WEBVTT

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The Lord Jesus said, Moses wrote about me. Moses

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wrote the first five books of the Bible as well

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as at least one of the Psalms, Psalm 90. As we

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read through the first five books of the Bible

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called the Pentateuch, we see the Lord Jesus

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Christ spoken of there. in a variety of ways.

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The theme of all of Scripture, of course, is

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salvation. God's wondrous love for fallen mankind

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and seeking to restore mankind to Himself. Our

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ancestors, Adam and Eve, disobeyed God in the

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Garden. receiving from God the just penalty for

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sin. Which penalty is death? That death includes

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suffering, pain, frustration, disease, degeneration,

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and it culminates with physical death and eternal

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separation from God. in hell. The penalty is

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fit for the crime. For the crime is against an

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infinite God of goodness and holiness. We, the

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descendants of Adam and Eve, carry on the family

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trait, which is sin. And we inherit. the penalty

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of our sin, which is death. As we look around

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us today, despite the advances in science and

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technology and understanding and communication,

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etc., etc., etc., mankind is truly in a moral

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and spiritual mess. And that mess is self -made.

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And the fact is that we are incapable of cleaning

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it up ourselves. We need someone who is greater

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than ourselves to intervene on our behalf and

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come to us in our mess of sin to bring us cleansing,

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forgiveness, and wholeness. And that's exactly

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what the Creator has done. Not because we deserved

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it either. nor because we desired it, but rather

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to demonstrate His own grace, mercy, and kindness.

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The Creator God has provided for us salvation,

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a rescue from our predicament, a deliverance

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from our mess. The first promise of this salvation

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came right after the fall of Adam and Eve in

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the garden. As we studied in Genesis 3 last week,

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God gave the promise of a seed of the woman,

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and that that seed would ultimately bring salvation

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through his own suffering. God gave us the promise

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of a Redeemer. Satan's attempt down through the

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centuries has been the destruction of the line

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of descendants through whom God would send that

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promised Redeemer. Nonetheless, this line can

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be traced from Adam through Seth and through

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Noah and Shem, through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

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Jacob had 12 sons as well as one daughter. One

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of his sons was Joseph, who by the providence

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of God was sold by his own brothers into slavery

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in Egypt, where later he became a powerful figure

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and was able to provide for his father and his

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brothers and their families. In a time of famine,

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they came to Egypt near the end of Jacob's life

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to live there. And they remained there, as did

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their children and their grandchildren. They

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remained there for hundreds of years. Around

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70 of them in Joseph's day became... So many

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in 400 years, in fact, that they posed what was

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perceived by the Egyptians, at least, as a threat

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to the security of that nation. The Bible tells

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us that there arose a new king or pharaoh in

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Egypt who did not recall Joseph with any esteem,

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at least, for by then Joseph had been long dead.

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And in order to curb the population of the Israelites,

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which was mushrooming, he put them into slavery,

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cruel slavery. That provides for us the background

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for the second book of Moses, the book of Exodus,

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where we find another word from God regarding

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the Redeemer. In the book of Exodus, we see the

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picture. of the Redeemer. In Genesis, the promise.

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In Exodus, the picture of the Redeemer. In fact,

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I think that we can look upon Exodus as something

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of a picture album, for there are several pictures

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that we can point to in this second book of Moses,

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the Moses who wrote about the Lord Jesus. But

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we're going to select just one picture out of

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the album this morning, and that is a picture

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that is found in the second part of the book.

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And we'll look in Exodus chapter 25 to begin.

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I invite you to turn there with me. Already,

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God has been speaking to Moses. This book of

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Exodus records Moses' birth, his deliverance

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in that little basket on the Nile River as the

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daughter of Pharaoh found him. It records the

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first 40 and then the second 40 years of his

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life until he was a man 80 years of age when

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God finally appeared to him in Mount Sinai and

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said, Moses, go back and deliver my people. By

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the way, Moses is one of the pictures in Exodus

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of the Redeemer. Moses was a Redeemer, a deliverer

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for the people of God, and is in a certain and

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very true respect a picture of the great Redeemer

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of the people of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

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But we can't develop that this morning. There's

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another picture that demands our attention in

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this album. By this time in the book, Moses has

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done what God has told him to do, however reluctantly

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at first. And now with the people of God, he

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is encamped in Mount Sinai. And he has been up

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on the mount talking with God. And God made a

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covenant with them. And God called for Moses

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to bring... some of the other priests, and 70

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of the elders, and to come up to the mountain.

