The Five Offerings in the Book of Leviticus

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

The Five Offerings in the Book of Leviticus 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

The Book of Leviticus is the book of worship, just as the Book of Exodus is the book of redemption. The first seven chapters of Leviticus describe in great detail the construction and use of the five major Jewish offerings ... the burnt offering, meal offering, peace offering, sin offering, and trespass offering in that order. Under the Old Covenant, between God and man, the construction and use of those offerings were to be strictly followed in the natural realm. Under the New Covenant, between the Father and the Son, they no longer exist in the natural realm, but they are very important in the realm of the Spirit. The five offerings speak prophetically of their spiritual counterpart for the Church, the Body of Christ, not for unregenerated man and not for the orthodox Jew. Perhaps we should add here that there is no such thing as Judeo-Christianity, which speaks of a mixture. The five offerings have very little relationship if any, to what Christians today call tithes and offerings. Please keep in mind that all of the offerings speak about worship, which we defined, from Genesis 22, as the voluntary, unquestioned obedience to the rhema word of the Lord through the Holy Spirit.

All the offerings were what God had first given to man; only such can be accepted by Him. Deep calleth unto deep (Psalm 42:7). To be more specific, natural man can never worship God in a manner pleasing to Him. It is only the Christ within us that can truly worship God.

Christ fulfilled all of the offerings; Christ IS the fulfilment of all of the offerings. The Holy Spirit is not once named in Leviticus, though referred to in all the other books of the Pentateuch, because all here relates to Christ; and it is the Spirit's work to glorify Christ. 

He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall shew it unto you. 

John 16:14

Leviticus 1 speaks of the burnt offering; Leviticus 2 details the meal offering; Leviticus 3 describes the peace offering; Leviticus 4-5 sets forth the sin offering; and Leviticus 6-7 speaks of the trespass offering. Man begins with the sin offering and hopefully ends with the burnt offering. The word of God in Leviticus begins with the burnt offering and ends with the sin offering. Why? because, as we will see shortly, the Lord is first of all looking for our total and complete, all-consuming commitment and devotion to Him.

The sin offering was a mandatory atonement for specific unintentional sin, confession of sin, forgiveness of sin, and cleansing from defilement. The sin offering is prophetic of the finished work of Christ at Calvary, and is thus associated with salvation. In addition, it represents an offering if we sin after we are born again, where we define sin as disobedience to God.

The trespass offering was a mandatory atonement for unintentional sin requiring restitution plus a 20% fine; for example, if a man accidentally killed another man's cow or sheep.

The burnt offering, meal offering, and peace offering were voluntary, sweet smelling offerings, not because of sin. The burnt offering is the oldest offering mentioned in the Bible. It was also the first and therefore the most important of the five major offerings under the Mosaic Law. The burnt offering was voluntary and was completely consumed. It was to be offered twice every day, continually (Exodus 29:42-43) and offered only to the Lord (Judges 13:16). The burnt offering speaks of a voluntary act of worship ... an expression of devotion, commitment, and complete surrender to God.

The burnt offering required a male animal because Christ was/is the only One who could fulfill the burnt offering, which was the only offering where the sacrifice was totally consumed by fire. The burnt offering and an altar are first mentioned in Genesis 8:20, when Noah offered burnt offerings on the altar, after the flood was over and he came out of the ark. That was long before the law was given to Moses. How did Noah know to do that? There is no indication that he was taught that by another man. The Lord must have told him.

And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. Genesis 8:20

The Hebrew word for burnt offering is olah, which means to cause to ascend, as the flame and smoke ascend by burning, symbolizing worship and prayer as its aroma ascended to the Lord. The Greek word is holocausts, which conveys the meaning of being wholly burnt.

The peace offering is described in detail in Leviticus 3. The peace offering was a voluntary act of worship consisting of thanksgiving and fellowship and included a communal meal. Two basic ideas are included in the peace offering: peace and fellowship. This offering symbolizes peace between God and man as well as the inward peace that results. The peace offering was the only sacrifice of which the offerer might eat a part. Fellowship was involved because the offerer, on the basis of the sacrifice, had fellowship with God and with the priest, who also ate part of the offering. The peace offering represents communion, fellowship or peace between the Lord and His people when the people live in conformity with their covenant obligations. Note that the peace offering is described after the burnt offering and the meal offering. That implies that we cannot have true fellowship or peace with God until we have voluntarily become a burnt offering and a meal offering. 400 different verses in Scripture speak of peace, such as the following:

For He is our peace, Who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Ephesians 2:14

 

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. Isaiah 26:3

 

The kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. Romans 14:17

Romans 14:17 seems to particularly relate to the three voluntary offerings: the burnt offering, meal offering, and peace offering. Salvation is free, but to enter into the kingdom of God costs us our self life, which we must voluntarily offer to the Lord.

The meal offering speaks of Christ in His human perfection, purity, tested through suffering. It also speaks of the body of Christ walking in a pure anointed life. Although the King James Version of the Bible speaks about a meat offering, there was never any meat in it. It should more accurately be called a meal offering.

Jesus was the first to become both the meal offering and drink offering in that He emptied Himself and poured Himself out. By law, the drink offering was never to be drunk by any man, but poured out unto the Lord. The drink offering speaks of a life of devotion. We (all Christians) are to identify with Jesus in every respect. We are likewise to become a meal offering and a drink offering. That is our reasonable service or worship.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service [or worship]. Romans 12:1

The ingredients in the meal offering, from Leviticus 2:1, were fine flour, oil, and frankincense, seasoned with salt. Leviticus 2:11 says that the meal offering includes no honey (natural sweetener) or leaven (sin). Nothing of the natural man is acceptable to God, and sin cannot remain in the presence of God. The fine flour was made out of grain, particularly corn.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. John 12:24

Jesus is the corn of wheat. 

28 Bread corn is bruised; because he will not ever be threshing it, nor break it with the wheel of his cart, nor bruise it with his horsemen.

29 This also cometh forth from the LORD of hosts, Which is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working. Isaiah 28:28-29

Bread corn (sons) is bruised (crushed or pulverized). Verse 29 says it is the working of God.

Leviticus 2:14-16 describes how we are to make the fine flour. First of all the meal offering is made by fire unto the Lord. That fire is no ordinary fire; it is the fire of the Holy Ghost. Further, the offering is unto the Lord. Everything that we say or do must be as unto the Lord.

The starting place to make the fine flour was to take green ears of corn, dried by the fire. I really like to eat fresh corn. Many years ago as we were eating some fresh corn on the cob, I counted the number of rows of corn around the ear and then counted the approximate number of corn kernels on each row. Somewhat to my surprise, a normal ear of corn has 500-600 individual kernels of corn on the ear. All of the individual kernels of corn are unique ... no two are alike, because God never makes a copy of anything!

After drying the ears of corn by fire, the kernels are beaten off (Verse 14) out of full ears (maturity) and placed between two rather large millstones. You can Google millstones and see a picture of what they used to look like. Two grinding stones or mill stones crushed the corn in order to make the fine flour (which speaks of the purity of the life of Christ). The corn is crushed or pulverized between the two mill stones, after which it no longer looks like corn. As long as we are a kernel of corn, we have our own identity. After crushing, we lose our identity in the whole. A mill stone on the earth speaks of our individual circumstances to take out all the coarseness of our natural self-life. The mill stone above represents the sovereignty or working of God. God is the engineer. We are called according to His purpose, not our purpose.

Oil speaks of anointing or the presence of the Holy Spirit. Numerous Scriptures testify to that.

39 And He came out, and went, as He was wont, to the mount of Olives; and His disciples also followed Him.

40 And when He was at the place, He said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

41 And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,

42 Saying, Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me: nevertheless not My will, but Thine, be done.

43 And there appeared an angel unto Him fom heaven, strengthening Him.

44 And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly: and His sweat was as it were great drops of blood, falling down to the ground. Luke 22:39-44

In Verse 40, the place (from the account in Matthew 26) was Gethsemane. Gethsemane literally means the oil press of God; a place for squeezing the oil from olives. It represents inward suffering, which is greater than the outward suffering which Jesus endured on the cross. Please read again Verse 44. That was the beginning of the oil press. I suspect that very few men, if any, have prayed so earnestly that his sweat was like great drops of blood.

