Our Body is A Tabernacle, 2 Cor 5:1-4

Our body is a tabernacle.  And our tabernacle is comparable to the tabernacle the Jews had in the wilderness.

2 Cor 5:1 “Our earthly house of this tabernacle”.  As the tabernacle in the wilderness was earthly and temporary, and the one in heaven eternal, so our body is earthly and temporary, and our glorified body eternal.  We put off this earthly tabernacle when we die.  In 2 Pet 1:14 Peter said, “shortly I must put off this my tabernacle”.

See Heb 9:1-11, 23.  The earthly tabernacle was a figure of the perfect tabernacle and the things were a pattern of the heavenly things.  See 1 Cor 15:50-55.  Our bodies are mortal, corruptible but our glorified bodies are immortal, incorruptible.

2 Cor 5:4 “we that are in this tabernacle do groan.  … that mortality might be swallowed up of life”.  When we die, this body that is subject to sin and death will be gone forever.  And the body we get will never sin and never die.  See Rev 21:4. This is an important consideration.  Therefore, we can reckon ourselves to be dead indeed unto sin now and let the eternal life of Christ live in us now.  Carefully consider Rom 6:6-11 when you consider that your body is a tabernacle.

Here are some other similarities.

The tabernacle was dead… dead trees for the boards, and dead animals for the skins.  We are dead in Christ.  Our body is a tabernacle in which Christ can live his life.  It had to be carried around by the Levites.  We have to be led by the Spirit, Rom 8
:14.

The tabernacle was filled with light.  There was light in it continually.  Light from the candlestick, Lev 24:1-4.  Light of the Lord in the most holy place, God is light.  And he wants our body, his temple, to be filled with light, Eph 5:8-14.  The light of his word, the light of his presence, and the light of the gospel, 2 Cor 4:3-7.

The tabernacle was all gold within, Ex 26:29.  Outwardly it was just skin, Ex 26:14.  Thus, we should not draw attention to our outward appearance but to what is on the inside.  The tabernacle is where God met with his people.  Like 1 Pet 3:1-4, we want others to “see” the hidden man of our heart since our body is a tabernacle.

The tabernacle was made according to the pattern in the mount, Ex 25:8-9, 40.  God told Moses how to build arrange, cleanse, consecrate, and transport everything in the temple.  Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost, 1 Cor 6:19-20.  Therefore, the Holy Ghost wants to arrange everything in his temple the way it should be arranged by design.

The tabernacle was sanctified.  The Lord will cleanse and sanctify our tabernacle for his dwelling, 1 Cor 6:11.  We’re, sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Heb 9:14, washed with the water of the word Eph 5:26, and anointed with the Holy Spirit 1 Jn 2:27, Jn 14:26, typified by oil.  Since our body is a tabernacle for God, it must be sanctified.

The tabernacle had three places.  The outward court, where the sacrifices were made at the brazen altar.  The holy place, where the candlestick, the table of shewbread, and the altar of incense were.  And the most holy place, where the mercy seat was above the ark.  See Heb 9:1-5.

In our outward court, we offer our sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving, 1 Pet 2:5, Heb 13:15-16. In our tabernacle, we pray (the altar of incense, Ps 141:2) to God (the mercy seat, Jn 16:23) in the name of Jesus Christ (the table of shewbread, Jn 16:24) with the help of the Holy Spirit (the candlestick, Rom 8:26-27).

Conclusion: Imagine, each morning when you start your day, that your body is a tabernacle.  You are just like this old tabernacle in the wilderness.  You are dead and you want God to manifest himself in you for his glory, Ex 40:34, just like he did in the tabernacle when Moses finished the work.  You’ll go where the Spirit leads you and God can glorify himself in you.