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Only Moses could come near to God. But these

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others, fewer than 100 of them, were allowed

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to come up on the mountain on this occasion with

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Moses. An amazing thing happened. In verse 9

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of chapter 24, it says, Moses went up with Aaron,

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Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of the elders of Israel.

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And they saw the God of Israel. Maybe you've

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never seen these verses before. They remind you

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of what John saw in the book of the Revelation

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when he was caught up into heaven. It says, And

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under his feet there appeared to be a pavement

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of sapphire as clear as the sky itself. Yet he,

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that is God, did not stretch out his hand against

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the nobles of the sons of Israel. And they beheld

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God, and they ate and drank. Would you like to

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have been there on that day? Wouldn't it have

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been something to have been one of those 70 people?

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To have gone up on that mountain, had this vision

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of God? It doesn't tell us here how God appeared,

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what theophany was used, but it says they saw

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God in some form, not in His essence, but in

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some way in which He was pleased to manifest

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Himself to them. It says that God did not strike

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them dead, though they saw Him. In grace He allowed

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them to come into His presence and to view His

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glory. And it says that while they were there,

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they feasted. They had a meal. They ate and drank

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in the presence of the Lord. This was a wondrous

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occasion. This God of glory, of resplendent glory,

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whom no man had ever seen. nonetheless desired

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not only to be on the mountain where some of

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the people could come to him, but this God of

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glory desired, think of this, to dwell in the

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midst of his people. He wanted to come down to

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them, to live in their presence. And so he told

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Moses to construct... And the picture, the Christmas

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picture of the Lord Jesus Christ that we're going

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to study this morning is this tent, this tabernacle

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where God dwelled among His people. In chapter

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25, the Lord spoke to Moses saying, tell the

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sons of Israel to raise a contribution for me.

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From every man whose heart moves him, you shall

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raise my contribution. And this is the contribution

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which you are to raise from them, gold, silver,

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and bronze, blue, purple, and scarlet material,

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fine linen, goat hair, rammed skins dyed red,

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porpoise skins, acacia wood. Oil for lighting,

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spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant

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incense, onyx stones and setting stones for the

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ephod and for the breast piece. And let them

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construct a sanctuary for me that I may dwell

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among them. The God of glory graciously desired

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to dwell among his people, the sinful... people

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Israel. Does this not remind you immediately

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of that verse that was read for us in our scripture

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this morning in John chapter 1? And the Word,

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the Logos of God, the Word was made flesh and

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dwelt among us. The Word there dwells. In John

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1 .14 is literally the word tabernacle. And the

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word became flesh and tabernacles among us, and

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we beheld his glory as of the one and only, the

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only begotten of the Father, full of grace and

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truth. John 1 .14 is the New Testament picture

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of that which we find in the book of Exodus in

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the tabernacle. I would like for us this morning

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to consider three aspects of the glory of this

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tabernacle that we see, which is a picture of

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Jesus Christ. First, think with me regarding

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the glory of its beauty. The glory of its beauty.

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We don't have time to go into a detailed explanation

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of its beauty. But be aware that the linen that

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was brought and the colors, the blue, the scarlet,

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the purple, the fine twisted linen, these beautiful

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colors were part of curtains that were sewed

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together for the tabernacle. It was an exquisite

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structure. There were wooden frames that were

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made over which these strips of fine linen were

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stretched, forming walls or curtains for the

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tabernacle. Imagine the beauty of this blue and

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scarlet and purple. Woven into the fabric of

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the tabernacle was a cherubim. with wings outstretched,

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facing down. Bronze was used to make certain

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pieces of the tabernacle. But the prominent metal

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used was gold. Gold that, for the most part,

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was beaten out and placed over acacia wood. This

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beautiful wood was carved ornately, and then

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the gold was beaten around it so that it formed

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certain pieces in this tabernacle. We'll talk

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about those pieces in a moment, but it is difficult,

