TABERNACLE PRAYER is a preparation process. As we pray through this prayer format, we are becoming prepared to meet with the Great I AM. Through this format we find we have the privilege and high honor of entering into the Courts of Heaven and being graced with an audience with the One Who sits on the Throne. For so long we run into the Outer Courts and either pray out or shout out our prayers and intercessions. But the Holy One invites us in. When we are invited in to meet with the Creator of the Universe, we must allow ourselves to be made ready. Yes, we are infinitely loved by God and the Lord longs to hear our voice. But to truly encounter Abba, we must allow ourselves to be prepared. This is a time-consuming process. It’s not done in one day. Just as yeast has to be worked thoroughly in the dough to make bread to rise, so this process will work Holy Spirit thoroughly through us. The Bridegroom is coming back for His Bride without spot or wrinkle. (Ephesians 5:27, Revelation 21:2)
“For the Bride has made herself ready….” (Revelation 19:7)
So many of us, in our times of prayer and intercession we rush in and out with our petitions and our cries. We may even shout out our passionate prayers from far-off in the distance. Wouldn’t we be much more effective if we had the high honor and privilege to meet with the King of Kings face-to-face?
The LORD wants us and is calling us to prepare ourselves. The Tabernacle is a portrait of Heaven, Tabernacle Prayer is a beautiful picture on how we can be prepared to have an intimate face-to-face audience with the Great I AM.
We can’t run into the Courts of Heaven stinking like the world wearing our filthy rags when we meet face-to-face with the King of the Universe. Yes, we can offer our petitions and prayers whenever and wherever we are. But wouldn’t it be so much more awesome, and so much more effective to have the privilege of being invited in to meet with the Great I AM face-to-face? It is possible. The Curtain has been torn. We can enter in. But in order to be invited into the Throne Room, we must submit ourselves to the preparation process, the “beauty treatments”.
The book of Esther describes how Hadassah had to submit herself to a year-long beauty treatment before she was allowed an audience with the king. She already was very beautiful, because she was one who was hand-picked. She was chosen. Like her, the Lord is attracted to the beauty in us. But that beauty is marred and stained by the filth of this world. As with Esther, the Tabernacle format of prayer can potentially be the beauty treatment process so we can be invited in to meet with the King. But, like Hadassah, we must yield and submit to it. The process can be, and is painful. But what a great high honor to be invited in to have face-to-face audience to the Great I AM, the Creator of the Universe!
The Tabernacle is a model on how we can go through the preparation process so we can gain entrance into the Holy of Holies – the Heavenly Throne Room. Wouldn’t it be so awesome to have the high honor and privilege of going there…..DAILY? Instead of a once in a lifetime encounter?
We must prepare ourselves
We must allow ourselves to be yielded, probed, stinking flesh and sin burned off so we can enter in.
In our house of prayer, as we’ve been practicing this model of prayer this past year, at times I’ve been a little frustrated. Why aren’t we in intercession? Why aren’t we praying for our cities? Our regions? Why aren’t we praying topical crisis and needful prayers? I took this frustration up to the Father and this is what I heard:
“Too many times you and others rush in, dump all your prayers and you rush out. You don’t encounter Me. You don’t sit with Me. Sometimes you don’t want to hear Me, or My response. You must be invited in. Worship, prayer and intercession isn’t something you “do”, it is who you are. You must realize you are called to be a priest and a king (I Peter 2:9, Revelation 1:6), yet you don’t even identify with your role. You don’t even know who you are! When you learn the greatness of the authority you carry, then you speak differently. You will think differently. You will act differently. Allow yourselves to undergo the preparation process”.
We must prepare ourselves as children of the Most High God.
The basic steps of the Tabernacle Prayer model are as follows:
GATE:
• Decision
• Praise and Thanksgiving
Decide daily this is your time to encounter the Great I AM. Thank God for all His benefits (Psalm 103:2). Remember all of the Lord’s goodness toward you and offer up sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving.
“You make known to me the Path of Life; in Your Presence is fullness of joy, at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore”. Psalm 16:11
ALTAR OF SACRIFICE:
• Death
• Repentance.
Death to self, death to pride, death to everything who you think you are. Everything has to die within you, every love, every passion, every sin, everything has to go. You must learn to come to a place and grow comfortable with the fact that nothing else matters…..except HIM. Pride must be killed in us…..daily. If not, the Gifts and Anointings given to us will be in danger of being dirtied, perverted in our fleshly pride. We must come to the place where we can say:
“No longer I who live, but CHRIST IN ME, hope of Glory….” (Galatians 2:20)
BRONZE LAVER:
• Cleansing
• Redressing
• Re-identification
Allow the Great I AM to probe you, open you up and expose those “hidden closets” and cleanse you from all sin. Allow the Lord to reveal to you all that needs to be removed and allow the Lord to remove them. Lay down your identity and allow the Lord to give you a new identity – HIS identity.
GOLDEN LAMPSTAND
• Fresh Infilling
• New sight
• New vision
This is a place where we come to the realization that we can’t see. All that we’ve seen in the past was through dirty lenses, all distorted. We can’t be filled until we are first emptied. We can’t be dressed in our new identities until we are first stripped bare from our earthly security and our titles. And, as the oil lamps are refilled twice a day, morning and evening, we also must be refilled at least twice a day, morning and evening.
