3.3.26 – Order from Chaos, Part 1

 I was privileged to be able to take a day off yesterday and do something I have not done in over eleven years: take a ski trip to Crystal Mountain. In moments like those, I wish I could spend three or four or five days teaching, skiing, and enjoying the company of people. However, our studies must go on while the memories live on :-)

In our Torah portion, Ki Tisa, we have moved along in the book of Exodus (Shemot – "names"). This week, my goal is to show you the big pattern, the big picture in Scripture related to the place that is to be built for the presence of God. From Exodus 25 until now, we have a blueprint for the Tabernacle given to Moses. If the people were to build this dwelling place (Ex. 25:8–9), then God would dwell in their midst.

Again, let me emphasize: this week is "big picture" language. In Genesis chapter 1, we have a creation story that creates order out of chaos. It is all about building a house. That is the definition of creation: to build a house. Why? To build a place for the presence of God, so that we may dwell in the midst of His creation. And of course, the first house that we see in Scripture is the cosmic house—the cosmos: heaven, earth, and the sea—three different parts, three different levels to this architectural design. Every temple in the ancient world had three parts to it: the inner chamber, where the king would rule; the middle chamber, where the priest would serve; and the outer court, where the commoners could have access to their king.

So that was the message of the heaven, earth, and sea language—to set the tone for the entire book we call the Bible. It was to establish order and stability in the world in which it was built. So, wherever a temple was built, order came, and there stability came, and there the king ruled. He brought blessing, fertility, and order to the sphere in which he ruled. That is exactly what we see in Genesis chapter 1 in the creation language. The conclusion on the seventh day has everything to do with the completion of a house—a house that God filled with His presence, and He ruled and reigned as King. There He brought order out of chaos (Gen. 1:2), stability, and maintained all of creation. Then He placed Adam into that sacred sphere as a representative, as an ambassador, to serve on His behalf in the ordered world.

In the natural world in which we live, I want to emphasize this point, especially this week in Ki Tisa. We will see that it is all about craftsmanship and carpentry—all architectural language. The artisan work from Bezalel and Oholiab was all associated with Genesis chapter 1—the ultimate in craftsmanship and artistry. All of this has to do with the concept of wisdom, because wisdom builds a house (Prov. 14:1):

"Wisdom builds her house, but folly with her own hands tears it down."
(Prov. 14:1)

The woman who built the house is called Wisdom (Prov. 8). So this is the language of Genesis chapter 1: the house is built on the seventh day, and the house is dedicated and inaugurated. When the Tabernacle is finished, the house is inaugurated, and then the King's presence will fill it! The house, when completely finished, is now fully functional and fully operational, and the enemies of God—the enemies of the King or the god—have been defeated. They are no longer in power, no longer ruling. This is why we have the imagery of Yeshua being hung on the tree—crucified on a tree that connected the point between heaven and earth. His mission, in part, was to defeat the enemies of this world, the kings and rulers of this world, and the ultimate ruler: death. That was the purpose of the temple—to be that place that brings order out of chaos.

Up to this point in Exodus, we have seen chaos coming forth in the plagues that were in Egypt (Gen. 6–12). All these cataclysmic events were to bring order out of chaos. And so the children of Israel are taken out of the land of Egypt and make their way through the sea. Then the key to the wilderness experience is not just that they ended up on a mountain. Yes, they would receive the tablets of stone, which are actually what we call the edut—the testimony of the King. But the King had to have a place to go, and so a dwelling place—a tabernacle—was built first before the King entered into His rule and reign and sat on the throne. And so the Torah became the edut (the testimony) of the King.

Every king was given a Torah in order to rule rightly with justice and righteousness. So that is the language of the Tabernacle. We see a plague has fallen in the wilderness (Ex. 32). Once again, this is chaos language. And now atonement money is given for the service of the Tent of Meeting—an equal amount (yesterday's study). Rich and poor, it was an equal amount (Ex. 30:12–15). Within this giving was a counting—a census—which has everything to do with maintaining the stability of the house. These things were part of the house, bringing order to the sphere in which it existed. All of this was to create the environment in which they lived—to be orderly and stable.

As I close this morning, let me ask you a simple question: Are you living in chaos, or is order coming out of chaos?

Happy Feast of Purim!

Shalom,
Alan

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