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I think, for us to imagine how beautiful this

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structure was. There are some people who believe

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that God deserves only that which is ordinary

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and plain. When God gave the design for the building

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where he was to dwell, it was a building of exquisite

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and architectural beauty for that day. The beautiful

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colors of the fabric, the gold that glistened

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and shined in the candlelight, the silver, the

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bronze. It was a spectacular structure. But this

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beautiful structure was covered over with what

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apparently was a second tent. And on the outside

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of this was the goat's hair. Just plain, ordinary

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goat hides. If you've ever seen a Bedouin tent,

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you have an idea of the plainness of this structure

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on the outside. With all of its beauty on the

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inside, the outside was very plain, very ordinary.

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And it apparently was constructed so that it

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was taken down and folded up in a certain way

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and then carried, and the porpoise skins protected

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it from the desert heat and any rain that might

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come. so that it was waterproofed in that way.

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An amazing structure that God designed for Moses

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and the people to build. And so what we have

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here is a tent that is beautiful and glorious

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inwardly, but ordinary outwardly. What a picture

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of Jesus Christ. This morning the quartet sang

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The Five Little Fingers of God. The Son of God,

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the only begotten of the Father, glorious in

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grace and in truth, was born as a baby, came

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into the world tabernacled in flesh. When you

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went to that manger in Bethlehem, had you been

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a shepherd, you would have found there a baby.

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Nothing is said in the Scripture, at least, of

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any kind of a halo or a glow about him. What

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they saw when they got there was a baby wrapped

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in claws, just like the angels had said, an ordinary

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-looking baby. And as he grew up, he was an ordinary

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-looking man. Isaiah said of him prophetically,

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he has no stately form or majesty that we should

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look upon him. nor appearance that we should

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be attracted to him. When one looked upon the

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Lord Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry,

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one saw a man. There was nothing about him immediately,

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physically, that would strike you that here was

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anything other than an ordinary person. Ah, but

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inside that ordinary flesh, was housed, was tabernacled,

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the very glory of God. Inside that plain human

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flesh was the beauty of holiness incarnated,

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just like the tabernacle. Exquisite inwardly,

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plain outwardly, the glory of its beauty. a picture

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of Jesus Christ. And then think with me regarding

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the glory of its content. The tabernacle itself

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was a tent that had two rooms, if you please,

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in it. It was not a large structure. It would

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have come close to sitting right up here in this

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area. The first room was 15 feet by 30 feet,

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rectangular. It's called the Holy Place. The

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inner room, and it was separated from the first

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by a curtain, a veil. And the inner room was

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15 feet by 15 feet. It was square. As you approached

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the tabernacle from the outside, the first piece

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of furniture or a Crudiment for this structure

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was an altar made of bronze where there was a

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fire perpetually burning for the sacrifice, what

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was called the burnt offering sacrifice, a sacrifice

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for the sins of the nation. The next piece of

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furniture you would come to would be a laver

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made of bronze outside the tabernacle. It was

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a labor that the priests used. They would first

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come by this altar where their sins were dealt

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with. Then they would come to the labor for the

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cleansing of their hands before they could go

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into the structure itself for their work. Let's

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walk inside the tabernacle this morning with

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a priest as he holds back the door and allows

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us to come in. We are struck with the simplicity

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of this furniture, and yet its beauty. In this

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outer room, we see on the south side of it, that

00:22:13.119 --> 00:22:18.240
is on our left, a golden candlestick with seven

00:22:18.240 --> 00:22:23.180
branches to it. A candlestick that weighed somewhere

00:22:23.180 --> 00:22:29.460
between 60 and 80 pounds of solid gold. Can you

00:22:29.460 --> 00:22:33.299
imagine the value of just that one piece in today's