TABLE OF SHOWBREAD
• Assimilating the Word
• Feasting, banqueting on the Word
As the eyes of our spirits are opened and we see through new lenses, the Word comes alive to us and we banquet on it. “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a Light to my path…” Psalm 119:105
ALTAR OF INCENSE
• Worship
• Intercession
This is the place where we offer up the worship first, then intercession. Or….we can offer up both in the form of “harp & bowl” worship and intercession. As priests of the Most High, we exalt His Name and sing with the angels: “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY IS THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY” (Isaiah 6:3, Revelation 4:8). As we worship, a realization hits us that this is a place where it’s not about “us”, it’s all about HIM, the Great I AM. There is a difference between praise & thanksgiving and true worship. Very rarely do we enter into this place in our church services or even in our worship & prayer meetings. Much of it is because we do not undergo the death, stripping away and cleansing process in the Outer Court. True worship has nothing to do with us…..it’s all about HIM.
True intercession also has nothing to do with us. It’s all about HIM, all about what the Great I AM can do in a broken, fallen world. True intercession is coming to a place where we don’t ask so that “we” can be benefited. We come to a place where it no longer matters if we even see the results of our prayers. We cry out for a broken, fallen world because we now have the Father’s Heart beating within us and we feel His pain. True intercession is praying the Great I AM’s prayers, not our prayers. Never, ever “our” prayers. Even among intercessors, this place is a rare place to come to.
HOLY OF HOLIES
As we worship and cry out with the cries of the Father’s Heart through intercession, we look up and to our amazement, we see the Curtain has been torn! The Curtain that separates us has been ripped from top to bottom! We can now enter in! We do enter in! Finally we can see what it truly means to “be seated with HIM in the Heavenly Realms” (Ephesians 2:6)
Some, very very few intercessors have visited this place regularly. When they do, as they come out they have been dramatically changed.
Altered.
Some have experienced translations, some have such incredible encounters with the Lord that it boggles our minds!
I have yet to be in that place, am anticipating the time when that Curtain will be ripped for me!
Doors, gates and veils mark or delineate a separation. There is a process that has to be done so we can enter in. We also don’t go in unless we are first invited.
OUTER GATE
The entrance to the Outer Gate is always open. Everyone is welcomed to enter in. Many go in and out and actually never experience true salvation (though some may think they do). If one says he/she is saved but there is no actual change in their lives, they may not be. Many come in through the Outer Gate, get caught up in the praise and thanksgiving. They may even “dance” with us, but when they face the Altar of Sacrifice, they leave. The Lord wants and calls for a change in all of us. We must allow ourselves to be changed, be transformed.
We must be teachable.
We must be moldable.
No matter where we are, we must allow the Lord to probe us, we must learn to let go. There is a preparation process and we must allow ourselves to be prepared.
The Bride must make herself ready.Revelation 19:7
No matter where we are in our walk with the Lord, we always have the freedom of choice. We can choose now how far we go with God. As we submit ourselves at the Altar of Sacrifice, and decide to go no farther, we are saved. Our salvation is not jeopardized if we choose to go no further. At the Altar of Sacrifice we ALL are saved. No question. But….the Lord is wooing us closer! All of this is available to us, right here, right now. All of God is available to us….right here, right now. We don’t have to wait until we die and go to heaven to have the ability to experience the fullness of God’s Presence.
The Tabernacle is a “portal” into God. Into God’s Presence. I challenge you right now: How much of God do you want? Right here, right now? You don’t have to wait until you die to meet with the Great I AM. You can meet the LORD even now. Even here. But in order to do this, we have to allow ourselves to be molded, transformed. We may have to let go of some things. In fact, we have to let go of EVERYTHING.
Sh’ma: “Here oh Israel, the Lord your God is One. You must love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, with ALL your mind, and with ALL your soul”.
All of God is available to all of us. But we have to choose. In the Old Testament, in the Tanakh, only the priests were allowed to go further into God. But at the sacrificial death of Jesus, the veil had been ripped. We all now have the capability of our entering in, both Jew & Gentile, both man & woman. No matter who we are, how old or young we are, no matter where we came from or what we did in the past. We all now can go in. Through the Blood of Jesus, we all now have free access to God:
ALL of us can have dreams and visions.
ALL of us can have incredible encounters with God.
ALL of us can see the angelic.
ALL of us can “do the stuff”:
Preach the Gospel
Heal the sick
Cast out demons
Raise the dead
In fact, we are commanded to do this in Mark 16:15-18. This is not for a special “few”, who have been “anointed” to do this. This is for all of us. We all are commanded to do this. But I know that I am incapable of doing any of this in my own flesh. In fact, I can’t do any of that without the “power”, or the anointing of God. So….where do we get this? How much do we want to be obedient to God? How much of God do we want? We have to want it. We have to want God so badly that we’re willing to lay our “stuff” down, lay everything down to follow after Him. We have to lay it all down, lay down:
Our preconceived ideas
Our assumptions
Our pride
Our theology
The way we identify ourselves
Our careers, our jobs
Even our loved ones.
Like the question Jesus asked Simon Peter 3 times: “Do you LOVE Me?”, this question is asked of us. How much do we love God? How much of God do we want? Are we willing to go through the doors, curtains and veils in order to get to God? Do we want God more than any of this? What’s holding us back?
Fear – of the unknown, of our being identified as “slightly off”, or “crazy”?
Desire – for that what the world has to offer?
Familiarity – for that what is comfortable?
All 3 doors are available to us. We can go through them at any time and at any season in our lives. We can choose to linger in the Outer Court until we die, or we could go into the Inner Chamber. Or we can go all the way into the Holy of Holies. We can also go in and come out at will, at any time or any season.These doors get smaller, narrower as we pass through. It gets tighter, a tight fit going through these doors. We can’t take our “stuff” with us as we enter in.
