When God came to dwell among us, John tells us that He became flesh and “tabernacled” among us, which is a fancy way of saying that He “pitched His tent” in our front yard. All throughout the Bible, God uses the image of the tabernacle to show us what it means to be in relationship with Him.

The Bible begins with God walking in friendship with His image bearers, Adam and Eve. Despite their betrayal, God did not abandon His people in the desert. Instead, He pursued them and dwelt among them through the Tent of Meeting. This is where Israel would come to worship, to receive the Word of God, and to have their sins forgiven.

When Jesus came, He pointed to Himself as the place where we now come to meet with God. He is the true Tabernacle. Jesus is God’s Word “in the flesh”, who offered Himself as a sacrifice to take away our sins and give us new life through His resurrection. As we dwell with Him (and “in” Him), we can look forward to the promise when God will one day “spread His tabernacle” over us in eternity (Revelation 7:15).