“[M]ake me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, … make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount” – Exodus 25:8-9, 40
God reveals himself throughout history — some even call “History”, “His-Story”. When God revealed himself to Israel he commanded a tabernacle be built from a pattern, or template, which Moses saw when he met with God. The instructions were very detailed.
Why would God do that unless he desires we see the “pattern” and understand the reality it represents? Hebrews, in the Bible, picks up on this, calling them “Shadows” of the reality (Hebrews 8:5) — the tabernacle, the laws, the dishes, the colors, all patterns.
I remember my mother making my clothes and her own dresses when I was little; she had shelves full of patterns — she kept them and re-used them. She would change some of the minor details but following the pattern made sure it fit right. There’s a way God does things and it’s not quite so arbitrary when we let the pattern point to what God reality had in mind. Example: Paul writes about paying teaching elders a living wage saying:
“For it is written in the law of Moses, thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope.” — 1st Corinthians 9:8-10
In the bible there is an event where the risen Jesus walked and talked with two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:27), pointing to himself in all the Scriptures from Genesis to Malachi.
Read the Old Testament asking him to “walk” that same walk with you.
fritz@langgang.com
— See Also “2 Birds, 1 Stick, Red Thread, and a Branch” – February 25, 2011
Patrikin - Kinship through The Father 