THE BLOOD
The Blood from the Sacrificial Lamb had to be carried through every door, brought into all 3 places:
Outer Court at the Altar of Sacrifice
Inner Chamber / Holy Place
Holy of Holies
The Lamb was slaughtered and offered up on the Altar of Sacrifice in the Outer Court.
ALTAR OF SACRIFICE
Everyone had to slaughter the Lamb; everyone had to receive the Blood. There were no exceptions. If you entered the Outer Gate, you had to be redeemed, bought back from the slavery of sin into the Kingdom of God. We all have to accept what Jesus did on the Cross for each one of us, or we are not part of the Kingdom of God. We have to receive Jesus’ offered Blood on the Cross for our redemption or we are not truly redeemed. We are not truly the children of God.
Everyone has to come here for salvation. There is no question. You can’t go any further unless you take and appropriate the Sacrificial Lamb of God to yourself. As in the days of the Tanakh, everyone has to come here, at least once. They were required to come here at least once a year.
Everyone can enter into the Outer Court. Everyone can enjoy the Presence of God if they are willing. But they are not truly part of God’s Kingdom – they are not saved from eternal death and hell unless they first receive the Blood of the Lamb. Once they we accept and receive what Jesus had done for them on the Cross then and only then are their names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. We all have to first ask for, and then receive the Blood of Christ as our redemption. No one is unwillingly redeemed.
BRONZE LAVER
The is still Outer Court, we haven’t yet gone into the Holy Place. But not all go to this place. We are drawn to the Cleansing, but not all hear the call or respond to it. This is a Priestly Place, a place available only to those who long for and are willing to go deeper into God. This is a place of preparation for those who want to go into the Inner Chamber and minister to God. This is a place of humility, a place where pride and the flesh are killed. Being cleansed, allowing ourselves to be cleansed is a humbling place. It’s a place where pride and independence have to die. This is a place of preparation to enter through the Narrow Door.
In order to enter into this place we have to see ourselves differently. We have to let go of our ordinariness and see ourselves as part of the Royal Priesthood. We must begin to identify ourselves as a KINGDOM OF PRIESTS.
Kings & priests look different.
Kings & priests act different
Kings & priest see different.
Kings & priests dress different.
Have you ever met someone and you’ve noticed change in the way they carry themselves from before? They could have spent some time in the Inner Chamber. They carry themselves with a greater authority, a greater assurance. They know who they are in Christ and no one in this world can label them differently. They start to see themselves and identify themselves through God’s eyes. You know it’s not fleshly pride; there is some sort of an assurance about them.
Not everyone is willing to submit to this. Many come, but when they see what it costs to have the ability to enter into the Holy Place, they may walk away. Some people come and come and come and keep coming, only to leave at a certain time. But they keep coming back. Eventually they will finally come to a place of yieldedness so they too can enter in.
We who have gone in must not discourage those. Even if the stink of their flesh offends us. We are called to LOVE THEM!!
INNER CHAMBER / HOLY PLACE
When we enter here, we mistakenly think that finally we’ve finally arrived! But in actuality, we haven’t. This is only the 2nd step, still only an outer room.
The Blood of the Sacrificial Lamb is brought here not once but twice a day. The priest brings the Blood and pours it twice daily on the Altar of Incense: the place of Worship and Intercession. Both worship and intercession are ministries that never “glorify” us. They totally glorify the Lord. Just as the Inner Chamber is a place where no one can see what’s going on, the ministries of worship and intercession are not seen nor acknowledged in most churches.
Every other ministry is totally Outer Court ministry:
Preaching
Teaching
Healing
Deliverance
Raising the Dead.
The ministries of worship and intercession are not valued because they are hidden: eyes off us and eyes onto God. There is nothing about us. It’s all about God. Others shouldn’t and can’t see us when we’re here doing this. No pride and the world doesn’t value this. This is why we must go through the Preparation Process. We must yield to the cleansing, the stripping off, the purging and the “redressing”, the whole re-identification process. None of the worship and the Intercession can be properly done without the cleansing and redressing process.
We must also be filled with Holy Spirit, the Light of God. We cannot see the LIGHT when our eyes are covered with dirty lenses. We cannot properly nourish our spiritual bodies if are filled with the “junk food” of this world. We have to go in clean, re-identified and dressed in Kingdom Garments.
And….we have to go in hungry.
Have you ever noticed after you spent a season of fasting that there is an increased hunger for more of God? Our spirits are sharpened and cleansed; our awareness of our need for God is greatly increased. The Inner Chamber is not “junk food” Christianity. This is not a “shake it & bake it” place where we just go for the thrills and chills and then go home. We cannot enter into this place unrepentant and stinking of the world & our flesh. This is not a place of pride, a place to be noticed. We have to experience death, know death, and even embrace death: death to our flesh, to our ideas of who we think we are, and allow ourselves to be re-identified with Christ.
This is a place where we have to be ok with our not being noticed. No one needs to know we are here…..except GOD!
But this is also a place of incredible anointing and incredible authority in the Kingdom-realm. This is where the Lord wants us to be. HE notices we are here and all of this pleases the Lord. Wouldn’t you rather be famous in God’s eyes than in man’s eyes?
HOLY OF HOLIES
Again the Blood of the Lamb is brought here, poured out on the Mercy Seat. But it is done here only once a year, on the Day of Atonement – Yom Kippur. This is also only done by the High Priest.
This is a special place.
This is a unique place.
Only a very few have truly been able to enter into this place. Also, they are not who you think they are. Most likely they were never known as famous prophets, apostles or evangelists or pastors or teachers. These people may have humble women who spend their lives pouring out in prayer and intercession. They may have experienced translations and miracles that are so beyond our comprehension that others could call them “crazy” or a little “off”.
