and take accountability for our sins or our wrongdoings.
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Always be looking inside ourselves and say I'm sorry when
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we've done something wrong. That's the beginning of
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repentance. That's the beginning of just
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taking accountability. Amen.
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In fact, Elder Dilji Renlund said something along those
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lines. He said blaming others, even if
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justified, allows us to excuse our behavior.
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By doing so, we shift responsibility for our actions
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to others. When the responsibility is
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shifted, we diminish both the need and our ability to act.
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We turn ourselves into hapless victims rather than agents
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capable of independent action. But it is so much easier to make
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an excuse right to. It feels a lot easier to say,
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oh, I couldn't, I had to, they didn't do their responsibility
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than to say, I'm sorry, I was slacking off, I'll do better
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next time. But then Elder Run then says,
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instead of making excuses, let us choose repentance.
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Now the story of the golden calf, in some ways it's pretty
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discouraging. But in the middle of it we see
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something beautiful, Moses interceding on behalf of his
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people. God's pretty upset with the
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Israelites, actually. And he tells Moses that he's
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going to destroy all the people and he's just going to start
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fresh with Moses. We're going to build a whole new
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people. But Moses says, oh Lord, why
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does your wrath burn hot against your people whom you brought out
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of the land of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?
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Why should the Egyptian say it was with evil intent that he
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brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to consume
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them from the face of the earth? I love how Moses is trying to
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talk the Lord out of destroying the people.
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It's almost like he's acting as the PR agent for God.
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It's like, God, it's going to really ruin your reputation,
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right? The Egyptians are going to be
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like, God brought them out just to destroy.
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I'm like, what kind of God is this?
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But then comes a really tender line from Moses.
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He says, alas, this people has sinned a great sin.
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They have made for themselves gods of gold.
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But now God, if you will only forgive their sin.
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But if not, please blot me out of the book you have written.
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Here we see Moses the mediator. He loves the people so much.
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He's saying, God, I don't want to enter into your Kingdom
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without them. Please, Moses with his finite
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love is trying to intercede on the behalf of the people of
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Israel. Think about that as a shadow for
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Jesus Christ, who we know will be interceding for us with His
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infinite love at the day of judgment.
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In the doctrine incumbents, we read that Jesus Christ will be
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pleading for us. He will say to the Father,
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Father, behold the sufferings and death of him who did no sin.
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Behold the blood of thy Son. Wherefore, Father, spare these
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that believe on my name, that they may come unto me and have
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everlasting life. Now the original plan was for
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the Israelites to be able to come directly into the presence
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of God. They missed that opportunity,
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but it didn't mean that all hope was lost.
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God was still willing to meet them where they were, and that
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takes us to a significant way that the Israelites would still
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connect with the Lord. It's found in the story of the
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Tabernacle, where God would dwell among his people.
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Now, if you were to ask one, what's the main event in the
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book of Exodus, they might say it's the parting of the Red Sea.
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That's perhaps the most dramatic story in Exodus, and that takes
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up maybe two or three chapters. But the story of the Israelites
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building the Tabernacle, that takes up about 1/3 of the book
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of Exodus. And this emphasis tells us that
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the true Exodus isn't just about escaping bondage.
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It's about coming into the presence of God.
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And today we're going to focus on several aspects of the
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Tabernacle. And as we talk about these
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various elements, I hope we'll remember this key verse in
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Exodus 25, verse 8. They shall make me a sanctuary
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or Tabernacle so that I I may dwell among them.
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The Tabernacle for Moses, the temple for us today.
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It's all about coming into the presence of God.
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And so as we talked about these details with the Tabernacle,
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think about what does this mean for you in your efforts to be in
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the presence of God? Also be thinking what
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correspondences do you see between the ancient Tabernacle?
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In our modern temples today. So let's start by zooming out
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and looking at where the Tabernacle was placed within the
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camp of Israel. This is a little detail that's
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easy to glide past in the Book of Numbers, but in Numbers
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chapter 2, it's showing how the 12 tribes are organized in the
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camp. And then it says the tent of
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meeting or the Tabernacle shall be set out in the center of the
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camps. Each of the 12 tribes has a very
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specific place where they're supposed to be, and in the
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center is the Tabernacle. It's a reminder that Jesus
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Christ needs to be at the very center of our lives.
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Now let's look at the structure of the Tabernacle.
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You can see here that there's an outer courtyard.
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And then within the Tabernacle, the first room is the Holy
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place, and then there's one more room and it is the Holy of
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Holies where God's presence rests on the Ark of the
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covenant. So think about this.
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There's a three-part structure to the Tabernacle with
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increasing zones of holiness. Can you see how that relates to
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our modern temples? We progressed through areas of
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increasing holiness until we're symbolically able to enter into
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the presence of God. So I want to zoom in on each of
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these areas of the temple. Let's look first at the outer
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courtyard. Notice that there are curtains
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all around the Tabernacle. Notice how there's just one
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entrance into the Tabernacle complex.
