My SOAP devotional for March 3rd
S - Exodus 25:8-9
"I want the people of Israel to build me a sacred residence where I can live among them. You must make this Tabernacle and its furnishings exactly according to the plans I will show you."
O - God wants to live among us. God could create a place for himself to dwell on earth but He wants us to build Him a place. The act of following His instructions and doing the work requires sacrifice and obedience which builds character in us and relationship with Him. This place is not just a building or a structure but it is sacred, meaning that we are to give it reverence and set it apart from just any ordinary structure. AND it is to be not just a "come and go" place but a residence, where God will reside, live, and be close to His people.
A - The ancient purpose of the tabernacle was to provide a place for the people to be close and receive counsel from God, to sacrifice and to worship. Still today we build buildings where we can do the very same. However, in the days of the new covenant, Jesus came to allow our hearts to be the new tabernacle. God wants to make a sacred residence in our hearts, mind, and body...to be a structure that symbolizes obedience, sacrifice and service to Him, the one who "built" us. He wants us to give our lives as a "spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1-2). We are to live our lives according to HIS plans.
P - Lord, make me a sacred residence, that you might dwell in me to follow YOUR plans in the precise way that you will show me. Amen.
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