I have to confess that I’ve not yet been here yet, though I want to. I can’t teach on that what I have yet to know or experience. But this is a place where we can aim for.
Are you willing to enter into the Holy of Holies? Are you willing to go in to the fullness of God and all that He has for you? There is only one way in, there is only one process to enter in. We cannot and must not bypass any other place in the Tabernacle so we can meet with the GREAT I AM. This is a journey into the Presence of God. We cannot skip any step.
This Jewish Prayer Shawl is a type and shadow of the Tabernacle. In fact, word “Tallit” in Hebrew means “Little Tent”. The Hebrew word for tent is translated “Tal”, adding the adverb “Lit” means little. The actual word “Tallit” means “to cover”. This symbolizes our being covered in God’s Presence.
Tallit (the Prayer Shawl) the corner fringes on this ritual garment remind the wearer of all the commandments in the Torah. The (tall-EET) or tallis (TALL-us) is a large rectangular shawl made of wool, cotton or synthetic fibers. In each of the four corners of the shawl are strings tied in a particular pattern, called tzitzit. The origin of the is biblical; the practice is prescribed in Numbers 15. The precept is to put these strings on the four corners of one’s garment — in ancient tradition, with a single strand of blue as well–as a reminder of the duties and obligations of a Jew. Since we no longer wear four-cornered garments, the tallit is worn specifically to fulll the biblical precept.
The Bible does not command wearing of a unique prayer shawl or tallit. Instead, it presumes that people wore a garment of some type to cover themselves and instructs the Children of Israel to attach fringes (????? tzitzit) to the corners of these (Numbers 15:38), repeating the commandment in terms that they should “make thee twisted cords upon the four corners of thy covering, wherewith thou coverest thyself” (Deuteronomy 22:12). These passages do not specify tying particular types or numbers of knots in the fringes. The exact customs regarding the tying of the tzitzit and the format of the tallit are of post-biblical, rabbinic origin and, though the Talmud discusses these matters, slightly different traditions have developed in different communities.[6] However the Bible is specific as to the purpose of these tzitzit, stating that “it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye go not about after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go astray; that ye may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy unto your God”.[7]
Traditionally, men wear a tallit during morning services; in non-Orthodox synagogues, many women also wear a tallit. In some Orthodox congregations, only married men wear a tallit.
To put on the tallit, many will first unfolt it and hold in both hands so the ATARAHis facing them. One may see people gathering the tzitzit in their left hand and kissing them when the paragraph from the referring to them is recited.
Before putting on the prayer shawl, it is customary to say the following blessing:
Baruch atah adonai Eloheinu
melech ha olam
Asher kidishanu b’mitzvotav
Vitzivanu l’hitatef b’tzitzit.
“Blessed are you Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe Who has sanctifieed us with your mitzvot And commanded us to wrap ourselves in tzitzit.”
After reciting the blessing, the person will throw the Tallit over his shoulders like a cape and then position it on his shoulders. After it is positioned, then they will bring their hands together in front of their face briefly and cover their head with the Tallit for a moment of private meditation. Then the Tallit is adjusted on the shoulders.
TWO TYPES OF TALLIT (or Talliot)
Tallit katan – The Tallit katan descends from the Sephardic tradition. Some believe Jesus wore this kind of Tallit. It is a large rectangular cloth with a hole in the middle, worn over the head and under the outer garments. They wear it all during their waking hours, never take it off. Many Orthodox Jews wear this type of Tallit to this day.
Tallit Gadol – This is more of a Prayer Shawl that is draped around the shoulders. This type of Tallit is worn around the shoulders only during the times of prayer and while in service at Synagogue. This comes from the Ashkenazi tradition.
TALLIT IN LIFE CYCLES:
BIRTH – Eight days after birth the male child is circumcised, this is called the “BRIS” or BRIT MILAH. As part of the circumcision rite, the father will wrap his baby son in his Tallit for a few moments and prays for his baby. In doing this, the father is symbolically wrapping the baby in the Word of God and the protective covering of “Hashem” (Adonai). The father then announces the name of his son and holds him on his lap throughout the ceremony as a sign that he will guide, protect and love his son. This is a sign that the Name of God (not the father’s name) will live throughout the generations. There is a similar ceremony for baby girls 80 days after birth. They also are dedicated to God.
BAR/BAT MITZVAH– The Tallit is presented to the young girl or boy as they reach the age of 12, the age of manhood or womanhood. The new adult will then read publicly from the Word of God wearing his/her new Tallit. The new adult is now taking on the responsibility of following the Word of God by becoming the son or daughter of the Commandments. The child is now recognized as an adult and is responsible for his or her words and actions in the community.
TALLIT IN MARRIAGE– The Tallit is again used in marriage. It is place on poles and creates a canopy over the couple, calling it the “Chuppah”. The man and woman come together as husband & wife – one flesh – under the protection of God. Marriage represents the completion of the Image of God. Marriage also reflects our walk with Messiah, a foreshadow of Christ and His Bride. When the man & woman bond together in marriage, it is no longer “him” and “her”, it is about them as a couple. As the couple stands under the Tallit, or the Chuppah, they stand together as a three-strand cord with the Lord. This is the beginning of a New Creation, their “oneness” with each other with God. The Lord’s powerful will stands between this New Creation called marriage and the couple must realize the Lord will lead them, guide them and protect them.
