Do people know what they’ll get from you even before you begin, because you have proved consistency overtime?

Always give 110%, the difference between ordinary and extraordinary is the little extra. I once heard it said that communicated commitment.  Where do you fit in the following four categories?

1    The cop out – sets no goals and makes not decision- well I can’t promise; I’ll see what happens
2    The hold out – they’re uncertain if they can reach their goal so they don’t even start
3    The drop out – they start but they stop when it gets tough
4    The all out – they set goals, pay the price and reach their goal

Jesus said you pick up your cross and follow Me. He selected 12 good men of excellence who were prepared to lay it all down.

Good enough is not good enough.  Decide to today to make excellence your minimal standard.

And so it was that the Tabernacle of Moses was built – it was His dwelling place, his throne on earth, it represents the presence of God.

For centuries the entire nation of Israel functioned around the Tabernacle of Moses.  Today many people don’t understand it’s structure, it’s relationship to the New testament or relevance to today.

Tabernacle of Moses was simply a portable tent with various curtains and coverings over a wooden structure.

It had 3 parts:

1. The Outer Court
2. The Holy Place
3. Holiest of All

Each of these sections contained particular pieces of furniture.

Of all the furniture in the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant was the most sacred.  Every other piece of furniture in the Tabernacle was of importance, but it was subordinate to the Ark of the Covenant.

Once a year the high Priest would come and sprinkle blood over the Ark for the atonement of the people.  It was from the Ark that God’s audible voice was heard by Moses and Aaron.

This was no ordinary box.  This was The Ark.

Hebrews 9:4 tells us, “Inside the ark were a gold jar containing some manna, Aaron’s staff that sprouted leaves, and the stone tablets of the covenant with the Ten Commandments written on them.

So we see three things inside the ark:

1.    The Law
2.    The Manna
3.    Aaron’s Rod

God doesn’t do anything by mistake or coincidence.  Each of these items was placed inside the Ark succinctly yet purposefully.

1. THE LAW

There were 3 aspects to the Law.

Moral Law
This was the Ten commandments, which summarized the whole covenant between God and His people.

3 times God had to give this law to his people.  First it he did so orally then he wrote it on tablets of stone.  But it wasn’t long after first receiving it on a tablet that Moses broke the tablet symbolizing to the people of Israel how they had already broken those commandments by making a golden calf to worship.

Then in Deut 10:1-2 we read “At that time the Lord said to me, ‘Chisel out two stone tablets like the first ones. Also make a wooden Ark—a sacred chest to store them in. Come up to me on the mountain, ² and I will write on the tablets the same words that were on the ones you smashed. Then place the tablets in the Ark.’

Civil Law
This is was it commonly referred to the book of the Law – primarily because it was written in a book.  This was very much an amplification of the Moral Law.

Ceremonial Law
This had to do with all the rules and regulations and many of the feats and ceremonies we read in Leviticus.

The Law was unobtainable.  In their own strength the law became too big to obtain.  It was unreachable.

There was no grace, just law.  But all along the law was pointing to something, the law pointed out that there is a way to live, there is a way to obtain life and the law was pointing out that way.

The Law itself was a shadow of something to come.

2. The Manna
The Manna was the bread from heaven that fed Israel for 40 years in the wilderness.

Exodus 16:11

There are some things to note about the bread:

Just a small piece gave great sustenance
You had to gather it for yourself
It was impossible to not get enough – your need was always met, even if you only gathered a small amount.

It was this bread that sustained them and kept them alive.  When they thought that God was going to fail on his promise to take them into the promise land, instead let them die in the desert, the manner reminded them that, what God promised was true and that He is a God of truth.

3. Aaron’s Rod
This was no ordinary rod.  This was a rod that budded, when 11 others did not.

Numbers 17:1-10

Aaron’s rod was the only one to manifest life – having budded with a flower and almond fruit.

The fruitfulness of Aaron’s rod attested that he was the God-chosen, God-anointed, God appointed high Priest of Israel.

It was showing that there is was life in his rod.  When everyone else left behind a dead stick, Aaron left in the presence of God some that was alive. Something that had life.  To everyone else it looked like just another stick, but God knew that this was a something that had life.

So, we have the law that’s pointing to the way. The manna that’s showing the truth, the rod that declares life.

John 14:6

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Everything Moses put in the Ark was foretelling and speaking of a life changing message.  Inside that little box was a shadow of the way, the truth and the life.

John the Baptist declared “in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning.  All things were made through Him and without him nothing was made that was made.  In him was life and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it.

And verse 17 he says For the Law was given through Moses but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

All the law was perfectly kept and fulfilled in Christ.  He alone is the one and only person who has kept the law.

He fulfils the moral, civil and ceremonial law and at the cross he abolished the ceremonial law when his body was broken and his blood was shed.  And now he calls us to a higher law.  First he wrote them with his finger in tablets of stone, but now it’s written by the finger of God almighty on the tablet of our heart.

Now we must remain in Him and receive all that he has done for us.  Salvation doesn’t come from the law but by grace, through faith.

He took our history and we took his destiny.  And now we have access to God because we are dressed in His righteousness, not because of anything we have done or any law that we have upheld.