Frankincense is an aromatic, gummy, white, milky sap tapped from an incision on the very scraggly but hardy Boswellia tree by slashing the bark and allowing the resins to bleed out and harden. White speaks of purity ... the holiness of God. The hardened resins are called tears. Jesus, and others, wept over Jerusalem. The oil is then obtained by steam distillation of the dry resin. The greatest incisions on any Tree were the nails through the hands and feet of Jesus as He was crucified. The fact that the Boswellia tree is very scraggly reminds us of,

He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. Isaiah 53:2

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In Matthew 2:11, frankincense, along with gold and myrrh, were among the three gifts to Jesus by the magi from out of the East. Gold speaks of Deity ... the life of Christ; myrrh is a biter herb and speaks of suffering that we all must go through to enter the kingdom of God. Esther was purified for 6 months with bitter herbs followed by 6 months of sweet-smelling herbs.

Frankincense trees are also unusual for their ability to grow in environments so unforgiving that they sometimes grow directly out of solid rock. When we believers build our house on solid rock, we are more hardy and have a more fragrant aroma to the Lord. Frankincense resin is edible and often used in various traditional medicines in Asia for digestion and healthy skin. Frankincense also has been used for hundreds of years in some parts of the world for treating almost every physical ailment known to man. You can Google "frankincense" and get a wealth of information.

Salt, of course, is a preservative. Salt, when applied to most substances, also makes them burn faster. Salt represents character ... the character of God. So salt signifies purty and devotion. The first occurrence of the word, salt, is in Leviticus 2:13.

And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt. Leviticus 2:13

For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.

Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another. Mark 9:49-50

Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Matthew 5:13

The drink offering is first mentioned in Genesis 35:9-15. When Jacob poured a drink offering and oil on the stone, it was symbolic of pouring out himself unto the Lord. 

Although the drink offering is not one of the five major offerings, it almost always accompanied the meal offering. The drink offering represents a life poured out to God; a life of devotion. The drink offering varied between 1/4 of a hin of wine up to 1/2 of a hin of wine, where a hin is roughly equivalent to our gallon. The drink offering represents complete consecration or devotion to God. The drink offering was never drunk but always poured out. Nothing for me; everything for the Lord. Everyone is familiar with the account when David longed for a drink of water from the well of Bethlehem. Surely David knew that the drink offering was never to be drunk (2 Samuel 23).

It is important to understand that Jesus became the drink offering. He fulfilled the drink offering, as well as all of the other offerings. 

5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

7 But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: Philippians 2:5-7

In Verse 7, "made Himself of no reputation" can be translated as emptied Himself or poured Himself out. Paul said the same thing.

For I am now ready to be offered [poured out, or become a drink offering], and the time of my departure is at hand. 2 Timothy 4:6

What does it mean to be a disciple of Christ? First of all it means that we have voluntarily allowed the Holy Spirit to bring us to a place where we have become a burnt offering wherein all of self has been burned out by God, Who is a consuming fire. Then we must become a meal offering and a drink offering, which are the basis (or prerequisites) for revival or restoration. We can see that from Joel, Chapters 1:1- 2:17, all of which is very descriptive of the modern day Church in America. The question is ... who wants to become a meal offering and a drink offering as unto the Lord? In order to do that, we must first become a burnt offering ... totally committed to the Lord. Then we must become a meal offering and a drink offering. Help, Lord!

In our next message we will look at a brief overview of Joel, Chapter 1 to Joel 2:17 to see how these offerings apply to us Christians today.

The Five Levitical Offerings - The Burnt Offering

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

12/16/20 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

Although we will never know for a certainty, I suspect that one of the least-read books in the Old Testament is the book of Leviticus. Perhaps the key thought in Leviticus is the holiness of God, which is symbolized by physical perfection. Leviticus demands perfect animals for its many sacrifices and requires priests without any deformity. We Christians are likewise to be holy. 

1 Peter 1:15-16, "But as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation [or behavior]; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy." 

The priests were to teach the people the difference "between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean" (Leviticus 10:10).

Leviticus is often neglected because we Christians have misunderstood its message and purpose. But that book has available a wealth of prophetic insight which can be of immense value to all Christians. One specific example that will benefit us greatly is recorded in the first seven chapters of Leviticus, which gives the Lord's detailed instructions concerning the five major Old Testament offerings - the burnt offering, the meat (or grain or meal) offering, the peace oftering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering - and in that order in Leviticus, Chapters 1 through 5. Those various offerings have different functions, the primary ones being atonement and worship. Each particular sacrifice or offering was to have meaning for the people of Israel but also has spiritual and symbolic importance for us. The burnt offering, the meal offering, and the peace offering were all voluntary. That is significant, as we will see later. The sin offering and the trespass offering were mandatory, if the occasion warranted it. An offering (or sacrifice) is something of personal value that someone brings to God. The Hebrew word for offering is korban, which means "to draw near," and indicates the primary purpose of offerings: to draw us near to God. There are three basic concepts underlying korban. The first is the aspect of giving. A korban requires the renunciation of something that belongs to the person making the offering. Thus, sacrifices are made from domestic animals, not wild animals, because wild animals do not belong to anyone. Likewise, offerings of food were ordinarily in the form of flour or meal, which requires substantial work to prepare. Another important concept is that of substitution. The idea is that the thing being offered is a substitute for the person making the offering, and the things that are done to the offering are things that should have been done to the person who makes the offering. The offering in a sense replaces the offerer. The third important concept is the idea of coming closer. The essence of sacrifice is to bring a person closer to God. It is also very important to realize that Jesus, as a Man, fulfilled or is the fulfillment of all five of those offerings.

As we look at the five offerings, keep in mind how they apply to us today. In this message we will look at only the burnt offering and its prophetic significance for us today.

The book of Leviticus gives God's prescription for worship. The book is so named because it concerns mainly the service of worship at the tabernacle, which was conducted by the Levitical priests, with Aaron as the first high priest. Today, the service of worship does not take place in a brick building at 123 Main Street. It takes place in the hearts of those chosen vessels conducted by the Melchisedec priesthood, with the Lord Jesus Christ as our great High Priest.

There are two prerequisites on God's part for worship. The first prerequisite comes from Leviticus 1:1. The first word in the Hebrew text of Leviticus means, "And the Lord called." The second prerequisite is found in 

Psalm 65:4, "Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple." 

In other words, we must be called, chosen, and caused by God to worship Him. Only those who are called of God and chosen can worship Him. All others can only offer strange fire. More accurately, only Christ, the Head, and the Christ within believers can worship the Father. We also should note that all of the offerings were what God had first given to man. That says that only the Christ within man can worship the Father.

Note from Psalm 65:4 that the ONLY thing that will satisfy us is to dwell in His courts and experience the goodness of His holy house or temple. David said, in 

Psalm 17:15, "As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." 

Romans 8:22-23, "For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body." 

The Tabernacle ceremonies are the pattern, in symbolic form, of worshipping in Spirit and in Truth. If we can avoid getting tangled in the symbols, we can get a reasonable idea of what they point toward. At first thought, we might expect the sin offering to be described first, thus signifying repentance and being born from above. That is not the case because all of the offerings apply to those who are already a chosen vessel of God. We should always remember that the Bible was written for those who were already born from above. Let us turn to Leviticus 1:1 and look at the burnt offering.

Leviticus, Chapter 1.

1 And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying,

2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering unto the LORD, ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock.

3 If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD.

A burnt offering was offered every morning and evening for all Israel (Exodus 29:39-42). Double burnt offerings were brought on the sabbath (Numbers 28:9-10), and extra ones on feast days (Numbers 28-29). In addition, anyone could offer special burnt offerings to express devotion to the Lord. The burnt offering had to be a male animal because of its greater value.

4 And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.

The offerer was to lay his hand on the head of the animal to express identification between himself and the animal (Leviticus 16:21).

5 And he shall kill the bullock before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall bring the blood, and sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

6 And he shall flay the burnt offering, and cut it into his pieces.

7 And the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire upon the altar, and lay the wood in order upon the fire:

8 And the priests, Aaron's sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat, in order upon the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar:

9 But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

Note that the burnt offering was totally consumed by fire. Therefore, the burnt offering was also known as the "whole burnt offering," because it was totally consumed on the altar, except for the hide (Luke 7:8).

10 And if his offering be of the flocks, namely, of the sheep, or of the goats, for a burnt sacrifice; he shall bring it a male without blemish.

The burnt offering was usually a young sheep or goat for the average individual, but a bull for the wealthy, and doves and pigeons for the poor.

11 And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar.

Note that burnt offering was to be killed on the north side of the altar. The Lord is always very specific. In addition, everything in the Bible has some significance. 