TALLIT IN DEATH AN BURIAL – The man or the woman is to be buried with their Tallit only if they spent their lives walking with the Lord. When the Tallit is used in burial, we remember that this is a sign of holiness and sanctification. In life, the wearer of the Tallit is known to be one who is set apart for God.
PRAYER CLOSET – When a person covers himself with this prayer shawl, he shuts out the world.
Matthew 6:5-6 – “When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by others. Amen, I tell you, they have their reward to the full! But YOU….when you pray, go into your inner room and when you have shut your door, pray to the Father Who sees you in secret, shall reward you.”
Some of the versions use the words “…..go into your CLOSET….”
We have to realize that in ancient Israel there was no such things as “closets”. In fact, in most houses, they might have had only one room, not an “inner room”. So what did Jesus mean when He said that?
The “inner chamber” is the Tallit. Whenever someone had their Tallits over their heads, the other family members knew enough not to bother them. They knew they were praying. The one wearing the Tallit had “gone into his inner chamber and closed the door”.
Every observant Jew prayed 3 times a day:
Morning Prayer – Shacharit
Afternoon Prayer – Mincha
Evening Prayer – Maariv
Jesus was an observant Jew Who practiced every one of the jewish customs and observed every one of the Feasts.
This morning I was meditating on Jesus, His early morning prayers, which was called the “Shacharit”.
“Very early, while it was still night, Yeshua got up, left and went away to a place in the wilderness, and there He was praying.” Mark 1:35
So here Jesus our Lord and our Messiah, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords is praying early in the morning under this “tent”. Not only did He pray in the early mornings, Jesus prayed 3 times a day! Can you imagine the Glory that filled that Tallit? The anointing this piece of cloth carried?
READ: Exodus 33:7-11
Now if the Glory was so heavy upon Moses as He met with the Lord face-to-face under a tent…..so much so that Joshua wouldn’t leave even after the prayer was over…..what was in Jesus’ Tent?
READ:Matthew 9:20-22, Matthew 14:35-36
The people KNEW Jesus was their Messiah. Jesus is the Promised One.
Malachi 3:20: But to you, who fear My Name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will break out leaping like calves released from the stall”.
Every observant Jew knew in this Scripture the Sun of Righteousness refers to their Messiah. Also, every observant Jew knows the “Tzitzit” on the 4 corners of their garments always are called the “Wings”.
Every common person KNEW Jesus is Messiah. Even though the religious elite and the Levitical priesthood never recognized Him….they did. The common people did.
There is still so much more, but it is my goal for you to get a glimpse of this thing we call the “Prayer Shawl”, the Tallit. Get a picture of Jesus wearing this Prayer Shawl around His shoulders and on His head during prayer. Then get a glimpse of the crowds of people clamoring all over Jesus, wanting to just touch this Prayer Shawl, especially the 4 corners of the garment.
Jesus’ Prayer Shawl is available to all of us, in Spirit. We can also come running to Him and beg to touch the “hem of His garment”, His Prayer Shawl. Healing is still in His Wings. We can touch Him….even today.
‘“Adonai spoke to Moses, saying, “ you will also make a basin of bronze with a bronze stand for washing. You are to place it between the Tent of Meeting and the Altar and put water in in it.
Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and their feet there. Whenever they go into the Tent of Meeting or come near to the altar to minister, to present an offering made b fire in smoke to Adonai, they are to wash with water so that they do not die. They are to wash their hands and their feet, so that they do not die. It is to be an eternal statute for them, to him and to his offspring through their generations.” ( Exodus 30:17-21 TLV
Going through the Tabernacle is a progression. This is a progressive walk toward a deeper intimacy with God. This is a time where we prepare to have face-to-face communion with the Living God.
It was here at the bronze laver that the priests washed their hands and feet before entering into and coming out of the holy place. The laver was made from the bronze mirrors of the women and The word “laver” means a bath or wash basin containing water for the purpose of washing. The Jewish priests were commanded to continually wash their hands and feet during tabernacle service.
The ancient Jewish Mikvah came from the Laver. In every Jewish community there was a Mikvah, a place of physical and spiritual cleansing. The Mikvah had to be a place of running or flowing water. Not stagnant. John the Baptist, when he was calling out in the wilderness, “baptizing” people in the Jordan River, in a sense he was calling the people of Israel back to the Laver, back to the place of cleansing. This was to be a time of preparation for the “Kingdom of God is at hand”. Yeshua, Jesus was about to come on the scene and John was to herald His coming in Elijah-like fashion.
Today, most churches practice baptism, through immersion or sprinkling. This was taken from the Jewish Mikvahs. The Jewish people were very aware of their need for a cleansing before they met with their God. They went to their Mikvahs in preparation for any major life event such as their marriage, to end their mourning after a death of a loved one, etc. Women entered the Mikvahs after each menstrual cycle and after the birth of their babies.
“Although the term “baptism” is not used to describe the Jewish rituals, the purification rites in Jewish law and tradition, called t’vilah, have some similarity to baptism, and the two have been linked. The t’vilah is the act of immersion in natural sourced water, called a mikvah. In the Jewish Bible and other Jewish texts, immersion in water for ritual purification was established for restoration to a condition of “ritual purity” in specific circumstances.” (Wikipedia Dictionary)
Its Position
The laver was placed between the door of the Holy Place and the altar.
(1) It came after the altar (sacrifice first). The appointed priest, as he entered the gate of the outer court, faced the altar, where he made a sacrifice for himself like any other Israelite. Once beyond the altar he was ready to act as a serving priest and so at the laver he prepared himself for the further service of God. He could then minister at the altar or in the Holy Place because he washed at the laver.
The altar always came first for the priest. Salvation and then service. God was approached by way of the blood and the water.
