Abiding in the Vine

1. The seven “I am” statements of John and the furniture of the tabernacle Abiding in the Vine Part 5 Garry Glaub 7

2. “I am!” This statement reveals much! It does not say, “I was!” Nor does it say, “I will be.” It points to

3. “I AM” designates that God always has been, isand always will be.

4. First, let’s understand the biblical significance of “I AM!”

5. Exodus 3:3-6 3 Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” 4So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” 6 Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.

6. Exodus 3:13-14 13 Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AMhas sent me to you.’ ”

7. E-he-YEH ah-SHER e-he-YEH אהיא אשר אהיה

8. Let’s look at another verse that shows the power of this statement:

9. John 18:3-6 3 Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. 4 Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, “Whom are you seeking?” 5 They answered Him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. 6 Now when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

10. Jesus said to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. 6 Now when He said to them, “I amHe,” they drew back and fell to the ground. Remember, a word in italics in the Bible was placed there by translators for ease of translation. It is not there in the original language! I Am!

11. Jesus claims to be God! • But not only does He claim to be God, also notice what occurs with the claim! The troops fall over! In the same manner that Jesus breathed the universe into existence, His breath continues to have all power! How does it feel to be in His army? He is living within us! Why do we ever worry? …אהיא אשר אהיה

12. Now, let’s lookat the 7 “I am”statements in John. Remember, the number 7 in the Bible refers to completeness. It is amazing how often this number occurs throughout the Bible!

14. The Tabernacle • These are all amazing statements! • Studying them, it seemed that there might be a connection to the articles of furniture in the tabernacle, as some were obviously similar. You be the judge!

15. Let’s begin by looking closely at the Tabernacle Remember, the Tabernacle points to Jesus. John 1:14 said, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt [was tabernacled] among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” The word “dwelt” is the same as “tabernacle!”

18. South East West North

19. Inside the Tabernacle…

20. Let’s begin with the entrance to the tabernacle, the gate, as the connection between these two seems very obvious! I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. John 10:9

21. If we go out and find pasture, it sure sounds like we are those dumb sheep from Psalm 23, desperately in need of a Shepherd!

22. The Gate • The gate of the tabernacle was the ONLY entrance, just as Jesus is the ONLY way to enter into heaven. For the Israelites, entering the gate of the tabernacle was the only way to fellowship with God and receive His forgiveness.

23. The Gate • So many people want to believe that if there is a heaven and a God, that God will look upon their lives and see that they accomplished more good than bad, and that will “earn” them heaven. • But the Bible tells us that all we “earn” with our lives is death, as “the wages of sin is death.” If we sin even once, we become sinners, and a righteous God must punish that sin.

24. The Gate • Let’s say that one of us commits a murder and goes before a judge and says, “Judge, I committed this murder in anger, but I promise never to do it again.” • Can anyone imagine a righteous judge who would say, “That’s alright. As long as you promise never to do it again, everything is fine.” • Not even an atheist would see that as the proper solution!

25. The Gate • Instead, God designed a system where sinners could be forgiven. This began in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve sinned, and God covered their sin with an animal skin, showing us that sin must be covered by the spilling of innocent blood. • Then God continued this lesson, with the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. That was difficult to abide by, with many rules and regulations, but it still allowed their sin to be forgiven, once again, by the spilling of innocent blood. • But these all pointed to what occurred in the New Testament…

26. Jesus died so that we might live! He was judged for our sin, and if we accept Him as our Savior, we are judged for His sinlessness. Imagine, standing before the Judge and having Him say, “The punishment for your sin already has been paid in full!”

27. 24 This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and carrying: 25 They shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tabernacle of meeting with its covering, the covering of badger skins that is on it, the screen for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, 26 the screen for the door of the gate of the court, the hangings of the court which are around the tabernacle and altar, and their cords, all the furnishings for their service and all that is made for these things: so shall they serve. Numbers 4:24-26

28. Next, let’s go to the brazen altar…

29. 22 So Samuel said: “Has the Lordas greatdelightin burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22

30. The Brazen Altar • The brazen altar is also called the altar of burnt offerings. • Just inside the gate, this was where the offerings of the sacrificial system were sacrificed. • These offerings symbolized that in order to approach a Holy God, a sinful man must first be cleansed by innocent blood. • In John 1:29, John the Baptist said of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

31. The Brazen Altar • Because of the sacrifice Jesus made, we can approach the Holy God! • Jesus is the only way to God, as we have no other way to cover our sin. • Isaiah 53:9 reminds us that Jesus had no deceit in His mouth, which makes Him the Truth. “And they made His grave with the wicked -- but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, Nor was any deceit in His mouth.” • And we can have no life without Him! This points to:

32. Way Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) Truth Life

33. Did you notice that there are two articles of furniture without any measurements given? Why?

34. They both point so strongly to Jesus, and He is immeasurable!

35. The first is the Bronze Laver… • The priests were to wash in the bronze (brazen) laver. We are to come to Him in confession. First John 1:9 tells us that “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” • This laver of brass pictures our sanctification. We must wash if we are going to serve God. We must wash if we are going to be used by God. We must be clean. Not only should our garments smell like sweet incense, but our bodies should be washed with pure water. The pure water is the Word of God. “The Word” is a title John used for Jesus!

36. This is a place for washing. Water gives life, as we cannot live without it. Water also symbolizes our need for cleansing every single day, to help us to continue to walk in the Spirit and abide in Jesus!

37. The Laver • The laver was made out of brass. The women brought their highly polished brass mirrors to make the laver, as they did not have glass mirrors back then. The mirrors revealed dirt and that was the purpose of the laver. The laver cleansed the priest, and the laver pictures the Word of God. • The Bible is a mirror and when we look into it, our sin is revealed. We then need to confess our sin and be cleansed.

38. The Bronze Laver • Jesus reminded us, “apart from Me, you can do nothing.” According to John 15:3, we are already clean through the word He has spoken to us! • Remember, the word “prunes” used in John 15:2 in Greek is ka-THAI-ro(καθαίρω), and it means “cleanses.” • The Father, who is the Vinedresser, takes the branches stuck in the dirt, lifts them up and cleanses them! We are washed by His Word! We also are washed clean by His blood. “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow,” according to Isaiah 1:18.

39. The Laver • In the Bible, bronze always points to judgment, and we will not be judged because Jesus cleansed us when He was judged on our behalves! • For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21

40. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

41. Review • “I AM” is more than a statement or claim. It is a title of God! Jesus spoke to Moses from the burning bush. When Jesus uttered these words in the Garden of Gethsemane, those who came to arrest Him fell over like bowling pins! • Two weeks ago, we looked at the Gate, the Brazen Altar and the Bronze Laver.

42. Review • The Gate shows a direct correlation to John 10:9: “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” • The Brazen Altar is where they performed sacrifices, as there cannot be forgiveness of sin without the spilling of innocent blood. Without the death of the innocent Lamb of God on the cross, we would not be forgiven. This tied into John 14:6. “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”

43. Review • The Bronze Laver was next. This is where the priests washed before entering the Holy Place. It was made with brass mirrors, so they could see the dirt. In the same manner, when we read the Bible, it reveals our sin. This points to John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me, you can do nothing.” That passage speaks of cleansing, as that is what the Father did with the vines that He lifted up!

44. Now, we go inside!

46. The second article without a measurement is the Lampstand… • This is the most perfect picture of Christ that we find in the tabernacle, as the lighted lamps represent the Holy Spirit and point to Christ in the centerof the menorah. • The lampstand is symbolic of Christ, who sent the Holy Spirit into the world. The Spirit of God takes the things of Christ and shows them to us. In much the same way that Jesus always does the work of the Father, the Holy Spirit always points to Jesus!

47. The Lampstand • The lampstand (menorahמְנׄורָה ) is hammered out of one piece of gold and it points to the fact that Jesus is pure gold. It speaks of His deity. He is GOD! Worship is walking in His light, abiding and obeying. • Natural lightis available outside the tabernacle. If we want to walk in the light of the menorah, though, we must go inside the tabernacle! • The lampstand was made of one piece of gold, beaten and ornamented. Before His crucifixion, Jesus was beaten!

49. The lampstand had a central shaft, and extending from that shaft were three branches on each side, making a total of seven lamps in all. The one in the center is called the shamashשׁמשׁ, which means “servant.” That comes from the same Hebrew root word for “sun,” which is shemesh. Each branch was like the limb of an almond tree with fruit and a blossom. At the top was an open almond blossom, and it was there that the lamps filled with oil were placed.

50. Menorah or Lampstand • There is so much symbolism going on here. First, notice the number of lamps in the menorah. In the Bible, seven is a number of completeness. Six, on the other hand, is the number of man. (Think of the “mark of the beast,” 666). The number one points to the unity of God. 6 + 1 = 7, and man + God = completeness! Without God, man is incomplete, but Jesus makes us complete! • At Chanukah, the Jews use the candle in the middle, the shamash, of a nine-candled candelabrum, to light the other candles. This points to Jesus, who lights the world, and came as the servant to all!