The story of the exodus of God’s people from slavery in Egypt to freedom in the Promised Land is full of ups and downs, mountains and valleys. In fact, it’s no different any great epic. Every time the hero seems through a tunnel of darkness and on to brighter days, disaster strikes. Their hope came from an unusual place…the Tent of Meeting.
I think of The Hobbit, and Sam and Frodo trudging to the other side of the Dead Marshes with the reluctant help of Gollum. Just when it seems they have snuck unnoticed into Mordor through the pass of Cirith Ungol, Frodo is taken by the huge, nasty spider Shelob. Sam saves Frodo from sure death, but they still struggle up the mountain to destroy the ring. Each time it appears Frodo is in the clear to destroy the ring, a new obstacle appears.
We hate to admit it, but we are no different than the people of Israel. As the hero in our own stories, we come up against obstacles — the ones we’ve created and the ones created by others. In their story, Israel demands Aaron design an idol in the form of a golden calf. They waste no time worshipping it in pagan revelry. You may not have danced around an idol, but have you chosen someone or something above God?
Exodus 33 is the chapter immediately following this story of Israel stumbling on their road to the Promised Land. It is the reckoning. It’s the hero overcoming the obstacle in front of them. The key symbol in this chapter is a tent.
The Tent of Meeting
The Tent of Meeting was the place God would come and reside on earth. It was where God would speak his commands. This was vital to Israel making it over the next obstacle and into the Promised Land.
If you do much research on the “Tent of Meeting” you’ll find most passages reference the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was the ‘permanent’ tent God outlined for the Israelites to build in much of the book of Exodus. This tent was the precursor to the Temple built by Solomon.
The Tent of Meeting in Exodus 33 was not the Tabernacle. This tent seemed to be the stopgap as the Tabernacle was being constructed. It’s set up outside the camp because, for the moment, God removed himself from the people of Israel because of their transgression.
It appears the Tent of Meeting was unique compared to the Tabernacle (and later the Temple) in one major area — access. When the Tabernacle was completed, entrance into it was limited to the priests who were consecrated by God to enter. Anyone without the proper access to the Tabernacle was struck dead.
God is available.
Here is how Exodus 33 introduces us to this initial Tent of Meeting:
“It was Moses’ practice to take the Tent of Meeting and set it up some distance from the camp. Everyone who wanted to make a request of the Lord would go to the Tent of Meeting outside the camp.”
Exodus 33:7
Notice the second sentence (emphasis mine). The Tent of Meeting was available to EVERYONE to make a request of God.
The Tent of Meeting was available to anyone and everyone, but it was only Moses and Joshua who enter. In fact, we see the people are afraid to enter, so they would watch Moses enter into the tent from a distance. They would wait at the doors of their own tents to see what would come of the meeting with God.
The people waited.
Why did they wait at the doorways of their tents? They waited to hear what God said to Moses. This is what it says:
“Inside the Tent of Meeting, the Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Afterward Moses would return to the camp, but the young man who assisted him, Joshua son of Nun, would remain behind in the Tent of Meeting.”
Exodus 33:11
Moses would return to the camp and inform the people of what God had said. He would tell them if they were to move on. Moses would communicate if God told him to construct something. He would share with the people if there was a new command from God. It seems anyone could have gone in to receive from God, but it was only Moses and Joshua who were bold enough to enter.
Joshua lingered.
Which brings me to one final note about this special tent of meeting in Exodus 33; Joshua boldly walking into the Tent of Meeting with Moses. Joshua was Moses’ younger assistant. He would eventually take the baton from Moses to lead the people into the Promised Land, but at this point he is just Moses’ errand boy. he doesn’t come out with Moses.
Exodus 33 and you
So what does this all have to do with you? Exodus 33 is important in understanding how we overcome the obstacles put in front of us as we live our our own stories. You’re the hero, and this chapter helps you with ways to win. Here are three notes:
1. God is available to you.
Moses was the one who heard from God and communicated to the people. It doesn’t appear that it was the preferred method of God, but the people of Israel weren’t willing to risk coming face to face with a holy God.
Because of Jesus, we have direct access to God. We have peace with God. Because of this, 1 Peter tells us that we are now a part of a ‘royal priesthood’. In the Tabernacle and the Temple, it was only the priests who could enter the holy places, and it was only the appointed priest who had been prepared and cleansed.
If you follow Jesus, you are prepared and cleansed!
You don’t need to wait on anyone else. You don’t need your pastor, mentor, teacher or friend to connect to God. He is available to you.
2. Approach God and your position like Joshua.
Joshua was a in a great place. His responsibilities were to Moses first, not directly to the people. This afforded him a great opportunity. He could learn from a great leader, and he had the freedom to stay with God.
Joshua didn’t waste this time. He used it to develop the faith God could use when it was his time to lead. He saw how Moses approached God, and then he practiced it on his own.
Most of us aren’t THE leader. We are in some form of assistant role. It’s humbling to be at the whim of another person, but their is freedom in this place too. Joshua used this to his advantage. Are you using your position and freedom to develop into the person God will use to lead when the time comes?
3. Someone is waiting for you to share God’s Word.
When God showed up in the Tent of Meeting, it wasn’t just for Moses. It wasn’t just to grow and develop Joshua. It was for the people of Israel. They were eagerly waiting to hear what God had for them.
There are people who need to hear God’s Word from you. You may know some of them – members of your family, church, neighborhood. Faces could be flashing in front of your eyes right now. But there are others you don’t even know about. Moses knew a handful of the millions of people in his community. God’s Word was for each of them.
There are people you don’t know who need God’s Word. Are you being faithful to share it?
Enter into the Promised Land
You are on a journey to the Promised Land. Hebrews 11 speaks of Abraham dreaming of a ‘heavenly’ place…something beyond the actual land promised by God. It is the place we are moving toward. Jesus called this the Kingdom of God.
There are two aspects to this Kingdom – the now and the future. Jesus established this Kingdom during his lifetime. We know it as the Church. But there is also a heavenly, yet-to-come aspect of the Kingdom of God. We strive to see both. The current Kingdom of God to thrive and grow. The future Kingdom of God is our ultimate destination.
The struggles and obstacles you face now are worth overcoming! You overcome by ‘entering’ into your own Tent of Meeting. God is available to you, so will you sit with Him? This will give you the strength to overcome. Will you share what you are given to others who are waiting? It will bring about the Kingdom of God.
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