Psalm 48:2, "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King."

Even Lucifer knew the significance of the side of the north. When Lucifer fell and became Satan, the Lord said to him,

Isaiah 14:13-15, "For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit." 

In the Bible, moving from the north toward Zion represents maturing in Christ.

Job 37:22, "Fair weather cometh out of the north: with God is terrible majesty."

 

Another translation of that verse is, "Out of the north He comes in golden splendor; God comes in awesome majesty."

Back to Leviticus, Chapter 1.

12 And he shall cut it into his pieces, with his head and his fat: and the priest shall lay them in order on the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar:

13 But he shall wash the inwards and the legs with water: and the priest shall bring it all, and burn it upon the altar: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

14 And if the burnt sacrifice for his offering to the LORD be of fowls, then he shall bring his offering of turtledoves, or of young pigeons.

15 And the priest shall bring it unto the altar, and wring off his head, and burn it on the altar; and the blood thereof shall be wrung out at the side of the altar:

16 And he shall pluck away his crop with his feathers, and cast it beside the altar on the east part, by the place of the ashes:

17 And he shall cleave it with the wings thereof, but shall not divide it asunder: and the priest shall burn it upon the altar, upon the wood that is upon the fire: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

Note that regardless of the animal or bird used in the burnt offering, the offering made by fire was a sweet savor unto the Lord. 

2 Corinthians 2:14-15, "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:"

We know that the great flood in the days of Noah killed every living person and animal except those who were inside the ark. We also know from 1 Peter 3:20 that only eight souls were saved. The first thing that Noah did after coming out of the ark on dry ground is recorded in Genesis 8:20-21, 

"And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD smelled a sweet savour ..." 

That is the first literal occurrence in the Bible of the word "burnt offering." How did Noah know to build and altar unto the LORD and offer burnt offerings on that altar? Scripture does not specifically answer that question. However, I must believe that Noah was overwhelmed with the grace of God that had saved only him and his family. His heart was probably full and overflowing with thanksgiving and praise to God. Therefore he offered back to God what God had given into his care in the form of clean animals.

However, I am not at all sure that was the first act of a burnt offering being offered by man to God. I tend to believe that the first burnt offering was given by Abel, even though scripture does not specifically use those words.

Genesis 4:3-5, "And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell." 

I do not believe that Abel gave a live sheep or lamb to a physical person who was God. I believe Abel brought a burnt offering to the altar of God. Further, Abel brought the very best of his flock as a burnt offering. That was a sacrifice; it cost Abel something of value to himself. When Cain brought his offering to the Lord from the fruit of the ground, it cost him nothing. Therefore, it was not even an offering, not a sacrifice. Of course, the ground had already been cursed anyway.

Now let us consider Abraham.

Genesis 22:1-2, "And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And He said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of?"

"And it came to pass after these things"... after what things? After the birth and weaning of Isaac and after Hagar and Ishmael had been cast out. Only a few seconds after Abraham was about to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, God spoke to Abraham and told him not to slay Isaac. What if Abraham had been hard of hearing? What if Abraham did not discern the voice of the Lord? Would that all of us Christians could hear the voice of the Lord as clearly as Abraham did. And Abraham did not even have a pastor or a bible! Neither did he ever attend a great Christian convention. Abraham simply depended on what the Lord told him. Abraham was prepared to sacrifice that which was the most important.

Hebrews 11:17, "By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure."

Although that account of Abraham and Isaac contains several valuable teaching lessons for every Christian, there is another example in Genesis 22 that may well be even more important for us today.

Genesis 22:7-8, "And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: SO they went both of them together."

"Behold the fire and the wood." Wood in the Bible speaks of humanity. It takes the fire from off the altar to consume the wood ... human nature. Let us consider the first fire on that Altar. Also let us remember that John the Baptist said, in 

Luke 3:16, "John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:" 

Consider the brazen altar which was in the outer court of the Tabernacle of Moses. First, note that after Moses had prepared the Tabernacle and everything pertaining to the ceremonies of worship, God started the fire on the Brazen Altar.

The Lord took great pains to fully instruct Moses and the people about how the sacrifices were to be conducted and how the ceremonies of the Tabernacle were to be performed. The fire on the brazen altar was not by any means ordinary fire. It looked just like other fire, and normally acted like other fire, but that is where the similarity ended. Have you ever considered how long it would take to burn the carcase of an animal using ordinary fire?

So, the fire on the Altar was a special fire. The Bible tells us, 

"And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces" (Leviticus 9:24).

So God started that fire, but there were certain rules that Moses and Aaron had to observe in the care of that fire. 

Leviticus 6:12, "And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings." 

The fire which came from God was eternal fire. It came from God's dwelling place ... eternity. Though it was eternal fire, it would go out when it had consumed all of the available fuel. So much prophetic significance here! We are to be that altar with the fire of God burning within us.

That command created a problem of fuel supply. That was the responsibility of man ... to keep the fire burning on the Altar. This speaks volumes. It must have been a full-time task for some folks to continually bring in all the wood to keep the fire burning. Likewise, we must do whatever it takes to keep the fire of God burning in our souls. Three main elements make up the fuel for the fire of God in our souls. They are the rhema word of God, prayer and intercession, and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Leviticus 6:13, 18, 23

Under penalty of death, only the fire from off the altar was to be used in tabernacle worship.

Leviticus 16:12-13, "And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not:"

Two of the sons of Aaron found out the hard way that it was unacceptable to use man-made fire in tabernacle worship. They broke the rules of worship by taking ordinary (strange) fire to burn incense before the Lord instead of getting their (eternal) fire from the altar. The cost of that mistake was sudden death by the same consuming fire that had been put on the altar. Our God is a consuming fire (Hebrews 12:29).

1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which He commanded them not.

2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD. Leviticus 10:1-2

When the fire of God consumed the offering, it was a sign that God had fully accepted that offering. Is there any strange fire in the church today?

Now let us return to Genesis 22:7, when Isaac asked his father Abraham, "Where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" That is a question that we all, at one time or another, must ask. Where is the Lamb of our life? The purpose of human life is not for us to be blessed abundantly with prosperity here on earth, followed by an eternity of happiness in heaven. The purpose of human life is meant to give pleasure to God. 

Revelation 4:11, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."

A lamb, of course, is the meekest of all creatures. We know from Numbers 12:3 that Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth. However, Jesus, as a Man on earth, was the epitomy of meekness. We Christians must be willing to be a lamb. That is a decision, a choice, that we must make every day. We can either be a sweet savor to God or a stench in His nostrils. God will have that sweet savor from man.

In response to Isaac's question, "Where is the lamb"? Abraham responded, "God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering." We all know that was fulfilled both literally and spiritually. The Lord provided Abraham with a ram, caught in a thicket, to use as the burnt offering. A ram is a male sheep, capable of bearing offspring; a lamb is a young sheep. There is a possible analogy here with the ram and the lamb on one hand, and the Father and the Son, the Lamb of God on the other hand.

John 1:29, "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."

Every professing Christian knows that Jesus came to earth as a man, suffered more than any man ever suffered, was crucified, dead and buried, rose again from the dead, and sits at the right hand of the Father. Jesus voluntarily and willingly became the ultimate burnt offering. His whole earthly life was focused on, "Lo, I come to do thy will, O God."

2 Corinthians 5:20-21, "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 

Jesus became or fulfilled that burnt offering. The will of God is that every Christian should become a burnt offering after being born from above. The burnt offering is a voluntary act of worship which speaks of atonement for unintentional sin in general and an expression of devotion, commitment and complete surrender to God. 

In Genesis 22:5, "And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you." 

Did Abraham forget to worship? No, but not in the sense that we think of worship today. But Abraham was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac ... that which was the most valuable part of His life. That was a real sacrifice, a real offering. This seems to match the definition of worship which was quickened to me many years ago from Genesis 22 when Abraham was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. Worship is the voluntary, unquestioning obedience to the rhema word of God through the Holy Spirit. (The rhema is a specific word to a specific person. God told Abraham to go and sacrifice his only son. God did not tell every father to go and sacrifice their only son.) Worship also springs out of a pure heart that fears God.

The burnt offering allowed men to participate in the ceremony of the sacrifice, but not to add anything to the sacrifice. This can easily be understood in the light of the purpose of atonement. For sinful man to attempt to contribute to an atoning sacrifice would only defile that sacrifice. The Israelite of that day could add nothing to that sacrifice which atoned for his sins, just as we can contribute nothing to the work of Christ, which atones for our sins.