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Perhaps this reminds us of Jesus who says I am the gate.
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No one comes to the Father except through me.
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Just one way to get inside. Now, once you're inside the
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curtained area, you're in the outer courtyard.
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And here there are two objects. First is the basin of water.
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Now, this wasn't used for baptisms.
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We read the Lord saying, you shall make a bronze basin with a
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bronze stand for washing. When Aaron and his sons go into
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the tent of meeting or when they come near the altar to minister,
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to make an offering by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with
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water. The second item in the outer
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courtyard was an altar for sacrifices.
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Any Israelite was allowed to come into the outer courtyard
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and to offer an animal for sacrifice and remember that the
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person offering the animal is the one to kill the animal.
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Today we obviously do not sacrifice animals in our temple.
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You remember that after Christ crucifixion, he said I don't
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want any more animal sacrifice, but instead I want you to give
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me the offering of a broken hearts and a contrite spirit.
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How about Elder Neil A Maxwell said about this?
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He said real personal sacrifice never was placing an animal on
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the altar. Instead, it is a willingness to
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put the animal in us upon the altar and letting it be
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consumed. Animal sacrifice was always
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pointing to Jesus Christ, the ultimate sacrifice for us.
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Today the altar in the temple points us to Jesus Christ and
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his sacrifice. Now let's zoom back and look at
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the big picture of the Tabernacle.
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So we've been in the outer courtyard, and you can see here
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that next we'll go into the Holy Place.
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And then there's another curtain that will lead into the Holy of
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Holies. Here's a model of it.
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And you can see here in this model, it's cutting away so that
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you can look into the Holy of Holies, which would have been
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completely covered by the curtain.
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So let's pause first at the Holy Place.
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Notice that there's three different objects in the Holy
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Place. Each one of these three objects
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is going to point us to Christ. The 1st is the table of
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showbread, as it's called in the King James Version or in modern
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translations, the table of the Bread of the Presence.
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The bread is there to represent the presence of God being with
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the Israelites. The Lord said, you shall set the
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bread of the presence on the table before me continually.
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So 12 loaves which represented the 12 tribes of Israel were set
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up on this table, showing that God is continually with the 12
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tribes. And these 12 loaves are changed
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out every week. As we think about the bread of
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the Presence, we can't help but remember Jesus's words.
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I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never
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be hungry. So the table of the bread of the
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presence, it's on the north side, or as you enter into the
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holy place, it's on your right. On the left is a menorah.
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God said you shall make a lampstand of pure gold, you
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shall make 7 lamps for it, and the lamps shall be set up so as
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to give light on the space in front of it.
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So this lampstand known as the Menorah, it was made out of 75
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lbs of gold and the lampstand burned all night long.
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The priest made sure that there was always light in the Holy
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place from the Noor. No darkness allowed in the Holy
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place. It reminds us of Jesus Christ
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who said I am the light of the world.
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Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.
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Now the third item in the holy place was the altar of incense,
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and it was placed directly in front of the veil that separated
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the Holy place from the Holy of Holies.
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We read Aaron shall offer fragrant incense on it every
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morning, and in the evening he shall offered a regular incense
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offering before the Lord. Throughout your generations,
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incense was an important part of ancient Israelite worship, and
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it's actually an important part of modern worship for many
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Christians. I'm embarrassed to say this, but
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many years ago when I was younger, I went to another
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Christian Church and they were using incense and I thought, oh,
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that's so weird. But I didn't realize that they
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might come to my church and be like, you guys aren't using
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incense. Oh, that's so weird.
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Incense is an ancient worship tradition and it represents
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prayers going up to God. In the book of Psalms, we read
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Let my prayer be counted as incense before you and the
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lifting up of my hands as an evening sacrifice.
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Notice that prayer position. We're used to a prayer position
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of arms being folded, but here the prayer position is arms
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lifted high. Consider, too, what we read in
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the Book of Revelation. 24 elders fell before the Lamb,
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each holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the
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prayers of the Saints. It's a good reminder that some
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things, like incense, might not be a part of our worship, but
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they do have ancient connections to God.
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Now step back and look at the big picture.
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Can you see what's happening? We have priests dressed in their
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priestly clothing, saying special prayers at an altar,
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with uplifted hands in front of the veil that leads into the
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presence of God. This is what was happening in
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the ancient Tabernacle. Let's look now for a moment at
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this veil, or the curtain that separates the Holy Place from
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the Most Holy Place, or as we sometimes call it, the Holy of
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Holies. The Lord gives a specific
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account of what this veil should look like.
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He says you shall make a curtain of blue, purple, and Crimson
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yarns in a fine twisted linen. It shall be made with cherubim
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skillfully worked into it. So remember that detail.