00:22:33.299 --> 00:22:38.700
market when gold was about $400 an ounce? Yet

00:22:38.700 --> 00:22:40.599
the people had given so that they were able to

00:22:40.599 --> 00:22:47.539
build this candlestick of solid gold. And as

00:22:47.539 --> 00:22:49.700
we look on the other side, the north side to

00:22:49.700 --> 00:22:53.660
our right, we see a table made of acacia wood

00:22:53.660 --> 00:22:58.369
overlaid with gold. And on this table, were 12

00:22:58.369 --> 00:23:06.170
loaves of bread. The loaves were called the bread

00:23:06.170 --> 00:23:09.690
of the presence, and it symbolized the presence

00:23:09.690 --> 00:23:12.609
of God with his people. The 12 loaves, one for

00:23:12.609 --> 00:23:17.089
each of the 12 tribes of Israel. And directly

00:23:17.089 --> 00:23:19.789
in front of us, before the veil that shuts us

00:23:19.789 --> 00:23:23.589
out from the inner part, is an altar, an altar

00:23:23.589 --> 00:23:30.640
of incense made of gold. on which was kept sweet

00:23:30.640 --> 00:23:34.559
-smelling incense that was perpetually offered

00:23:34.559 --> 00:23:39.779
as a sacrifice of praise unto God. Interestingly,

00:23:40.019 --> 00:23:44.460
the incense was the frankincense, one of the

00:23:44.460 --> 00:23:48.720
gifts brought to the Lord Jesus by the wise men.

00:23:49.500 --> 00:23:52.799
Gold, frankincense, and myrrh, the frankincense

00:23:52.799 --> 00:23:56.039
speaking of worship. And it was used there on

00:23:56.039 --> 00:23:59.359
the altar. This golden altar before the curtain.

00:24:01.500 --> 00:24:04.339
Now we're going to do something that no Jew except

00:24:04.339 --> 00:24:10.079
the high priest ever did. We're going to look

00:24:10.079 --> 00:24:16.799
behind the veil. This beautiful curtain. And

00:24:16.799 --> 00:24:19.519
as we look behind the veil, we see the centerpiece

00:24:19.519 --> 00:24:23.579
of this whole structure. It is the Ark of the

00:24:23.579 --> 00:24:29.119
Covenant, which was a box. or a coffer. It was

00:24:29.119 --> 00:24:35.460
made of gold, wood overlaid with gold. Three

00:24:35.460 --> 00:24:38.519
feet nine inches long, two feet three inches

00:24:38.519 --> 00:24:45.500
high and wide. Not a large piece. The top of

00:24:45.500 --> 00:24:52.559
this box is solid gold. It is called the mercy

00:24:52.559 --> 00:24:56.319
seat. And it is here on the top of this box that

00:24:56.319 --> 00:24:59.680
the high priest sprinkled the blood once a year

00:24:59.680 --> 00:25:02.680
for the sins of the people. And on the end of

00:25:02.680 --> 00:25:07.200
the mercy seat, fashioned out of solid gold again,

00:25:07.220 --> 00:25:10.599
are two cherubim with their wings outstretched

00:25:10.599 --> 00:25:15.380
and just touching above the center of the mercy

00:25:15.380 --> 00:25:20.380
seat. Now all of this that I have described to

00:25:20.380 --> 00:25:25.170
you is a picture. of the Lord Jesus Christ, a

00:25:25.170 --> 00:25:30.430
picture of his person and of his work. The bronze

00:25:30.430 --> 00:25:33.190
altar in the front of the tabernacle speaks of

00:25:33.190 --> 00:25:36.509
his offering for sin on the cross of Calvary.

00:25:37.289 --> 00:25:40.750
The laver of cleansing in the front of the tabernacle