To summarize, the burnt offering under the Old Covenant was largely a mechanical routine to most men. It was part of the Mosaic Law. But under the New Covenant the burnt offering is designed to be a spiritual reality. The law is the covenant and expression of His will that was fulfilled in Christ Jesus. How did He fulfill it? Luke 8:21 records that as He was in the synagogue reading from the prophet Isaiah, Jesus said, "It is fulfilled." As He was hanging from the cross, He said, "It is finished." Jesus knew the will of the Father and He was able to walk in it primarily because He fully identified with that perfect will. It was not so much that He fulfilled the law, but that the law was fulfilled in Him. The law was specifically designed for the Lord Jesus Christ that it might be fulfilled in Him. What about us? The fulfillment of the law is Christ to everyone that believes in Him. (Romans 10:4).

And so, the real question for each one of us today does not concern Abel or Noah or Abraham. The most important question for us today is: Where is the Lamb for the burnt offering? What place does He occupy in our heart and mind? And then, who is willing, voluntarily, unquestioning, to become a burnt offering as unto the Lord? Who desires to be fully identified with the perfect will of the Father? Amen.

The Tabernacle of David

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

The Tabernacle of David 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

For many years, I never remembered that David ever had a tabernacle. That reflects my lack of diligence in reading all of the word of God over and over. The Hebrew word for "tabernacle" means a tent, a booth, a covering, or a dwelling place. I do not claim to have received any special revelation about that tabernacle, but I believe all of us should have some understanding of the significance of the Tabernacle of David, as it pertains to us today.

During the reign of David two tabernacles co-existed: the Tabernacle of Moses at Gibeon (1 Chronicles 21:29) and the Tabernacle of David in Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 15:1).

To understand the significance of the Tabernacle of David, we must first consider the Tabernacle of Moses, which illustrated the perfection needed to come before the presence of God. The only Man who ever lived a life of perfection was the Man, Jesus Christ, as He walked the face of the earth. Only Christ in you, the hope of glory, can ever come into the presence of the Father.

The Tabernacle of Moses was a portable tent which the Israelites set-up as they rested during their journey through the wilderness and into the Promised Land. The glory of the presence of God rested and resided in the Ark of the Covenant in the midst of the Holy of Holies.

Upon entering the Promised Land, the Tabernacle of Moses was first settled at Gilgal for 14 years. Then the Ark was moved to Shiloh in Samaria for 369 years, during the period of the Judges. During the time of Eli, the second-to-last judge of Israel, the Israelites decided to take the Ark of the Covenant into battle against the Philistines. They reasoned that the Ark would be their best defense. God would surely lead them to victory!

But there is a difference between us trying to presumptuously take the Lord anywhere and the Lord giving us specific directions. The Israelites never asked the Lord whether they should take the Ark into battle. Therefore, the Lord was angry with Saul and the Israelites and allowed the Philistines to defeat them and capture the Ark of the Covenant (1 Samuel 4). Israel then became "Ichabod," meaning "the glory has departed" (1 Samuel 4:21-22). The Tabernacle of Moses in Shiloh was then without the Ark and without the glory of His presence. At the death of Samuel, the Ark was moved to Gibeon, just north of Jerusalem, a city in the tribe of Benjamin.

The presence of the Lord depends on our relationship with Him. David, a man after God's own heart, pleaded with God, "Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy Holy Spirit from me." (Psalm 51:11). The presence of the Lord can bring a blessing when we abide by His ways. When we are ONE in Christ, a significant unity releases a powerful blessing of God. This is the kingdom Jesus died for. Regardless of race, culture or traditions, there is ONE body of Christ.

After the Philistines captured the Ark, they carried it to their city of Ashdod and placed it in the temple of their god, Dagon (1 Samuel 5). The statue of Dagon fell face downward on the ground, bowing in front of the Ark. After the Lord punished the people of Ashdod with plagues, they sent the Ark to the Philistine city of Gath. There again the Lord inflicted them. After seven months in Philistia, the Ark was returned to Israel on an ox cart with symbolic gifts from the Philistines as payment for their sins against the Lord. As that ox cart was enroute, Uzzah saw that the ark was about to fall, so he touched the ark to keep it steady, but the Lord smote Uzzah immediately. Then David said, in 1 Chronicles 13:12, "How shall I bring the ark of God home to me? So David brought not the ark home to himself to the city of David, but carried it aside into the house of Obededom the Gittite. And the ark of God remained with the family of Obededom in his house three months. And the LORD blessed the house of Obededom, and all that he had."

For at least 20 years, there was no Shekinah Glory in the tabernacle of Moses located at Gibeon. The Holy of Holies was empty without the Ark. The priests continued to minister at the tabernacle, offering daily sacrifices, but they were just legalistic, ritual motions without the glory of His presence.

But David vowed to the Lord that he would not sleep in a bed until he could provide a proper "dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob" (Psalm 132). This is likewise prophetic of the Christian community today. No one seems to care that the glory of God has departed, mostly because we have not seen the glory of God in the first place. Instead, we see the church at Laodicea, characterized by deception and a lukewarm attitude. Leonard Ravenhill, a highly respected 20th century English evangelist and preacher once said: (quote) I'm sick to death of the so-called Christianity of our day. What's supernatural about it? When do people come out of the sanctuary awed and can't speak for an hour because God has been in glory there? Dear God, as soon as they get out, they're talking football, or sports or something or there's going to be a big sale downtown or somewhere. We are not caught up into eternity!
When did you last tip-toe out of the sanctuary? When you couldn't say a word to anybody because you were so overwhelmed with the glory of God? (end quote)

Instead of returning the Ark to the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle of Moses at Gibeon, David pitched a small, open-air tent in Jerusalem outside David's palace and placed the Ark inside. 

1 Chronicles 15:1, "And [David] made him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for it a tent." 

1 Chronicles 16:1, "So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God." 

The proof of any action we take comes from the fruit that results. Certainly, the good fruit that resulted from the Tabernacle of David was the evidence of the Lord's blessing. The glory of the Lord returned to the Tabernacle of David. There can be no greater proof than that. David appointed priests to minister before the Lord continually night and day without ceasing, in praise and worship, both by singers and with musical instruments (1 Chronicles 16). Instead of the veil that Moses used, David covered the Ark with worship through musicians and singers, with both old and new, spontaneous songs in the form of praise and worship. For many long years I have longed to witness spontaneity within our Christian gatherings. Spontaneity is a sure sign of the leading of the Holy Spirit. For many long years I have believed that fresh manna should come forth in every gathering of the Lord's people. Our God is that big! I have seen that fresh manna come forth spontaneously many times. I have also experienced many times when the Lord would have brought forth fresh manna but the leadership did not allow it to happen. I even had a specific dream about that a few years ago.

Many of the Psalms were probably composed during the worship in the Tabernacle of David. That sparked a different type of worship than what typically occurred at the Tabernacle of Moses. At David's tabernacle, the people made sacrifices of praise to God. They clapped their hands; they lifted their hands in worship; they shouted and danced. They had glorious times in God's presence. But there were still burnt offerings and sacrifices in the Tabernacle of David. It was not yet the time for animal sacrifices to cease completely. The people still lived in man's day. Likewise, for the most part, the church community today still lives in man's day, but the day of the Lord is close at hand.

In the Tabernacle of David, the glory of God still rested on the Ark that resided in a small tent. Part of the significance of David's tabernacle was that there was no veil to keep the people from viewing the glory of God because David set the Ark of the Covenant in open view. At the Tabernacle of David, all men now had full, free access to God's presence. There was no veil separating people from the Ark of the Covenant, as there was in the tabernacle of Moses, Where the glory that rested on the Ark was hidden in the Holy of Holies behind a thick curtain.

There was a close personal relationship and openness between the Lord and David. The reason that David never lost a battle was because he always asked the Lord if he should go out to war. Perhaps the greatest desire of David was to dwell in the house of the Lord forever (Psalm 27). Living a life of righteousness and holiness is a sweet offering of praise and worship unto the Lord. It does not depend on the songs and the music. For several years in our New Testament house church back in the 1970's, all of our gatherings would start by singing three fast, upbeat songs followed by three slow, soft songs. Then we would worship in spirit and in truth. But one day one of the elders proclaimed that we really did not need a "warm-up" period simply to stir up our emotions. He suggested that we could begin our service by worshipping in spirit and truth without the emotional uplift. Moreover, whoever or whatever said that all church services must start with singing? A man and his God-given ministry are inseparable. More than a heart of worship, God requires a heart that is pure and undefiled, unspotted by the world. When my wife was very young in Christ, she received a prophecy that she was to have a ministry of blessing. For about two years she thought that meant that she was to lay her hand on other Christians and say, "I bless you in the Name of the Lord." Then the Lord made it known to her that she WAS the blessing, just by the life of Christ within her. If anyone is around my wife for 10 minutes you will know what a blessing she is to others.