Jesus Christ made simplistic and clear… He says I am the way, I am the truth

People not only want to know the way to go, but they also want the truth.  Humanity is hurting because people have been seeking the way and the life, based on a false truth.

In John 6: 32 Jesus described himself as the True Bread.  He went on in verse 48 to say, “I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”

Naturally that pot of manna God requested be placed in the ark of the covenant was the bread from heaven that was used to feed the Israelites, but spiritually it symbolised the nature, character and sustaining power of Jesus Christ – the bread of Life.

He is the source of eternal life, the life giver and sustainer for people in the wilderness.

You need to know tonight, that no matter season of life you are in right now, regardless of the hardship you’re facing, Jesus is the answer His word is truth.

He is the embodiment of His Word and when we abide in Him we will know a freedom that is known to no man.  You can be locked in a prison and still be free when you abide in Christ, the Truth.  But you can be a free man and be locked in a prison when you don’t know Jesus Christ the Truth.

Jesus said I am the Way, I am the Truth and I am the Life.

If left uncollected in the morning the Manna would evaporate, but place it in the presence of God and it will last a lifetime.  In him there is no death, only life.

Of the 12 dead sticks that were placed in the presence of the Lord only one manifested life.  Because there is only one Saviour, one Lord. Christ Jesus – in him was life and the life was the light of men.

And as Aaron’s rod was left over night in the presence of the God, and the following morning was seen to have budded, have a flower and a fruit.  It showed that there is only one rod, but a threefold manifestation of fruitfulness.

The Bud being the Father – the Source and the Beginning,
the Flower being the Son – fragrant and crushed.
The Fruit being the Holy Spirit – fruitful and sustaining.

Aaron’s rod came out of the dead.  In the resurrection of Christ, our Great High Priest, the only Mediator between God and Man he rose from the dead.  In Christ we see the manifestation of all life, beauty and fruitfulness.

He is the Life because He is alive.  He is not dead, but is risen and bears fruit.

If you are looking for the best life, the truth is Jesus is the way.  It’s found in him.  He said, I have come that you may have life and have it more abundantly”.

He is the way the truth and the life – the law, the manna and the rod

Then the LORD said to Moses, 9 “Give Aaron and his sons the following instructions regarding the burnt offering. The burnt offering must be left on top of the altar until the next morning, and the fire on the altar must be kept burning all night. 10 In the morning, after the priest on duty has put on his official linen clothing and linen undergarments, he must clean out the ashes of the burnt offering and put them beside the altar. 11 Then he must take off these garments, change back into his regular clothes, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a place that is ceremonially clean. 12 Meanwhile, the fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must never go out. Each morning the priest will add fresh wood to the fire and arrange the burnt offering on it. He will then burn the fat of the peace offerings on it. 13 Remember, the fire must be kept burning on the altar at all times. It must never go out.

There is a secret to getting hold of God and being a carrier of His presence – don’t let the fire go out.  When the fire of God is burning in our life, we can enjoy some great benefits.

1. WE BECOME ATTRACTIVE
There is something about fire that attracts people.  When your life starts burning for Jesus, people will be attracted to you and will want to know what’s going on with you.

It’s so important that we don’t let the fire of the Holy Ghost burn out of our life, the moment we do we will lose the attention of the world.

2. WE WILL BE GUIDED
When you’re on fire and you’re carrying the presence of God, you will be directed and guided all of your days.  When the Children of Israel were working their way through the desert toward the promised land, the Bible says that a pillar of fire guided them by night and a cloud guided them by day.

If you let the light of the Holy Spirit shine in your life he’ll show you where to walk, who to trust and who to stay away from and what direction to take.  And you will be a carrier of the presence of God.

3. WE WILL BE COMFORTED
Sometime life can be very hard we can feel alone, but the Fire of the Holy Spirit is an embracing fire that keeps you warm.  Just like it did the Israelites at night in the desert.  The fire of the Holy Spirit is the Comforter.  Jesus said, “It’s important that I leave because I am going to send you the Comforter”.

He’s the one who is there for you in your time of need.

In a hand written letter to Simòne, from one of her friends, penned on the back page of her Bible, is, what has come to be, my favourite saying about friendships,

“…Friendship is a special gift from God’s heart – picture it like a garden, for it to grow and flourish, you need to spend time in it; you need to water it with encouragement and sprinkle seeds of love for growth and for yielding fruit…”

Picturesque and sentimental I know, but none the less, very true.  For a close friendship to truly grow in strength and overcome the test of time, it must be tended to by all people involved in the friendship.  If one person fails to plant seed or pull weeds, that friendship will not bloom to its full potential.

There are three different types of friendships that I identify with: core, good and casual.  The first of these, core, I believe is the one that requires a lot of gardening and as a result will produce much fruit and be a blessing to your life for years to come.  But there are some guidelines that should be adhered to.

Core friends are those whom you have the pleasure of spending quality time with.  These are the people with whom you can be completely honest and transparent; whom you can share your heart with, your struggles and your dreams.

I believe this kind of friendship happens only with one or two people.  Jesus had a core relationship with Peter, James and John.  But distinction was given to John – the Bible calls him ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’.

More about this next time.