(2) It came before the door (wash before entering). Within the door of the Holy Place were vessels that represented God Himself. No priest dare enter with any trace of uncleanness. “Be holy as I am holy” was commanded to the priests.
(3) It came after leaving the Holy Place (wash before going out). In the outer court everything was bronze. Inside the Holy Place everything was gold. As the priest came out of Gods Presence and back into service he washed at the laver, filled with water for the continual cleansing of the priests as they ministered in the work of the Lord.
The Bronze Laver is a place of:
Forgiveness of sin
Washing
Repeated cleansing
Read Zechariah 3 and put yourself in the place of Joshua, the high priest. As a called kingdom of priests, this incredible picture is available to all of us, no matter how long we’ve served the Lord. We have to come to the place of realization that we cannot enter into the fullness of intimacy until we submit ourselves to a cleansing through repentance. None of us have “arrived” yet. We all sin, this is part of us as an imperfect people living in a fallen world. “All have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God”, no matter where we are in our walk with the Lord. This life is a journey and none of us have reached our final destination.
The Bronze Laver is a type and shadow of our daily need to continually come to the Lord God Adonai and submit to the washing, the cleansing of our sins. I see this also as a type of “beauty treatments”, similar to what Esther submitted herself to in preparation to meet her king. Just as Esther went through a year of preparation to meet with her King, so we must go through a season of preparation throughout our lives so we can meet the King of Kings.
Here we are, at the Bronze Laver and we’re very conscious that there is nothing, absolutely nothing we can give the Lord. Here we are, and it’s just us. No titles. No responsibilities. No achievements. No pride. No self-exaltation. It’s just “me”…..facing GOD! We suddenly realize we can’t give the Lord anything, nothing at all. It all came from the Lord in the first place, what can we give Him? We can’t do enough good works, we can’t be “good” enough. None of that matters.
And as we gaze into the Laver, we start to notice all of the dirt clinging to us. Imperfection. In light of the Most Perfect God. We are painfully aware at how imperfect we are. Yet the Lord calls us into perfection. (Matthew 5:48) How can that happen? How can we become “perfect” when we see such blatant imperfection in us?
As we go to the Laver in our prayer, we suddenly become acutely conscious of our sinfulness, the filth of our sin. Especially after we’ve been walking with the Lord for many years, if we honestly peer into our reflection in the Bronze Laver, we then began to notice our religious ways and our religious attitudes. None of that pleases the Lord. Religion kills. Only an intimate relationship with the Lord will bring us life and life everlasting. If we’ve been walking with the Lord for many years, we slowly start to believe that there is little sin in us, little that needs repenting of. But after our taking a close look at ourselves, honestly scrutinize our walk, we began to see the pride, possibly even arrogance in us. We become sensitive to the fact that we’ve become harsh and judgmental towards others, especially toward those who we don’t think are “saved”.
“Therefore, since we have these promises, loved ones, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of body and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God”. 2 Corinthians 7:1
Just as with the Altar of Sacrifice, we come to the realization that we can’t skip over this step before we enter into intimacy with the Lord in the Holy Place, the Bridal Chamber. We cannot bypass the purging and the cleansing we need here. We cannot, we must not go to meet our Beloved looking like this. The Lord is waiting for us, waiting for His beloved bride to make herself ready to meet her Beloved One.
As we see our filth, we become acutely aware that we cannot enter into the Holy Place to meet with the Great I AM looking the way we do. We can’t bear it. Our flesh couldn’t bear it. We cannot contain the Glory of God in our filth.
We become aware that we cannot do this cleansing ourselves. It’s too much! How can all of that’s in us be gotten rid of? As we come to the realization of all that’s inside us that displeases our Lord, a sense of futility pervades us. It all seems so hopeless! But then the Lord gently reminds us again of Zechariah 3. Joshua, the high priest did not cleanse himself even though he was covered from head-to-foot in dung. The Lord commanded His angels to wash him! The Lord commanded His angels to gently and non-judgmentally remove all of Joshua’s filthy dung laden garments and wash him, cleanse him from the filth of his sin. Then the Lord commanded His angels to dress Joshua with HIS clothing and crown his head with a new Turban! This is so amazing! Here we are, in a place of deep shame because of the depth of the sin we suddenly realize we’ve been carrying. We thought we may have been clean, but there’s so much filth in us that the filth of our sin overwhelms us. But then, just as we are about to despair, the Lord commands His angels to wash us and dress us! The Lord covers us in such beautiful garments!
The angels take off filthy garments we’re wearing, such as:
Sexual immorality
Impurity
Indecency
Idolatry
Witchcraft
Hostility
Strife
Jealousy
Rage
Selfish ambition
Dissension factions
Envy
Drunkenness
Carousing
Then, as we’re stripped bare of these things, the Lord dresses us with rich beautiful garments such as:
Love
Joy
Peace
Patience
Kindness
Goodness
Faithfulness
Gentleness
Self Control
(Galatians 5:19-23)
Or….
The Lord takes off filth covering us such as:
Sexual immorality
Impurity
Lust
Evil desire
Greed, which is idolatry.
Anger
Rage
Malice
Slander
Foul language
Lying
Then He dresses us with beautiful garments such as:
Tender compassion
Kindness
Humility
Gentleness
Patience
Bearing one another
Forgiving one another
Love
Peace
We are to wear the beauty of the Peace of God, the Shalom. (Colossians 3:5-15)
Because of the beautiful robes that are provided for us, we can now enter in. We are now allowed to enter into the Inner Chamber. But it’s not because of “our” righteousness, it’s because of HIM. We have to put on and wear the King’s Robes, the King’s garments before we can enter in.None of this comes from us, none of this comes from our flesh or our own spirits. All of this comes from God.