God is not interested in many or vain repetitions (Matthew 6). Praying without ceasing is a continual dialogue with the Lord ... walking and talking with Him. There is no greater activity available to us Christians than to walk with the Lord daily. That is what Enoch did and the Lord translated him. When we pray, He listens. When He speaks, we listen, or at least we should listen. In between, we wait on Him and fellowship with Him, bearing His presence everywhere we go.

Communication with God can take place with or without words or sounds. The Lord knows our hearts. He knows what we need before we ever ask Him. The Lord gives us the desires of our heart ... the very desires themselves. The Lord wants to have communion with us more than we want to commune with Him. Toward that end, He will shout at us at first, if necessary. That was my initial experience after the Lord sovereignly and dramatically apprehended me. I received all sorts of bells and whistles, all sorts of dramatic experiences for a few years. Then the Lord removed most of the dramatic experiences and required me to walk by faith. Another level of communication comes when we accept 

Psalm 32:8, "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." 

When the Lord, in 1 Kings 19, came to Elijah in a cave, after Elijah had fled at the threats of the wicked Jezebel, the Lord was not in the strong wind, not in the earthquake, and not in the fire. The Lord spoke to Elijah in a still small voice.

The condition of our heart is very important - waiting on the Lord as a servant, wanting to do whatever the Master desires, and not as a master ourselves, wanting the Lord to do things for us! In the awesome presence of the Lord, no words can fully express our hearts.

The Tabernacle of David is all about the glory of the presence of the Lord. Without His presence, there is no way, no truth, no life, and no light! What is a tabernacle or a dwelling without the glory of the presence of the Lord? What is a Church when the Lord's presence is not there? What is a Christian who does not bear the presence of the Lord in his life?

There are three main references to the Tabernacle of David: Isaiah 16:5, Amos 9:11, and Acts 15:16, in which James repeats the passage from Amos. The reference in Isaiah 16:5 refers to the tabernacle of David prophetically, pointing to the One from the line of David who would someday sit on the throne and rule over all. That One, of course, refers to Jesus.

A controversy erupted after the gentiles became Christians and were filled with the Holy Spirit. The church at Jerusalem called a meeting to decide what to do with these outsiders. Some of the Judaizers thought the gentiles needed to be circumcised, but others disagreed. There was uncertainty as to whether the Gentiles were to keep the Law of Moses.

In Acts 15, James quoted Amos 9:11 to give credence to the recent conversion of the Gentiles in the early church. Amos 9:11 says, 

"In that day will I raise up again the Tabernacle of David, that is fallen." 

The Tabernacle of David was superseded by the building of Solomon's Temple. From Peter's earlier experience with Cornelius, a Gentile, God was also calling Gentiles to Himself. The apostles were not to put on the Gentiles a burden that no one could ever keep (i.e., the Law of Moses). Then, in Acts 15, James quoted the Amos passage, and said it was being fulfilled before their eyes. Further he said that gentiles did not need to be circumcised.

From James' decree, it is clear that God's promise through the prophet Amos - that He would "build again the tabernacle of David" - was related to what He was just then beginning to do, namely, visiting the Gentiles to take out from among them a people for His Name. James declared that God's visitation of the Gentiles agreed with the words of the prophets (in general) and Amos (in particular). The "tabernacle" referred to in Acts 15:16, then, is the spiritual house of God open to all, both Jew and Gentile, who seek Him in order to worship Him in spirit and in truth.

During David's time the tabernacle housed the Ark of the Covenant and was a precursor to the temple that Solomon would build. When Israel fell away from following the commandments of the Old Covenant, the temple was desecrated and needed to eventually be rebuilt, as described in the book of Ezra. Clearly God was not after a structure made with hands. He was and always has been after a temple not made with hands.

Singing had not been a part of the formal tabernacle activities from the days of Moses for centuries, but David changed all that. The singing was not for the people but for the Lord. The singers didn't face the people, nor is there any reference to an audience of any kind participating. The concept of worship in the Tabernacle of David was completely the opposite of "worship as performance" as it is conducted today. They didn't face the people ... they faced the Lord in the Ark. Does that tell us anything? Back in the mid-1970's in one of our New Testament house church gatherings, a prophecy came forth, which said, "Why do my people sing about me, but do not sing to me?"

Immediately after the Day of Pentecost and lasting for at least three centuries, the church was subjected to severe persecution. When the devil saw that his strategy was not working too well, he modified his strategy to include more subtle deception. When the Roman emperor Constantine gave the church state protection in the early fourth century, he abolished house churches, which had been the only way believers had gathered for 300 years. Paul had been the first to recognize that the glory and presence and work of God was no longer in the synagogues. It had shifted to individual homes. Constantine established places of worship directly modeled like the Greek theater, which was the primary entertainment venue in ancient Rome at that time. Under Constantine, the ministers and the worship leaders for the first time stepped on to a raised platform to conduct services in exactly the same way that plays were put on at the time.

Do you think the Lord was pleased with that change? Church for the first time went from being a vibrant interactive spiritual community to sitting quietly and passively as an audience that was expected not to interrupt the performance or interact in any way as to disrupt the proceedings on the platform. This manner of conducting Christian gatherings continues relatively unchanged to this day. A multitude of churches today at every level use raised platforms to divide the ministers and singers from the audience. I have also seen several churches where all of the "elders" sit up front on platforms so the people can see who their leaders are. A further means to differentiate the clergy from the laity is the manner of dress ... using robes and the like. In Revelation 2:6 and 2:15, the Lord says He hates the deeds and the doctrines of the Nicolaitans. Nicolaitans means "people conquerors," which refers to the clergy/laity division.

Under Constantine's decree, the church became a caricature of itself that has not risen far above state control in the centuries since. Before Constantine, the church was so dynamic that it brought the might of Rome to its knees. The church isn't impacting or confronting society today as it did before Constantine. It is merely part of society with its many edifices, adorned with spires and steeples on every street corner. The church's definition of reform today is envisioned as political take-over IN the world system, but Paul taught we are to OVERCOME the world. Lord, take us from church as performance to something like what the early church was that brought Rome to its knees and saw cities turned upside down for Christ. Of course, the more the church today becomes like the early church, the more persecution we will receive.

2 Timothy 3:12, "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution."

Acts 14:21-22, "And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God."

Romans 8:18, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

Think about all of the labor involved in the first Tabernacle that Jesus instructed Moses to build. Even after the structure was built, it required an enormous amount of maintenance; slaughtering thousands of animals, removing gallons of blood, keeping the menorah lit, the shewbread baked, the incense burning. All of that work so that the presence of the Lord would dwell among them. It was a lifestyle of hard labor for a lot of people to keep the Lord's spirit and protection with the nation. But God says that there remains a rest to His chosen people.

The Tabernacle of David was very different. We can read all about it in 1st Chronicles. David made several big mistakes but his heart burned for the Lord, and all he wanted was to please Him. For this reason, the Ark of the Covenant was brought back to the Hebrew nation under David's watch; there was great rejoicing and celebration and the Lord did something amazing. He got David to set up a new tabernacle with no walls or veils to hide His presence - His glory. His Spirit was literally shining from the Ark for all the nation to look upon.

What would that have felt like for His people to be restored to the Lord's favor once again and not have to go through the priests to know the Master? The veil had been taken away and each individual had access to a personal relationship with the Creator and His love.

That is what has been promised to us as Christians. Just as there was a shift and a change from the worship of the ancient Hebrews, the Tabernacle of David speaks today, not of any physical structure, but of the Bride and the refreshing that will come from the Master in these last days. For the Bride of Christ ... the overcomers, instead of hard, laboring servitude, true worship today is in the Spirit. The Lord is rebuilding the spirit of the Tabernacle of David among His chosen Bride. She is no longer required to perform laborious work to earn His love. He has died for our sins and forgiven us, washed us clean and set us on a path toward complete redemption.

