Carpentry

1 Corinthians 6:19
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

I know that this verse is speaking of sin that takes place in the body and that we are to remember that the Spirit lives within us, but as I thought over it in my mind, I started to think about the Old Testament Temple and what it looked like.

In Exodus 26, God gives very specific instructions to Moses about how the tabernacle is to be built. He tells Moses exactly what His house will look like. God makes every detail of His house known. From the fine linen curtains to the red-dyed ram skin covering, not a point is missed. God is very specific in the wood used, and mandates that it will be covered with gold. All of these things are to be built, manufactured, and assembled so that the Ark of the Testimony can be placed in the center of the tabernacle.

It’s interesting that God specified acacia wood to be used as the building material for the walls of the Tabernacle. Acacia is commonly called the “thorn-tree” because of the thorns on its branches. Acacia trees have a straight trunk, but twisted branches. They are the classic trees seen in most African safari pictures.Why would God choose such a distinct tree to have His tabernacle built from?

Well, because under the New Covenant of Christ’s blood, we are the temple of God. We try desperately to grow straight, but our decisions, born out of our sin nature, lead us into a twisted tangle by the time we mature. Our sin is like a thorn growing out from our side, that over time has poked and stabbed not only at people, but at the heart of God.

What a blessing to know that through the blood of Jesus we have been covered with perfection! We have been made to stand upright by His sacrifice. We have been covered with His atoning blood and are seen as pure by our Father in heaven. Now we shine with His glory, with His righteousness, with His love, and we reflect that out to the rest of the world. In the Old Testament the Ark sat at the center of the Tabernacle so that the walls around it all reflected its beauty and splendor. Now the Ark (that is, Jesus) resides within each one of us so that we can reflect His glory to the world as we walk through our days.

When Christ was crucified He took our twisted, thorn-covered branches upon His head. He wore as His crown the part of us that was sin-ridden and hurtful. He left only the straight trunk, good for working and building. He’s shaved off the bark, planed down the curves, sanded out the rough edges and made us into perfect straight, strong boards. He covered us with His righteousness; He filled us with His righteousness and He made us His home. He is, after all, a carpenter by birth!