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The cherubim are going to be specifically woven into this
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veil. The curtain shall separate for
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you the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place.
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Now behind this veil is the Holy of Holies, and in the holy of
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holies was the Ark of the Covenant.
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The Lord said they shall make an ark of Acacia wood.
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You shall put the covenant that I am giving you into the ark.
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So inside the ark goes the tablets of the law, the
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covenant. That's why it's called the Ark
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of the Covenant. Scripture also tells us that a
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jar of manna and Aaron's rod were also placed into the Ark of
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the Covenant. And on top of the ark is what's
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sometimes referred to as the Mercy Seat.
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We read. Then you shall make a cover of
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pure gold. You shall make 2 cherubim of
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gold. Make one cherub at one end and 1
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cherub at the other. The cherubim shall spread out
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their wings above, overshadowing the cover.
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With their wings they shall face one another.
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The faces of the cherubim shall be turned toward the cover.
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You shall put the cover on the top of the ark.
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There I will meet you, and from above, the cover from between
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the two cherubim that are on the Ark of the Covenant.
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This is where the presence of God was resting on the mercy
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seat, the cover on top of the Ark of the Covenant.
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So go back to those cherubim that were woven into the veil.
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Do you remember in the Garden of Eden, God sent cherubim to keep
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Adam and Eve from going to the Tree of Life?
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So here we can see these cherubim, in a sense, as
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standing as Sentinels guarding the path back to the presence of
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God in the ancient Tabernacle. Once a year on the Day of
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Atonement, the high priest would go through the veil to enter the
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Holy of Holies. Now we'll talk more about the
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Day of Atonement when we get to the book of Leviticus, but think
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for a moment about the high priest once a year being able to
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enter the presence of God by going into the Holy of Holies
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and separating everyone else from the presence of God.
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Is this curtain or veil? Do you remember what happened
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when Jesus was crucified? We read at that moment the
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curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.
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So the tearing of the curtain or veil is a symbol that now
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through Christ's sacrifice, all are welcomed into the presence
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of God. Now everyone can enter into
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God's presence. The author of the book of
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Hebrews reflects on this. He writes we have confidence to
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enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living
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way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is,
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through his flesh. You might have heard that the
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veil of the temple represents Jesus Christ.
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That's what we see here in Hebrews chapter 10.
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Through Christ we're able to enter the presence of God.
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What we're seeing is Jesus Christ is central in every part
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of the Tabernacle. He's the altar, the lampstand.
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He's the bread of the Presence and He's the veil.
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In fact, Jesus is the Tabernacle itself.
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In John chapter one, verse 14, we read the Word was made flesh
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and dwelt among us. Now that might not seem like a
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lot, but I want to look at the Greek word that underlies the
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word dwelt there. And I know some of us are
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thinking, wait, I don't speak any Greek.
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Don't worry. Remember our tool, the blue
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letter Bible. This helps to see what the
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underlying Hebrew or Greek words mean.
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And the Greek word that's here translated as lived or dwelt
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among us actually has a more specific meaning.
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It means to fix one's Tabernacle, to abide or live in
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a Tabernacle or tent. So if you remember, the
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Septuagint is the Greek version of the Old Testament.
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And so when the Old Testament is translated into Greek, the same
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word that's used in John 1 is used to describe the Tabernacle.
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In other words, John is saying something like Jesus Christ is
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the true Tabernacle. He has come to dwell or
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Tabernacle among us. Now I know some of your
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thinking. Holy cow, all of these details
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about the Tabernacle. This is incredible.
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I wish I could learn more about it.
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Wish granted. My friend Daniel Smith has a
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YouTube channel called Messages of Christ and he has a series of
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videos all about the Tabernacle and their connections to the
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Savior, and they're all linked on the course website.
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But for now, it's time for one last story.
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It's the lesser known story of Bethzalel and the Holy AB and
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the sacred clothing that they create.
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So the Lord revealed to Moses some very specific instructions
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on how to build a Tabernacle and on what type of clothing the
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priest should wear, and he also raised up specific individuals
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to construct the Tabernacle. God said to Moses, See, I have
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called by name Bezalel. I have filled him with a divine
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spirit, with ability, intelligence, and knowledge, and
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every kind of skill to devise artistic designs.
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Moreover, I have appointed with him a holy AB that they may make
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all that I have commanded you. There are lots of lessons that
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we can learn from Bezalel and a holy AB.
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First, I want to focus on the beginning line.
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See, I have called by name Bezalel.
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That's a pattern in Scripture. Later we'll read God saying to
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Moses, I know you by name. You remember at the sacred Grove
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one of them spaken to me, Joseph Smith said, calling me by name.
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God knows your name. There is no doubt about that.
