The Life of Christ As Compared With the Pieces of Furniture in the Tabernacle of Moses

The doctrines of Christ are emphasized throughout the Gospel of John. In describing the life of Christ, John makes comparisons with the pieces of furniture in the tabernacle of Moses. Note the similarities between the language of Moses and John:

1. Moses describes the brazen altar (Exodus 27:1-8, 38:1-7). John describes the Lamb of God (John 1:29).
2. Moses speaks of the brazen laver (Exodus 30:18, 38:8). John speaks of the water of life (John 4:14).
3. Moses writes of the table of shewbread (Exodus 25:23-30; 37:10-16). John writes of the bread of life (John 6:35).
4. Moses talks of the lampstand (Exodus 25:31-40; 37:17-24). John talks of the light of the world (John 9:5).
5. Moses presents the altar of incense (Exodus 30:1-10; 37:25-28). John presents the great prayer of Christ (John 17).
6. Moses witnesses of the mercy seat (Exodus 25:10-22; 37:1-9). John witnesses of our mercy seat, Christ (1 John 2:2).

Side Notes on the Life of Christ
In Old Testament times the people would bring their most perfect lambs (the ones without spot or blemish) to the temple to give to the priests to offer as sacrifice for the atonement of their sins. Christ was the perfect Lamb of God who gave His life as a sacrifice for the atonement of the sins of the world.

“. . . Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” – John 1:29

Water is a very necessary substance for the sustaining of life. Where there is water, there exists the possibility of life. Where there is no water, there exists very little possibility of life. Christ is the Living Water and where there is Living Water, there is definitely life – and not just an ordinary life, but life eternal.

“But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up in everlasting life.” – John 4:14

Christ was born in the city of Bethlehem. The word Bethlehem is made up of two Hebrew words – Beth, the word for bread and lehem, the word for house. So literally translated, Bethlehem means “house of bread.” It is interesting to note that He who was born in the house of bread would proclaim to the world that He is indeed the bread of life.

“And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. “ – John 6:35

Christ said:

“. . .I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” – John 8:12

“As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” – John 9:5

Then He says to us His disciples:

“Ye are the light of the world, A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” – Matthew 5:16

Food For Thought:

“No mortal being had the power or capability to redeem all other mortals from their lost and fallen condition, nor could any other voluntarily forfeit his life and thereby bring to pass a universal resurrection for all other mortals.
Only Jesus was able and willing to accomplish such a redeeming act of love.
We may never understand nor comprehend in mortality how He accomplished what He did, but we must not fail to understand why He did what He did.
Everything He did was prompted by His unselfish, infinite love for us.”
-- Ezra Taft Benson (Ensign, November 1983, p.6)

I do not mean to come across as being callous, cruel, or mean-spirited, but the older I get, the more discouraged and dishearten I become as I watch some of our young people - the future of our world, place themselves in a proverbial box called defeatism. Unquestionably, some of us have grown up in unfavorable conditions and in an unkind society that constantly reminds us, and in some cases has thoroughly convinced us, that our father never amounted to much, and our mother has never amounted to much, and so, as the proverbial apple never seems to fall far from the tree, we ourselves can expect to never amount to much either. The tragedy of it all is that society is not alone in painting this picture of hopelessness and despair, but that same picture hangs on the walls in our homes, as well as, in the classrooms of our schools.

I wish to send a very clear, precise, and concise message to our youth of today: the time has come for you to stop wallowing in the mud of hopelessness and slowly drowning yourselves in the sea called despair. Now is the time to break free from that proverbial box that you have found yourselves in, and from the strangling chords of the voices of naysayers who preach negativism and defeatism. Rise above your current station in life. You can if you believe that you can!

Maybe it is true that your father and mother have never done anything to make an honorable name for themselves, or have ever tried to get out of their current situations and better themselves. Maybe it is true that you were born in unfavorable and adverse conditions. Maybe it is true that all of your young life people have done nothing but knock you down and kick you while you were down. However, it does not have to stay that way. Though the night may seem dark and dreary, nighttime only last for a season and then the morning comes. And with the dawning of the morning comes a light of hope that shines bright as the noon day sun.

Now is the time for you to start realizing that you are not your father and you are not your mother. God Almighty has made each of us uniquely YOU. He has meted to you and me a measure of faith, hope, courage, talents, and abilities. It is time for you to put behind you those things that once were, and press forward to obtain those things that can, and (with faith, hope, patience, determination, and endurance) will be. Stop listening to the perpetual lies of those who do not have your best interest at heart, and start believing in yourself. You can do whatever it is you have a mind to do, and you can become whatever it is that you have a desire to become in life, but YOU have to believe that you can do it. If you cannot believe in yourselves, how can you honestly expect anyone else to?

Do not become discouraged if at first you do not succeed at doing something, but try and try again knowing that the road to success is often filled with potholes called failure. Many a success in life has been wrought through heartache and failure, so don't let that stop you. Even along the road of success will be hurdles and discouragement which you will have to get over, but don't let that stop you either. Continue to run your race with your head held high and a song of hope and gladness in your heart. You may not be the first to cross the finishing line, but then the winner of a race is not always necessarily the swiftest runner in the race, but he who runs his race well by remaining focused, staying his course, and enduring to the end.

There will be times along the way when you may become weary. Stop and rest for a little while if you must, but don't give up, give in, or quit. Remain focused on your goals and objectives. The finishing line is just in sight. You can make it. Yes you can! May God give you the hope, courage, faith, and determination to endure to the end. God bless you all!

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Lessons in the Key of Life

Lessons that I have learned as I journey through life.