00:25:40.750 --> 00:25:44.789
speaks of the cleansing that he provides from

00:25:44.789 --> 00:25:48.220
our daily defilement. in our pilgrimage in the

00:25:48.220 --> 00:25:50.839
world so that we can offer unto God spiritual

00:25:50.839 --> 00:25:56.579
sacrifices. The lampstand on the inside of the

00:25:56.579 --> 00:26:01.019
first room tells us that he is the light of the

00:26:01.019 --> 00:26:08.400
world. And the bread of his presence on the table,

00:26:08.519 --> 00:26:11.900
the golden table to the north side, tells us

00:26:11.900 --> 00:26:18.650
that he is the bread of life. And the altar for

00:26:18.650 --> 00:26:22.130
the incense before the curtain reminds us of

00:26:22.130 --> 00:26:25.390
his perpetual priesthood before the presence

00:26:25.390 --> 00:26:28.589
of God on our behalf, offering up prayers for

00:26:28.589 --> 00:26:36.369
us. The veil which separates us in the tabernacle

00:26:36.369 --> 00:26:41.470
from the Holy of Holies is a veil that represents

00:26:41.470 --> 00:26:50.940
his body. His body. And when He died on the cross

00:26:50.940 --> 00:26:54.160
of Calvary, that veil was torn from the top to

00:26:54.160 --> 00:26:58.720
the bottom, opening the way into the very presence

00:26:58.720 --> 00:27:01.539
of God so that no more is there a separation

00:27:01.539 --> 00:27:07.119
for those who have come by the cross into His

00:27:07.119 --> 00:27:16.099
presence. And there's the mercy seat. Jesus himself

00:27:16.099 --> 00:27:20.059
is called the mercy seat in the book of Hebrews.

00:27:22.619 --> 00:27:26.380
The word propitiation in the New Testament speaks

00:27:26.380 --> 00:27:30.119
of the mercy seat, where the blood was sprinkled

00:27:30.119 --> 00:27:34.819
to satisfy the holiness of God. His blood, once

00:27:34.819 --> 00:27:37.539
and for all, was sprinkled on the mercy seat,

00:27:37.640 --> 00:27:41.500
and he himself has become the mercy seat for

00:27:41.500 --> 00:27:46.380
us before God. You see, the whole tabernacle

00:27:46.380 --> 00:27:50.640
is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Redeemer

00:27:50.640 --> 00:27:55.420
that God promised in the book of Genesis. But

00:27:55.420 --> 00:27:58.099
let me conclude by talking about a third aspect

00:27:58.099 --> 00:28:03.579
of the glory of this marvelous tent. That is

00:28:03.579 --> 00:28:07.519
the glory of its purpose. The tent served as

00:28:07.519 --> 00:28:12.359
a dwelling for God in the world. It is therefore

00:28:12.359 --> 00:28:15.500
a wonderful picture of Jesus Christ in whom dwelt,

00:28:15.500 --> 00:28:19.460
says Paul, the fullness of the Godhead in the

00:28:19.460 --> 00:28:26.799
flesh. Just as that tent became the place where

00:28:26.799 --> 00:28:32.000
God manifested His presence by the Shekinah,

00:28:32.059 --> 00:28:41.130
the brightness of His glory. So the body of the

00:28:41.130 --> 00:28:44.250
Lord Jesus Christ became the place where God

00:28:44.250 --> 00:28:50.549
caused his Shekinah to dwell. And as far as we

00:28:50.549 --> 00:28:53.170
know, only on one occasion in the life of the

00:28:53.170 --> 00:28:55.869
Lord Jesus did that glory ever manifest itself

00:28:55.869 --> 00:28:58.529
through his body, and that was on the Mount of

00:28:58.529 --> 00:29:01.609
Transfiguration when it shone through his skin.

00:29:03.730 --> 00:29:08.299
So great was that glory. But then again, it was

00:29:08.299 --> 00:29:15.700
veiled behind his flesh. The tabernacle is a

00:29:15.700 --> 00:29:21.339
picture of Jesus Christ in whom dwelt the fullness

00:29:21.339 --> 00:29:26.019
of the Godhead in a body. And the tabernacle

00:29:26.019 --> 00:29:31.440
is a place of the meeting between God and man.

00:29:33.579 --> 00:29:37.339
That was the purpose of it. So that there might

00:29:37.339 --> 00:29:40.099
be a meeting place between this God of great

00:29:40.099 --> 00:29:44.019
glory and splendor and sinful man. And so the

00:29:44.019 --> 00:29:46.259
tabernacle was built so that God might dwell

00:29:46.259 --> 00:29:49.279
among them and that there in that tabernacle

00:29:49.279 --> 00:29:54.039
they might meet with God. And so the Lord Jesus

00:29:54.039 --> 00:29:57.339
Christ is our tabernacle. He is the one who partook

00:29:57.339 --> 00:30:03.299
of our flesh and blood. That he might disarm

00:30:03.299 --> 00:30:08.079
the devil. and then serve, having sacrificed

00:30:08.079 --> 00:30:12.500
himself, having gone to serve as our great high

00:30:12.500 --> 00:30:17.140
priest. He is the one through whom we can meet

00:30:17.140 --> 00:30:24.220
with God. A little boy once looked up into the

00:30:24.220 --> 00:30:27.720
sky as he walked along with his mother, and he

00:30:27.720 --> 00:30:32.930
said, Mother, is God up there? She affirmed to

00:30:32.930 --> 00:30:36.170
him that in truth God was there in the heavens.