Many want to stay in the mindset of the Tabernacle of Moses, trying to earn their salvation and deliverance through hard labor and religious habits, but have we tasted His glorious presence? Are we part of the Bride or are we still in religion? Are we running the race to overcome and put on our wedding garments? Once again Jesus is crying out for us to come out from among them. Come out of the beast, the slavery of religion, and come into the Bride, which is now being perfected and matured in Christ, granting her direct access to the presence of the Lord Himself as typified by David's Tabernacle.

2 Corinthians 4:6-7, "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."

Today the tabernacle is our fleshly vessels, not made with hands. Is our tabernacle dedicated to religious/worldly behavior or to Christ in you, the hope of glory?

Just as it was in the days of David, so is it today. Today there are still two tabernacles - a religious tabernacle of routines, ritual, and ceremony, and the spiritual Tabernacle of David, who was the first King pointing to what Jesus Himself would become for us all. Those in the Bride are now kings and priests, but we must be processed first (Hebrews 12) and put on the new man in Christ, understanding that Jesus does everything. We just need to listen to Him and be obedient. That requires ears to hear, eyes to see, and a heart to understand.

The restoration of the "Tabernacle of David" is as relevant today as it was when the apostles grappled with those same issues in Acts 15. The restoration of the "Tabernacle of David" is prophecy being fulfilled. It began when Peter began preaching to Gentiles. Acts 15 tells the story of the difficult issues that can arise when Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ come together. James received the revelatory answer from Amos 9. How many true believers today have received that same revelation? Of the few who have received that same revelation, how many in church leadership positions understand and walk in that same truth?

David's life, kingship, and worship were all prophetic; all pointing to the life and ministry of Jesus. David reigned from the place of God's presence and glory. All government and business is influenced by the open heaven created by the life rightly related to God and continual worship. Jesus sits upon the throne of David, which is in heaven among 24/7 worship. When we allow the government to be on the shoulders of Jesus, His Kingly authority is released in our midst.

David's Tabernacle was a tent set up in Jerusalem and all it contained was the ark, representing the presence and glory of God. This was prophetic of Jesus coming to earth to "tabernacle" or dwell in the midst of His people. The ultimate fulfillment is intimacy with the Lord in the throne room in heaven. From Hebrews 10:19, because of the blood of Jesus we can all enter into the Holy of Holies. It is not restricted to a privileged few as it was in the Tabernacle of Moses. In Hebrews 4:16 we are told to come boldly into the throne room of God.

David was an intense worshipper who danced and played his harp before the Lord without fearing man. David's liberty is a picture of the New Testament Church worshipping with a true liberty that is only found when we worship in "spirit and truth."

The Tabernacle of David is the one place that the Lord has said that ALL of mankind will be able to seek Him and find Him. The restoration of the Tabernacle of David is a preparation for the return of Jesus. The Bride makes herself ready and prepares the way of the Lord. The Bride will be without spot or wrinkle. Holiness is very important. It is not achieved by works, but by faith in the Word, the blood of the Lamb, and the work of the Holy Spirit. All is being made ready for the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Note that the Gentiles would become a big part of the restoring of David's tabernacle. In fact, the purpose of restoration also would be to bring in the gentiles. Everyone, Jew or gentile, would have equal access to God's presence.

Colossians 1:18 affirms Jesus as head of the Church. The prophet Isaiah described this in a slightly different way. He said the Messiah would rule from the "tabernacle of David" (Isaiah 16:5), which showed the mercy of God. He was going to make a way so all would have equal access to God's presence because of the cleansing blood of Jesus.

Now it is true that no man in or out of the Bible, except Jesus, was ever priest, prophet, and king. However, the tabernacle of David symbolizes three dimensions: A priestly dimension - focused on 24 hour a day worship and intercession that follows the Davidic order of worship ... a ministry to God in spirit and truth (John 4:24); a prophetic dimension - focused on the release of the prophetic ministry in the church of Jesus Christ - Acts 2:17; and a kingly dimension - focused on the apostolic ministry that accomplishes the tasks of the kingdom with power, fulfilling what men call the Great Commission. The Tabernacle of David in all 3 dimensions had it's beginning of restoration in the New Testament church. However, the completion of these 3 dimensions has not yet been fully restored that the nations might know God. The restoration of the Tabernacle of David is essential to complete the great harvest of souls promised to the church at the end of the age.

The exhortation for all Christians is to re-institute the Davidic order of worship in our personal temple. Spiritual breakthrough comes soon afterwards. I have heard a number of preachers tell their flock that their breakthrough is either right around the corner or they have it now. Sounds pleasing to the ear, but my understanding is that our breakthrough is conditional ... conditioned on the spirit of the Tabernacle of David made flesh within us ... conditioned on Christ in you, the hope of glory.

God wants us to set aside church as we know it for church as He wants it ... after the pattern of the Tabernacle of David. Lord, we humbly ask You to restore the Tabernacle of David that is fallen down. May You be glorified in all things. May your kingdom come and Your will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

Worship

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

Introduction 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

Man was created to be a worshipper of God. Of himself, man does not know how to worship God, yet he longs to worship. Therefore Christian men, over the years, have come up with various forms of what they call worship. Man designs forms of worship or some sort of program for religious services and then asks God to bless his program. Because man does not know how God desires to be worshipped, he develops a variety of forms. Christians generally congregate or gravitate to the particular form that suits their individual tastes, their spiritual disposition, and that which does not offend their mentality.

In our lifetime we have experienced four different types of churches, each with somewhat different emphases on what they call worship: (1) a denominational church; (2) a predominantly white charismatic church; (3) a predominantly black charismatic church; and (4) a New Testament house church. What follows is what we have seen, heard, experienced, and sensed by the Holy Spirit in each of those types of churches. Of course there are some minor variations within each type of church. In addition, we have visited a few Hispanic churches, but not to the degree of the four types, above.

Let us make the following very clear: In NO way do we mean to belittle or be critical of any of those churches. We do not doubt the motivation or sincerity of the leaders in any of those churches. We do, however, ponder their understanding. On March 26, 2006, the Lord woke me up very early and spoke a word to me, i.e.: Many pastors, even in charismatic churches, love the Lord and sincerely desire more of the Lord in their life and in the lives of the members of their church, but they want to incorporate more of the Lord into their own traditions, formats, programs, cultures, etc. Such, of course, will never happen; the Lord will never allow it.

I remember, before the Lord apprehended me in 1967, that my wife somehow persuaded me to start attending a Methodist church. I remember that Methodist church had a Sunday program for their "worship service." It consisted of 17 items, starting with an organ prelude, a "call to worship," three hymns, responsive reading, a few written prayers, an offering collection with an offertory solo, the "sermon," and ending with an organ postlude. I know that there were 17 items because I counted them every Sunday. I could not wait for the "service" to end! The written program always followed the same pattern. Everything was very prim and proper and orderly, with little display of emotion. Of course everything had to be completed in precisely one hour because the people got a little antsy if the service ran over time. Then everyone would come back the following Sunday and repeat the process. Then the Lord apprehended me and all things began to change! Man's methods of worship are mechanical and binding to those whose spirits are being drawn ever upward to the heart of the Father.

Then we have the predominantly white, charismatic worship service, of which there are many somewhat minor variations and emphases. The larger churches have several singers on the platform to "lead" worship, plus several musical instruments, primarily guitars and drums, or an occasional piano or keyboard. The music is oriented towards the younger generation, with a beat somewhat like the worldly up-tempo music. After about 30-40 minutes of that music, the offering plate is passed. Then the pastor comes on stage and gives a typical sermon, which rarely emphasizes the gospel of the kingdom of God or the working of the cross in our individual life. The message is usually oriented to how God loves us and wants to bless us in so many ways, followed perhaps by a closing prayer and announcements. The worship service generally lasts about two hours.

Next is the predominantly African-American worship service. This consists of an opening prayer, upbeat music that folks can dance to, loudspeakers that amplify the music to where it can hurt the ears, and a lengthy message from either the pastor, bishop, or a traveling "apostle." The service has a distinct emotional fervor as if the louder and more exuberant the people can be, the more they can call down the presence of the Lord. Almost everyone in the church is either an apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher, bishop, elder, or deacon. The local or visiting preacher then preaches a (perhaps) good word, usually lasting close to an hour. After that, the preacher for the day prays and lays hands on some of the believers, and some of them get slain in the Spirit. Most of those who get slain in the Spirit attribute it to a wonderful blessing through the hands of a mighty man of God. (We have a separate word on being "slain in the spirit.") The messages again are of the blessings variety, with particular emphasis on how the Lord is going to make everyone prosperous soon. The offering plate is not passed; rather the people march or dance up to one or two big offering containers which are held up front, so that everyone can see who comes forward to deposit their money.

