Exodus - God Will Be Near - Tonderai Bassoppo-Moyo

“Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land thatis not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also thenation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. Nowas for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. But inthe fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.””Genesis 15:13-16 NKJVIn the crucible of hardship is the beginning of forming the nationThe moments of hardship bring with them blessings that are set to grow us to the next level ofour faith - if we see it.“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, becauseyou know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its workso that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, youshould ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. Butwhen you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave ofthe sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything fromthe Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. Believers in humblecircumstances ought to take pride in their high position. For the sun rises with scorching heatand withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich willfade away even while they go about their business. Blessed is the one who perseveres undertrial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord haspromised to those who love him.”James 1:2-9, 11-12 NIVPerseverance = To remain under“Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet,and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Thenthey said to Moses,“You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest wedie.””Exodus 20:18-19 NKJV“In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in variousways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of allthings, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s gloryand the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After hehad provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So hebecame as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.”Hebrews 1:1-4 NIV““Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacleand all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.”Exodus 25:8-9 NIV“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory ofthe one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”John 1:14 NIVGod did not wait for them to get to the promised land before He made a wayto be in fellowship with themGod will not be worshipped in the same way as pagan gods are worshipped. He provides forthem a way of worship that is different, specific and unique.The Tabernacle and all its artifacts are a representation of Jesus foreshadowing what was tocome.The Most Holy PlaceThe Ten Commandments -““Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolishthem but to fulfill them.”Matthew 5:17 NIVThe Mana -“Jesus said to them,“Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread fromheaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God isthe bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.””John 6:32-33 NIV“I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But hereis the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the livingbread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is myflesh, which I will give for the life of the world.””John 6:48-51 NIVAaron’s Rod that budded -“So the Lord said to Aaron,“You and your sons and your father’s house with you shall beariniquity connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear iniquityconnected with your priesthood.”Numbers 18:1 ESV“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lordhas laid on him the iniquity of us all.”Isaiah 53:6 ESV