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Day 26, or January 26. God deserves the best. Our thoughts today are rooted in Exodus chapter

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25, verses 8 and 9. Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.

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Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you.

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Now the big picture surrounding these verses. Today we are given details about how to make

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a box, which would be called the Ark of the Covenant, and be used to hold the tablets

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of stone bearing the Ten Commandments. There are also descriptions of items of furniture,

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such as a table and lampstand, that would be used inside the tabernacle, and ultimately

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inside the Temple of Solomon. The tabernacle was a large tent, made from separate linen

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curtains held together with golden clasps. This would be off limits to everyone except

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the high priest, and even then only once a year on the day of atonement. Woven into the

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curtains are threads of special colours, blue, purple and scarlet. These are royal and priestly

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colours that were very expensive to manufacture, and therefore only used by important and wealthy

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people. As a mark of respect and honour to God, they were used in the tabernacle. Nothing's

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too good for God.

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And now our action step for today. The house of God is in perfect order. It had to be,

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as the Hebrews believed God deserved only the best. Throughout the centuries church

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buildings have been built using the best materials and using the most expensive things to glorify

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God. I have to be honest and say that there are times when this does jar with me when

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it seems wasteful to my eye. But I am sure the builders knew why they used such extravagant

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materials. However, there is a strand in some churches today that seems to believe that

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God will only use the cheapest and be offended if it's good quality. It is not particularly

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holy to only use the cheapest. Always give God the best. Don't waste his money, but

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always glorify him in the ways you use it.