Unfortunately, in far too many cases, all three of the above types of churches involve transferring money from the pockets of the "flock" to the pocket of the pastor. In the first three types of churches, above, the worship service is routinely planned out beforehand, including what songs or hymns will be sung when, and in what order, and the message that the pastor will preach. The pastor knows exactly what is going to happen next. That leaves no room for the Holy Spirit to move as He wills.

Our final variation of the worship service is what we experienced in a New Testament house church from the late 1960's to the early 1980's. Unlike the three previous churches, we never had a paid minister, no one had ever been through a seminary or bible college, no collection plate was ever passed, no podium was used, no messages were recorded, no written programs, and in general we never knew who was going to sing what, when, or say what, when. There was a freedom for all to participate, but in general everything was decent and in order. Although there was no written program, there was an implicit program; i.e., an opening prayer, sing three fast songs, then three slow songs, sing in the Spirit, wait for the prophecies, a message from someone (usually one of the elders), followed by prayer, and fellowship (which was more like socialization). Gifts of the Spirit flowed freely, like turning on the kitchen faucet.

Again, the previous stereotypes of worship services were not meant to demean any of the four types we have experienced. But of the four types, the latter one had distinct advantages over the other three. The first three types of churches were/are all pastor-dominated, where the pastor normally gets a salary and is expected to be the preacher, except for special occasions. In the New Testament house church (which was predominantly white), the pattern was for multiple ministries to govern, not a single pastor. In other words, we tried to function after the pattern of the Church at Antioch, rather than the Church at Jerusalem (neither one of which is the pattern for church government, which must be dynamic, never static). In addition, the New Testament house church allowed for more spontaneity and freedom for the Holy Spirit to move as He wills. Even Moses, the man of the law, said:

Our cattle also shall go with us; there shall not an hoof be left behind; for thereof must we take to serve the LORD our God; and we know not with what we must serve the LORD, until we come thither. Exodus 10:26

We acknowledge that, in the natural realm, the culture of the people involved, as well as traditions, previous teachings and experiences, all play a part in setting the tone for the worship services. But if the word of God is independent of time, race, culture, and geographical location (as we believe) then worship is worship anywhere. Consider the discourse between the woman of Samaria and Jesus.

20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.

22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him.

24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. John 4:20-24

Many believers quote John 4:24, but how many understand what that really means? First, let us try to describe what "worship Him in spirit and in truth" does NOT mean.

8 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, saying,

9 Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:

10 And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean;

11 And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses. Leviticus 10:8-11

The verses above were the only time that the Lord spoke to Aaron alone. Nothing may be done to excite or stimulate the flesh in the sanctuary (assembly of believers); neither drink within, nor music without, nor sensuous surroundings. The old nature must not be stimulated by our natural senses or mere human eloquence. All must be of the Spirit.

To worship "in spirit" is to allow the Holy Spirit to move upon the believer's redeemed spirit, causing love, adoration, devotion, honor, and respect to ascend to God. Because "Thy Word is truth" (John 17:17), to worship "in truth" is to worship according to the Word of God. God has laid down in His Word how we are to worship Him. He has shown His acceptance of a variety of expressions of praise and of worship from those who truly love Him. This word attempts to shed some light on what God is looking for in terms of worship.

We believe that worship is not defined by the outward manifestations of the people. Further, we believe that all four types of churches that we have personally experienced miss the mark concerning worship, because they all focus on what we do, rather than on what we are or should become. There IS a "doing" involved with worship, but it must spring forth from a state of "being."

The worship of God is nowhere explicitly defined in Scripture, and we should never use Webster's Dictionary to define scriptural terms. Worship is not confined to praise, nor are they the same. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words says: "Broadly, worship may be regarded as the direct acknowledgment to God, of His nature, attributes, ways and claims, whether by the outgoing of the heart in praise and thanksgiving or by deed done in such acknowledgment." That seems to be a reasonable definition as long as we understand the significance. But perhaps we can do even better. Let us try to put some meat on those bones.

We will need to search the scriptures carefully to arrive at a more true meaning. Five different Greek words are translated as "worship." In the New Testament the most frequent word rendered "to worship" is the Greek proskuneo, (pronounced pros-koo-neh'-o), which literally means "to kiss towards," like a dog licking his master's hand; to fawn or crouch to, that is, (literally or figuratively) prostrate oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore), bow (self) down, make obeisance, or worship. That is a reasonable definition. Jesus said that if any man would be His disciple, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Him. In other words all of our being must acknowledge the centrality and supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ. Certainly every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. But we believe we can add more meat on the bones in attempting to define "worship."

Worship is not only the heart of a gathering of believers, but also the heart of our every day life. Ministry to the Lord is vital! Ministry to the Lord is worship and worship is ministry to the Lord. A number of years ago, as I enjoyed fellowship with some brethren in another state, I had a brief conversation with the wife of a man who seemed to have some maturity about him. When I asked her about worship, she said, "Oh, I never worship at home ... only in the meetings." How sad! We should be free to worship in all circumstances and contexts. Our life should be a praise and worship to God no matter where we happen to be.

But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near to Me to minister unto Me, and they shall stand before Me to offer unto Me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord God. Ezekiel 44:15

The Westminster Catechism states that the chief end of man is to know God and enjoy Him forever. Strange as it may seem at first, God also wants to enjoy us!

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created. Revelation 4:11

One of the major means God established to provide enjoyment and pleasure is the avenue of worship. There is a difference between worship and the activities often associated with the word "worship" and the traditional forms it often takes.

The worship desired by God primarily refers to an inner attitude, consisting of prostrating ourselves (not necessarily physically) before our Holy God. It also speaks of homage, reverence, service, and adoration. We would do well to understand that while worship is often usefully expressed in outward praise, not all praise is an expression or form of worship. Although there are many physical, outward expressions or forms of worship, worship is our inner attitude or state of our heart toward God. Clearly, from numerous verses, God is after our heart, not a routine. Consider these scriptures:

13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lift up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For He is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD;

14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God. 2 Chronicles 5:13-14

Although we have been fortunate to have been part of a number of gatherings where the presence of the Lord has been manifest in many ways, we are still waiting to see a fulfillment of Verse 14 in our life on earth! Just as we grow toward seeing the hand of the Lord in every circumstance and hearing His voice from many sources, we also grow toward more perfect worship in the midst of all of life's activities. We become more thoroughly available to Him throughout the day and we become "living epistles, read of all men." We have been aware for 40 years that the level of congregational worship seems to be proportional to the maturity level of those believers present, where "maturity level" is defined by the degree to which we become as little children before Him.

One of the most immediately effective expressions of worship, especially in gatherings, is song. However, song is equally effective when we are alone with God. I remember that my grandmother would frequently try to sing as she worked around our house (she lived with us). She always said that she wished that she had a better singing voice so that she could praise the Lord better. Well she got her wish because she is in the presence of the Lord now, singing His praises for eternity!

Every kind of appropriate song, whether psalms like those of the Old Testament, or hymns directed to God, or spiritual songs, blesses the Lord. It pleases the Lord to reveal Himself to us during such moments. Some have even heard the Lord singing in the midst of the congregation!


11 For both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12 Saying, I will declare Thy name unto My brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto Thee. Hebrews 2:11-12

However, if our expressions of worship grow no further than singing together then it grieves the Holy Spirit, and eventually even the singing may develop into nothing more than a mechanical routine.

I remember one local gathering of about 12-15 saints many long years ago. One relatively young couple had a gift in music, so they led us in singing praises to our God. The only problem was that they exceeded their anointing and went on and on. The Lord brought to my mind a picture of the Israelites coming out of Egypt during the Exodus. They marched five in a row Exodus 13:18). With at least one million people (counting women and children), the parade of people must have been at least 114 miles long, assuming three feet between rows. (Some simple arithmetic will confirm this.) The singers and musicians, like everyone else, had their specific position in the parade. However, if someone had been sitting on a grandstand and viewed the parade as it passed by, after the singers and musicians passed the grandstand there would come a point in time when they could no longer be heard because of the great distance. The moral of that picture is that a little pepper is good but a lot of pepper spoils the broth. In other words, the singers and musicians have a purpose to lead us into praise and worship, but once their function has been completed, they need to be careful not to exceed their anointing. They can become an end in themselves. We need to know when to minister overtly and when to stop ministering overtly.