00:30:37.890 --> 00:30:40.309
A few steps further, the youngster said, well,

00:30:40.309 --> 00:30:42.589
wouldn't it be nice if he poked his head out

00:30:42.589 --> 00:30:47.890
once in a while so that we could see him? Kids

00:30:47.890 --> 00:30:50.750
have a way of putting it simply. We've all wondered,

00:30:50.809 --> 00:30:53.230
why doesn't God poke his head out once in a while?

00:30:53.289 --> 00:30:58.009
Hey, God did more than that. God came down out

00:30:58.009 --> 00:31:02.740
of that heaven. And he lived on this earth when

00:31:02.740 --> 00:31:09.259
the Word became flesh, and he tabernacled amongst

00:31:09.259 --> 00:31:14.380
us. And in him, the only begotten of the Father,

00:31:14.559 --> 00:31:22.019
we behold the glory of God. Have you met God

00:31:22.019 --> 00:31:28.140
in the person of Jesus Christ? Is your life today

00:31:28.140 --> 00:31:31.660
living for the honor and the glory of this God

00:31:31.660 --> 00:31:36.259
who has manifested Himself to us and who has

00:31:36.259 --> 00:31:38.920
opened the way into His glorious presence through

00:31:38.920 --> 00:31:44.660
His incarnate Son? What a picture we see in this

00:31:44.660 --> 00:31:50.640
album of Exodus of the Lord Jesus Christ. And

00:31:50.640 --> 00:31:52.920
may we, in truth, during this Christmas season,

00:31:53.059 --> 00:32:00.269
fall on our knees. and worship Him. Let's pray

00:32:00.269 --> 00:32:09.210
together. This morning as we have seen the Lord

00:32:09.210 --> 00:32:14.349
Jesus, as He is pictured for us in this Old Testament

00:32:14.349 --> 00:32:21.970
tent, and as we understand that He is that tent

00:32:21.970 --> 00:32:26.160
today where God meets with man. Have you come

00:32:26.160 --> 00:32:30.180
to God, my friend, through the only means that

00:32:30.180 --> 00:32:37.740
He's provided, His beloved Son? Do not seek to

00:32:37.740 --> 00:32:41.420
find God in any other place, in any other religion.

00:32:43.279 --> 00:32:46.039
Do not search for any other truth, for Jesus

00:32:46.039 --> 00:32:49.059
Christ is the fullness of both grace and truth.

00:32:49.759 --> 00:32:52.579
There is no truth that does not lead to Him.

00:32:55.150 --> 00:33:00.829
Have you trusted Him alone as your Savior? If

00:33:00.829 --> 00:33:06.150
not, will you do it today? Will you trust in

00:33:06.150 --> 00:33:11.410
this Jesus Christ whom God has sent so that you

00:33:11.410 --> 00:33:14.990
might come into His presence and be restored

00:33:14.990 --> 00:33:19.430
to Him? Oh, friend, how God loves you and desires

00:33:19.430 --> 00:33:24.480
that. Oh, that you would love God. Believe on

00:33:24.480 --> 00:33:30.940
Christ and desire him above all else. Dear Christian

00:33:30.940 --> 00:33:35.140
friend, let us worship him. If there is anything

00:33:35.140 --> 00:33:38.900
that veils his lovely face today in our hearts,

00:33:39.059 --> 00:33:43.799
let's rip that thing down. Let's set aside that

00:33:43.799 --> 00:33:52.460
idol and worship him. Fall on our knees. Would

00:33:52.460 --> 00:33:55.500
you stand together with me, please? And let's

00:33:55.500 --> 00:34:09.260
sing again. O come, let us adore Him. O come,

00:34:09.420 --> 00:34:15.340
let us adore Him.