All we are called to do is give the Lord our everything: our pain, our sorrow, our unforgiveness. We are to give the Lord our dreams, our hopes, our aspirations, our accomplishments, even our ministry and our very lives. All that we have and hold great value to are just cheap trinkets. Nothing we can do will impress God. All of this is just junk, tarnished, filthy costume jewelry compared to the beauty and the vastness of the Lord God. We are called to just yield ourselves us, give Him everything. All of it belongs to the Lord anyway!
The beautiful robes of righteousness cover our humanity, it covers our frailty. These rich robes even cover our flesh, our sinfulness. They cover the dirt and filth that is still embedded in us and not yet washed or burned off. All of that will come later. We notice that the more often we enter into the Tabernacle, the cleaner, the purer we become. We become more equipped, strengthened with every trip we make into the Holy Place. We gradually become grateful for the Laver, we learn to embrace that place of scrubbing and washing.
What an incredible sense to suddenly realize that we can now go in! We now have the freedom to enter in! If you’ve never experienced the freedom and joy of being washed in the cleansing flow of the Lord, you can. Just yield yourself. Lean into Jesus. Give Him your all and let Him sort out all of the junk.
Tabernacle Prayer is a place of slowly entering into intimacy with the Lord. There is a step-by-step process that we must go through so we can have the ability to meet face-to-face with the Lord of all Creation, the King of the Universe. As we follow this Tabernacle Prayer, Holy Spirit draws us, sifts through us, and prepares us to meet with the King. I keep getting a picture of the book of Esther, all of the processes she had to go through in order to meet with the king. So it is with each and every one of us. Too often in our prayers we barge into the Throne Room of God covered in our “stuff”, the filth of this world. We disrespect the One Who we want to have conversation with. Of course the Lord is our Heavenly Father and we as His children can and should go to Him each and every moment of our lives, no matter where we’ve been or what we’ve done. He is our Father, standing at the window looking for us to come up the hill, just as the father looked for his prodigal son in the Gospels.
But there is a protocol to follow before we can truly enter into the fullness of the Throne Room of God. Our study and prayer through the Tabernacle on Monday nights is bringing us into a fuller understanding of this protocol. As we follow these steps, we find our hearts, souls and spirits are being prepared. No longer do we find ourselves barging in. We are becoming more sensitive to the vastness and the magnificence of Who God is. As we follow these steps, we find ourselves being molded, changed, conformed to HIS image and not to the world or even the “church” image of what we may believe a Christian should look and act like.
The Outer Court, as with Esther, is a place of preparation. This is a place where we must learn to submit ourselves to the Lord’s “beauty treatments”. Adonai wants us purified, cleansed, changed from the inside out and dressed in HIS robes of righteousness, not our own “clothing” of works.
The Tabernacle Prayer will make you much more sensitive to the all that had to be done so you can have the ability to enter into HIS Presence. Tabernacle Prayer will open your eyes even more fully to the Word of God. Nuances of Scripture will suddenly take on a greater meaning as you pray through the Tabernacle continually.
The Altar of Sacrifice –
Or the Brazen Altar is a place of redemption, a place of salvation. Suddenly our senses are assaulted with the cost of what was paid for the invitation to invite us in. We cannot go any further until we come to the realization that we have permission to be here only through the Blood. We want to turn our heads away and not look at this violently bloody place, but as we gaze upon it, we suddenly see the LOVE; the vastness of the Mighty Love Adonai has for each of us. Adonai gave His all for us. All HE asks of us is to say yes. Yeshua Jesus loves us so much that He willingly went to the Cross. Yeshua became that Sacrificial Lamb for once and for all……for me!! For you!!
We can go no further except through the Cross. We can’t go around it. We can’t sidestep it. We have to go through it. There is no other way. There is no other door. We can’t make it pretty. We can’t make it tidy. We have to receive the Blood. We have to receive the entire Price that was paid for us. Otherwise we are never able to enter in.
“The Living Bread I give you is My Body, which I will offer as sacrifice….” John 6:51B TPT
Jesus is our Sacrificial Lamb. Over 2,000 years ago it had to be only the “kohanim”, the Levitical Priests who could put this Lamb to death. It was the priests who stirred up the crowds to shout out to Pontius Pilate: “His blood be upon us and upon our children!” (Matthew 27:25) In a sense, they all, as we have to, receive the Blood of Jesus our Sacrificial Lamb as the price for the penalty of our sins – though at the time they didn’t even know what they were saying. It had to be only the priests who had the authority to accuse and condemn Yeshua Jesus to death; this was part of their priestly function in their sacrifice of the Lamb. And, the Lamb’s Blood had to be sprinkled upon the people. They had to receive His Blood; we have to receive the Sacrificial Lamb’s Blood for the propitiation of our sin. Their own condemnation was put upon Jesus, theirs and our Sacrificial Lamb.
Here at the Altar we are set free.
We can sing our praises to Adonai because of what He has done for us. How HE has set us free, healed us from our many sins and raised us up! But it is here we suddenly take in the full measure of that He did for us. We stand aghast! The price HE paid was not a cheap “I grant you freedom” and You strike the gavel, costing You nothing. This price was so much more. This price cost You great suffering. This price cost You death, the cruelest death ever known. You, the Innocent One, through Your death declared us innocent, though we are the guilty ones. And, in order for us to receive this Price, the full measure of this Price we must embrace the Cross. We have to recognize the Grace offered to us is not cheap. It has a price and the price was paid 2,000 years ago. We have to reconcile ourselves to the fact that in order to receive the Prize, we must embrace the Cross.