Marion Fretwell, a good brother who was serving the Lord many years before what men call Latter Rain began, put it this way: "I will come unto thee" is the essence of worship (see Exodus 20:24, below). Our approach to God is quite secondary. Unless He comes unto us, our worship service may be nice, but unfruitful. Jesus said,

19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven.

20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them. Matthew 18:19-20

Verse 19 has been greatly distorted by many preachers. That Verse does NOT mean that you and I can agree that we both will be given a new Mercedes car every year!

Jesus did NOT say that where two or three gather together on Sunday morning (or any other time) that He would be present. He said that where two or three are gathered together (by the Holy Ghost in His name) then He would be in our midst. There IS a difference! The Holy Ghost MUST be in control. Hundreds of thousands gather together every Sunday morning in churches at various levels. But is the Holy Ghost in control? Is there a manifestation of the Lord?

An altar of earth thou shalt make unto Me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. Exodus 20:24

An altar is a place of worship. Exodus 20:24, above, seems to indicate that the Lord's first choice was an altar of earth. I have not yet found one verse in scripture where a natural altar of earth was built. What then, is the altar of earth? It is you and me! It is the Church! We are that altar of earth! Paul put it this way:

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1

Verse 24 is forward-looking to the new covenant and the time when the tabernacle of God is with men (Revelation 21:3). What moves the Lord to come unto us? James answers that question:

6 But He giveth more grace. Wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

8 Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

9 Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. 

James 4:6-10

An altar of stone (Exodus 20:25) was acceptable under certain conditions. Please note that it is not acceptable for man to have a part in shaping the stones that are used for an altar unto the Lord. This too is God's work and it is marvelous in our eyes. Man's ways pollute.

Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto Him with psalms. Psalm 95:2

Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His presence with singing. Psalm 100:2

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: Be thankful unto Him, and bless His name. Psalm 100:4

The "gate" speaks of the mind. The human mind is the gateway to the heart and soul. The "door" speaks of the heart. God's gateway to our spirit is our heart. In the above verse, "enter into His gates" means to understand the mind and the ways of the Lord. Note that Psalm 95:2 and Psalm 100:2 speak of coming BEFORE His presence, not coming into His presence.

How do we enter into His presence? First of all we can NOT enter into His presence or be aware of His presence by our own works, strength, or power. We enter into His presence by His grace and mercy and by keeping our garments clean.

We also have a responsibility in order to enter into His presence. This responsibility is stated numerous times in the Psalms. We could also add to Psalm 100:4 that we enter into the Holy of Holies, or enter into His presence, with worship.

Further, because no flesh can glory in His presence and because no sin can be in His presence, it is vital that we keep our garments clean. We keep our garments clean by walking in the light which we have received.

Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in Thy presence. Psalm 140:13

The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psalm 34:18

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou will not despise. Psalm 51:17

He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God. Micah 6:8

 

1 Thus says the LORD, The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool: Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest?

2 For all those things hath Mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor, and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word. Isaiah 66:1-2

For thus saith the High and Lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. Isaiah 57:15

1 Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts 13:1-2

Notice the order in Verse 2 ... they ministered to the Lord and fasted. It does NOT say they fasted and ministered to the Lord. There IS a difference! Some believers fast in order to better minister to the Lord. That constitutes the preplanning of (Christian) man, not the spontaneity of the Holy Ghost. The prophets and teachers in Antioch became so caught up in ministering to the Lord that they "forgot" to eat and thus fasted. It wasn't so much that they "forgot" to eat, however. Rather it was because they had only one thing on their minds ... to minister to the Lord in praise and worship!

A solid, guiding principle, when you want to determine the significance of any scriptural term, is to go back and see where that term is first used in the Bible. A second, solid, guiding principle is to look for the spiritual significance rather than the natural-level meaning. The first occurrence of "worship" is in Genesis 22.

5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. Genesis 22:5-6

In the Old Testament the most commonly used Hebrew word for worship is shachah (pronounced shaw-khaw'). This is a primitive root; which means to depress, that is, prostrate (especially reflexively in homage to royalty or God): bow (self) down, crouch, fall down (flat), humbly beseech, do (make) obeisance, do reverence, make to stoop, or worship.

Do you find it interesting that scripture does not record anything that most Christians today call worship? The scripture says only that Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, his son Isaac, fire in his hand, and a knife. That represents true worship. Please note also that in Genesis 22, the Lord never promised Abraham anything in exchange for sacrificing his only son, Isaac; neither did Abraham ask for anything in return for sacrificing his only son. In other words, obedience is better than sacrifice. When the Lord told Abraham to go and sacrifice his only son, Abraham simply said, "Yes, Lord." He asked no questions; he simply obeyed! Note that the Lord told Abraham to take his son Isaac, his only son, and offer him for a burnt offering. What about Ishmael? Was Ishmael not Abraham's son also? Yes, Ishmael was Abraham's son but Ishmael was a product of the flesh, not born of God. Since this test was from God and since this is true worship, we must conclude that there is nothing about the flesh that can be offered to and accepted by God as worship. There is nothing in our emotional realm that can substitute for worship. Worship must be born of God. Deep calls unto deep.

Worship never asks for something for me but desires to give everything to the Lord. As such, worship is a heart attitude, rather than any kind of outward manifestations. Therefore, we believe that all of our singing, dancing, clapping, shouting, etc., falls under the category of praise, not worship.

And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken [or give heed] than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22

In Genesis 22:5, Abraham said that he and the lad would go and worship. Did Abraham change his mind? Did he forget to worship? NO! Genesis 22:6-13 says that he DID worship.

Therefore, from Scripture, true worship is defined by our voluntary, unquestioned obedience to the rhema word of the Lord as revealed by the Holy Ghost. Further, worship springs out of a pure heart that fears God.

And He said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from Me. Genesis 22:12

But as for me, I will come into Thy house in the multitude of Thy mercy: and in Thy fear will I worship toward Thy holy temple. Psalm 5:7

O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before Him, all the earth. 

Psalm 96:9

Let us look at another scriptural definition of worship from the New Testament.

8 Again, the devil taketh Him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

9 And saith unto Him, All these things will I give Thee, if Thou wilt fall down and worship me.

10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve. Matthew 4:8-10

First of all, do you find it rather ironic that the devil tried to give back the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them to the One Who created them in the beginning? Of course, the devil had his price for returning the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them ... the devil wanted Jesus to fall down and worship him. If the ultimate plan and desire of the devil was for Jesus to fall down and worship him, what do you think is the ultimate desire of the Lord?

Did the devil have that "right" in the first place? Did he have the authority to give back to the Creator the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them? Yes. God, in the beginning, had given to man (Adam) dominion over all of the earth (Genesis 1:26-30). When Adam and Eve fell in the garden, they did so by obeying the voice of the devil rather than the voice of the Lord. In effect, Adam and Eve fell down and worshipped the devil (by being obedient to him). In the process the devil became the new "owner" of the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them ... until Jesus died on the cross.

In Verse 10, above, the word translated as "worship" is the Greek proskuneo, which we previously defined. The Greek word in Verse 10 translated as "serve" is latreuo, which can also be translated as "worship." The distinction is that latreuo means an outward manifestation of worship, or what we "do," whereas proskuneo is a condition or state of the heart, which is inward. It seems to us that most Christian worship services today concentrate much more on our interpretation of latreuo, or external acts, rather than proskuneo.

7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,

8 This people draweth nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honoureth Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me.

9 But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matthew 15:7-9

Some pastors have no idea about all of the commandments of men that are commonly taught as correct doctrine. If the truth were known, none of us currently see all of the traditions and commandments of men that are taught as "standard" teaching. Further all of the ways of the Lord are clearly written in the law and in the prophets, if we only had ears to hear. Please read Verse 9, above, one more time!


14 But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:

15 And have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.

16 And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men. Acts 24:14-16

In the words of that great hymn, which is appropriate for every day of the year, 

and which speaks of worship, 

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant; 

come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;

Come and behold Him, born the King of angels:

O come, let us adore Him, O come let us adore Him, 

O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord.

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation; 

sing all ye bright hosts of heav'n above;

Glory to God, all glory in the highest:

O come, let us adore Him, O come let us adore Him, 

O come, let us adore Him, Christ, the Lord.