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In this case, God is calling Betzilel a holy AB and many
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others to help with building the Tabernacle.
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We read Moses called Betzilel and a Holy AB, and every skilled
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person to whom the Lord had given skill.
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Now you might read that and say, well, that's great for Betzel
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and Holy AB and all the skilled people, but what about me?
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I have no skills. And in my case that is literally
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true. I failed art in 6th grade.
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I quit practicing the piano when I was 14.
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Of course, I regret it like everyone else who quit
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practicing the piano when they were a teenager.
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So I guess I have nothing to offer the Lord in the creation
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process. But that's not true.
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Look at the very next phrase. The Lord also calls everyone
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whose heart was stirred to come do the work.
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It doesn't say everyone who had talents was invited to come to
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the work. It doesn't say every artistic
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person whose heart was stirred could come to the work.
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Anyone who had the desire was welcome to come build the
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Tabernacle. And it's the same for us today.
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God invites all of us to create. I love what President Uggdorf
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said. Everyone can create.
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You don't need money, position, or influence in order to create
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something of substance or beauty.
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So over the next nine months, the people were very busy
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sewing, constructing, building everything needed for the
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Tabernacle as outlined by the Lord.
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We also see that they made holy garments for Aaron as the Lord
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commanded Moses. Now notice that in this verse,
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the word garments, it means articles of clothing.
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And look at the specific articles of clothing that the
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priests would wear. We read the priests wore tunics
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or robes, sashes and caps. So you can see that the temple
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clothes we have today are patterned after the clothing
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that ancient priests wore in the temple.
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That's why our temple clothing doesn't look like modern
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clothes. It's not meant to.
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They're patterned after clothing that is thousands of years old.
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And wearing this clothing symbolically shows that we're
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becoming priests and priests, justicees, as we prepare to
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become leaders in God's Kingdom. Now, I want you to think for a
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moment about Bezalel and a holy app.
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They're working so hard to create items that are related to
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our temple worship today. But you probably never heard of
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Bezalel and a holy app. It's a reminder that often we
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labor in anonymity. There's many things like Bezalel
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and a holy app that we're doing in our lives that are also going
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to go unrecognized. Maybe we work to raise our
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children or serve in our callings, help our neighbors,
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and it's possible that nobody will recognize our efforts.
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But that doesn't mean they're not important.
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Bezalel and a holy AB Like many others in scriptures.
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They served anonymously, but God knew their name.
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You might be serving anonymously, but God knows.
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So finally the Tabernacle is complete.
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Let's go to the last chapter in the book of Exodus.
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The Lord says to Moses, Thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons
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unto the door of the Tabernacle of the congregation, and wash
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them with water. And thou shalt put upon Aaron
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the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him.
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In the time of Moses, these ordinances were only meant for
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male priests, but it's interesting that in our day
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they've been expanded to both men and women.
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In the book Saints, we read, by revealing additional ordinances
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in the Nauvoo Temple to faithful men and women of the Church, the
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Lord would make them kings and Queens, priests and priestesses.
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So from the very beginning of the endowment ordinance in our
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day, women were washed and anointed by other women,
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beginning with Emma Smith, who was the first female temple
36:51
worker. Sometimes people who haven't
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been endowed are surprised to learn that in the initiatory,
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females are the ones who are washing, anointing, and blessing
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other females. But it's been that way from the
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beginning of the restoration. So finally the day came when the
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Tabernacle was complete. We read.
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Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the
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Lord filled the Tabernacle. Whenever the cloud was taken up
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from the Tabernacle, the Israelites, the Knights, would
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set out on each stage of their journey.
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But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out
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until the day that it was taken up.
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So there's a cloud, a shadow that's going to be guiding the
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Israelites on their journey, we read.
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For the cloud of the Lord was on the Tabernacle by day, and fire
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was in the cloud by night, before the eyes of all the House
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of Israel at each stage of their journey.
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I love that insight. God is guiding the Israelites
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line upon line at each stage. And I testify the same thing is
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true for us. God guides us at each stage in
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our journey. Now do you notice the
38:00
connections between this passage here and the hymn we love to
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sing? Our shadow by day and our pillar
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by night. Our King, our deliverer are all.
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This is a reference to the Tabernacle.
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The same God who filled the Tabernacle with fire and glory
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is still inviting his people into His presence through
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covenant relationships with our Heavenly Father in Jesus Christ.
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We are preparing to become priests and priestesses.
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I love what President Kimball said in a BYU devotional.
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My beloved youth, I pray you date faithful members.
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Marry only in the holy temples of God.
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Plan your course, Chart your way, Live righteously.
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Always listen to your leaders. Read the scriptures, Pray much
38:43
and often. Claim your throne.
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Hold tightly to the scepter. You will be priests and
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priestesses, kings and Queens, throughout all eternity.
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That is our destiny.