As we embrace the Cross, we suddenly see and begin to recognize the cost for our freedom. The price that was paid so that we can be free. Jesus gave His all so that we can receive all.
The Altar is a Continual Place
Going to this Altar is a continual service. It’s not just a one-time “salvation” and you’re done with it.
“The fire on the Altar is to be kept burning on it, it must not go out….” Leviticus 6:5
We are to go to this Altar continually. Daily.
This is the largest Altar in the Tabernacle. This is the only place where we “give” something. There are 5 different offerings on this Altar, it’s not just the Sacrificial Lamb. We are commanded to give 5 different offerings:
Consecration of self
Our things, our “stuff”
Reconciliation
Forgiveness
Cleansing
This Altar is a place of unburdening.
I hear the Lord gently whisper to us:
“Lay your burden down…”
What is burdening us?
Sin
Responsibilities
Unkept promises
Family
Ministry
Lay your burdens down. All that which weighs you down. The Lord wants YOU, not your “stuff”. The Lord’s identity is in us, not in our titles, our responsibilities, our roles as parents, spouses, or the type of work we do. Even the talents or skills we have is not our identity.
We have to come to terms with the question:
Who ARE we?
The Lord wants us to see ourselves as how HE sees us, not as how we perceive ourselves. The Lord God Adonai loves us to the very core of our beings. The Lord God Adonai loves our uniqueness, not because of what we do. He loves us because of who we are. God’s Love runs deep, much deeper than what any man, woman or child can touch. God’s love runs right into the very core of who we are. We don’t have to perform. We don’t have to self-discipline. We don’t have to do anything to earn God’s love. Because we can’t earn it. God’s Love is always there. The Lord is always for us, never against us.
Lay your “stuff” down. Just as we are born naked and not having anything, we can only go to meet with our Lord face-to-face with nothing, naked and empty handed. It is here where we suddenly discovered the Lord is not impressed with all of our accomplishments, all of our good works. The Lord is also not at all disgusted or repelled by our many sins. Yet, no matter what we’re carrying…..no matter if it’s good or bad, we must learn to unpack ourselves. We must learn to lay all of our burdens down. No matter what they are, or what they look like.
Over 20 years ago as I was praying, I was taken up into an open vision. I was suddenly on the outskirts of the Courts of Heaven, in the Throne Room of God. I saw HIM…..so Majestic…..so Magnificent…..so incredibly awesome! HE was seated on the Throne and the 24 elders were seated around HIM. HE was so incredibly magnificent I couldn’t even say His Name! Suddenly HE turned His head and saw me. HE stared fixedly at my face. I was awestruck. He noticed me! He sees me! This was more incredible than an earthly king, or president or well-known celebrity who suddenly takes notice of someone. HE IS THE KING OF KINGS!!! HE IS LORD OF LORDS!! And…..HE sees me! Then HE lifted up His arm, pointed His finger right at me. Slowly He motioned to me; He beckoned me to come closer to Him. Even to come and sit on the Throne with Him. W-O-W!!!! I was astounded! An overwhelming desire came over me. I so wanted to be with Him, even to sit with HIM!!! So, I began to run toward HIM with all my might.
But as I started to run, hands stopped me. Voices told me I couldn’t go to HIM looking like I did. I looked down and saw I was covered in filth. Mud and dirt were all over my clothes, all over me. Not only that, I was carrying bags and bags and bags. I had huge backpacks on my back and all were weighing me down. They all were filled with cheap trinkets, but until that moment I considered them to be my treasures. I was ashamed at how filthy dirty I was, also how burdened down I was with my junk. Then…..I suddenly realized all of these filthy dirty bags and backpacks that I considered my “treasures” were not my sin, they were my GOOD WORKS!! What could I give Him? All of that is just trash. I’ve done a lot of great things in ministry, and I have to say I’m proud of my accomplishments. But all of that is just trash. I can’t present them, any of them to HIM Who I couldn’t even say His Name.
I have to leave that all at the Altar. ALL of it. I can’t take any of that into the Inner Chamber. I’m not allowed to take any of that into the Courts of Heaven. I can’t take my title, I can’t take my ministry, I can’t take any of my accomplishments. All of that has to stay here at this burning Altar. Some of that may still be waiting for me after I return, but I cannot take any of it in. Some of it might even have to go through the purging fire and be refined. But I have to let it go. I have to let it all go.
At this Burning Altar we all have to let go of our stuff. We have to let go of our past, our sin, our pain, our suffering, and also our accomplishments, our pride…..everything! At this Altar we have to learn to unpack ourselves, hold on to nothing.
The Altar of Sacrifice is also a place of great healing
We have to come to terms with the fact that there is a huge flow of healing that takes place at this Altar. There is healing throughout the Tabernacle, but most of the healing begins here. As we embrace the Cross and learn to lay down all of our stuff, all of our everything, then and only then is Holy Spirit allowed to come in with His great healing. Where there is pain in our hearts, where there is unforgiveness in our hearts, where there is even pride in our hearts, there is no room for healing. In the process of our letting go and emptying ourselves at this Altar, then Holy Spirit is finally able to enter in and bring a great depth of healing into us. This isn’t just healing of our broken hearts. This is also great healing of our broken bodies. Much of the time sickness is just an outward manifestation of what’s going on inside us.
So, I encourage you: go to the Altar today. Unburden yourself. Surrender yourself completely to Jesus. Then take the Blood that flows freely at this Altar and receive your healing today.
