Morning Moments

She told me she grew up a Baptist, but converted to Islam. When I asked her why, she said, “I found a feeling of peace in the mosque.” She was an American CPA.

Isn’t it interesting to know that there are actually people who base their faith upon the feeling a “place” brings them? Many Christians are no different.

“Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me the hour cometh when yes shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father” John 4:21.

What is He saying? To better understand, let’s first look back to the tabernacle in the wilderness. From the outside it was not a very attractive place, but when one walked through the door, it was a totally different matter. Think about the spiritual implications.

John writes, “The Word was made FLESH and dwelt among us. Isaiah said, “There is no beauty or comeliness about Him that we should desire Him.” So it is the entrance into the “tabernacle” and into Jesus Himself that we discover the true beauty and value. In the tabernacle, as well as in the temple, there was an area where the priest entered on a regular basis called the Holy Place. It contained three pieces of furniture, each representing the Lord Jesus.

The first was the golden lampstand. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.” Then there was the Table of Shewbread. Jesus said, “I am the bread that came done from heaven.” There was also the also the Altar of Incense. We are told that Jesus offered Himself as a “sweet smelling sacrifice” to the Father. In other words the odour of the incense represented two things: His prayer and His sacrifice.

When the temple was erected, the furniture remained the same. But there was a beautiful curtain which separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, where only the High Priest could enter once a year with a blood sacrifice for himself and the people. It was there that God met Israel between the cherub on the Golden Altar.

When Jesus died on the cross, that veil or curtain was “rent in twain” or torn into from top to bottom. In other words, through the death of Jesus and the blood He shed, ALL “priests” (which is what we true believers are) have direct access to the Father and may now worship HIM, not in ritual, but in righteousness, not THROUGH a priest, but AS a priest. It is the worship of God, who IS Spirit, IN spirit and according to truth. So the place is never to become the object of worship. The PERSON of God is. That is what the woman at the well discovered. It made the difference in her worship and she told the whole town about it. “Go thou and do likewise.”

PRAYER: THANK YOU BLESSED JESUS!