The Tabernacle of God

“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth,” John 1:14.

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,’ ” Revelation 21:3.

“…Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit,” Ephesians 2:20b – 22.

Between John 1:14 and Revelation 21:3 we live in Ephesians 2:20 – 22. The Son came to bring many sons to glory (Hebrews 2:10), the Cornerstone came to make us living stones in Him, the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us so that He might tabernacle within us (John 14:23; 17:20 – 26). Advent is progressively rooted in history, in time and space – but then stretching beyond time and space into ages past, through the corridors of time, and into the ages to come. The Seed planted in Bethlehem, that fell into the ground to die on Good Friday, is the Seed that on Easter came out of the earth bearing a new creation, a new family – the Last Adam went into the ground, the Second Man arose from the dead.

Advent is more than an external observance, it is an internal reality for those in relationship with Jesus Christ. This internal reality is a shared reality, it is the reality of koinonia in the Trinity with one another – it is the reality of being built together as living stones to form a dwelling of God in the Spirit. The mystery of the Incarnation is the mystery of our life in Christ. God walked the earth as Jesus of Nazareth, He now walks the earth in His People. We are the Body of Jesus Christ, He is the Head (Ephesians 4:14 – 16).

One stone does not make a temple, and one leg or arm or eye or toe or kidney does not make a body.

Let us not just celebrate Advent, let us observe Advent with one another throughout this pilgrimage – let us allow Advent to continue in us and through us – let us learn to be the people of an ever-unfolding Advent in Jesus Christ.